Tarfala

Left the mountain station after doing some resupply just to find that Christoph has been waiting for me outside the whole time since he didn’t want to leave our backpacks alone. Oh no! I felt so stupid. Poor Christoph!
After he finished his chores while it was my turn watching the backpacks, we said good bye since he’s headed for Kebnekaise and would continue north along Kungsleden but also avoiding it as much as he could because of Fjällräven Classic. Too many people. I told him about Durlings Väg and he planned taking his gigantic backpack all the way up to Kaffeedalen and then over to this route. Sun was shining, no clouds in the sky. I congratulated him to this unique opportunity to climb Kebnekaise in such conditions. Five years ago I was just as lucky. Unfortunately later that day clouds drew in and painted everything gray in gray. We never met again so I don’t know how it went for him.

I started walking towards Darfálvággi. Trying to be super smart I went off trail to avoid the masses from the other direction. After a while my brain got hold of enough oxygen to be able to evaluate my situation and it dawned on me that this was just a super stupid idea. Of course there was a stream and I knew that I’d have to walk along side this stream but on the other side. And there was a bridge. And usually there are good reasons to have a bridge, and so it was. That stream runs down a steep canyon, basically just white water. No way to just easily cross it. Shamefully I made my way down to the bridge, backtracking to join the official trail. Nice camp spots on the way but useless to me right now. The trail up to Tarfala on the other side is steep. At least with a full stomach. I start to realize my stomach is more than just full. Hiker hunger had gotten hold of me and I had been eating uncontrollably. “All you can eat”. Not “all you should eat”. Now I’m having deep regrets. Until then I was under the illusion I would reach the research station up there, take a look at the glaciers and already begin the steep ascend to that saddle above that is on the route over to Gaskkasvággi. Maybe I could camp somewhere in between?
The closer I got the more I understood there was no way to find a camp spot anywhere. It’s just pure rocks. Everywhere. And the situation with my stomach wasn’t exactly uplifting either. Camp by Tarfalastugan? What would that place be like?
But first I got to get a glimpse on all those glaciers. It was a devastating view. You could clearly see immediately how massive and impressive they once must have been and how thin and retracted they now are. I looked up their names. Storglacieren, Isfallsglacieren. Isn’t there also Rabots glacier? No. It’s not visible from here. Alright.
From all the stunning I lost the marked trail and stumbled my way around the research station. At the very end of this valley lays Tarfalastugan. Thanks to the clouds, that have eaten up the wonderful blue sky from just a couple hours before, it looked like a dark and cold place. Hostile. All gray and brown. Is it even open? Is someone there? Using the tiny telescope I got some years ago I could see the blinds open. Hooray! I expected to be the only guest. But when I got in I saw some shoes standing there already. Turns out there were quite some people. Like four or so. Climbers. No hikers. Quiet people who don’t talk much. Especially if you’re not a climber it seems. Anders, the host is super friendly. He’s the nicest and sweetest guy. We speak Swedish and he explains he lives in Stockholm too. That they now have a sauna (whaaaaat???!!!) and that he’d heat it up immediately but that I’d have to find my way around on my own since he’s going to visit his son and won’t be back before a couple of hours later that evening. What? Well, guess I don’t need to understand everything.
Back to the main cabin, while unpacking, some guy approaches me and explains in shiny details the exact sauna rules. When I reply that I kinda know and that it is not the first time having sauna for me, he elaborates, now in English, that the day before some guests misbehaved in the very worst way (“not refilling the buckets of water”) and went off telling me that we’d run shifts and that I’d be the first to go. “Too crowded otherwise!”. We’re just five but hey!
The sauna is brand new. Electric. Now that they have electricity, thanks to new, stronger power lines for the research station, they can afford such luxury. But of course at the cost of the old charm of wood fired stoves and gas lights. Can’t have it all, I suppose. The sauna at Teusajaurestugorna is still my favorite. Wood fed, can’t beat that. Or wait, the one at Stáloluokta was even better.
Since I had the room to myself after those other two climbers left it for some room of their own, I open windows to get fresh air in and sleep like a baby. Until I wake up because I need to pee. Those cabins don’t have toilets. You need to go outside for that. But it’s raining and there is a storm rattling the blinds of the cabin. Sigh.Leggi altro