The Café with Kerosene and Freeze-Dried Meals
On the way from Gällivare to Ritsem the bus stopped at Sjöfallet Cafe, an atmospheric café in the middle of nowhere. You can have filter coffee there and do some shopping. The shelves held neatly arranged freeze-dried meals, stove gas, and even white gas and kerosene.
A small shop in the center of Ritsem, a few minutes’ walk from the pier, was equipped in a similar way. It was the last chance to restock before heading onto the trail. We already had everything.
From Ritsem the afternoon ferry took us across the lake to Änonjálmme.
The First Reindeer
We started hiking around two in the afternoon. Because of the change of plans we had lost half a day, but at least the weather was kind: warm and dry. The first stretch followed the marked Padjelantaleden trail. On the wooden boardwalks we moved quickly and comfortably.
After about nine kilometers we came across a spot so good that we decided to stay, even though we had not covered much that day. A clean stream with an easy way down to the water, level ground for the tent, makeshift wooden tables with benches. And two curious reindeer, the first of the trip.
Two Swedes from Stockholm were there too, a mother and her daughter. They had been on the trail for two weeks, with one week still ahead of them. They had set out on a trek of about 300 kilometers.
On Sámi Land
The Swedes told us a little about the region. This is the land of the Sámi, an indigenous people whose territory is cut by the borders of four countries: Sweden, Norway, Finland and Russia. The local Sámi, known as mountain Sámi, herd reindeer. They have their own languages, a flag and a parliament representing their interests.
Sámi names sound exotic to us and are hard to pronounce. At the little bridge over the stream next to our camp stood a sign reading Sjnjuvtjudisjávrásjjåhkå. Even the Swedes could not read it. No wonder, since the Sámi languages do not belong to the Indo-European family, like Polish or Swedish, but to the Uralic one, like Finnish or Hungarian.
The downpour we had expected never came. There were only a few drizzles. The first day on the trail was over, and the whole of Sarek was still ahead of us.
Along the route
Day 2 in photographs. Select an image to enlarge it.
