Siv & John in northern Lapland - July 2002

      
      Virihaure as seen from Padjelantaleden on July 26

   Staloluokta and Ritsem July 25 - 27

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The boat Langas from Saltoluokta tourist station, on our first leg to Ritsem and from there by helicopter to Staloluokta, took us over to the northern side of Lake Langas where we caught the bus for Ritsem at Kebnats, which is really just a parking lot and a  bus stop.

(The bus in this picture is the right one, but the photo was actually taken in Gällivare.)

But - there was going to be trouble. A bus was blocking the road up some way close to Ritsem and it was not clear at all that we would be able to catch our helicopter to go on to Stalo. The bus had broken down completely and later on we found out that it had taken more than one day to get it out of the way. I asked the Sami bus driver as we got back a couple of days later how things had gone. His only answer was 'I survived.' I believe that those quiet and strong guys who drive the buses up there get pretty tired of hysterical tourists who just HAVE TO catch the helicopter or whatever. Anyway, after a long waiting period in Suorva where mobile telephones were pretty handy, another bus arrived that took us on toward Ritsem on a road that was getting narrower and narrower. As we got to about 5 minutes away from Ritsem, we were in front of the broken down bus that was completely blocking the road. A heavy-set man with a big toolbox set out for the bus in trouble to see if he could fix the gear box that was broken. No way. Lucky for us, a friendly Sami from Ritsem had been alerted to the fact that two people were booked for the helicopter flight to Stalo. He told us to hop into his old Volvo. A car could get by, but not a bus. We never found out what happened to the other passengers, except for one group where a man walked back down to Kebnats from Suorva to pick up their own car at the parking lot. We met up with them again at the heliport in Ritsem. They were on their way into Sarek. Three fellows, one probably a son, and they were carrying very substantial backpacks with tent and sleeping bags. There is of course plenty of room for luggage in those helicopters.

This road along the northern side of Stora Lulevatten (the huge lake system that goes from far east of Saltoluokta to west of Ritsem and Vaisa towards Norway) did not exist 50 years ago and what we did at the time was take one boat up the lake (Langas, then Suorvajaure and finally Akkajaure) from Salto to Suorva power station where we had to change boats of course. We all had a nice lunch at the Suorva tourist station (which doesn't seem to exist any more - no need because of the road) and then changed boats to go on to Vaisaluokta. It was a pleasant day of boating at the time and Vaisaluokta, which we didn't get to see this time, was a marvel. This wonderful Sami village was burned down a few years later and even though it has been rebuilt, it cannot possibly be anything close to what it was in 1950. It was a complete summer Sami village with several large and small Sami huts (lappkåtor) and a newly built Sami church that was like nothing I have ever seen elsewhere. The pine wood was still fresh looking and it was majestic in its simplicity and its size.  The floor was covered with reindeer skins to sit on and except for the beauty of the wood itself, there were very few decorations. A simple wooden altar was in the front of this superb church.

An old Sami woman whom we befriended, even though you are often told that the Sami people prefer not to mingle with us Germanic Swedes, invited us to come into her magnificent hut. It was huge and she was a marvel of friendliness. She even let my mother take photos of her. On one side of her hut there was a treadle Singer sewing machine. I will of course never forget this visit as long as I live, the big and beautiful hut with the standard fireplace in the middle under the opening in the ceiling, the wonderful wrinkled little woman and the Singer sewing machine over by the side of the big hut.

However, this time we had to miss Vaisaluokta, and maybe it was better that way. I will always have the wonderful memory with me and I will try to forget about the sadness of the beauty that was wasted when an arsonist, an apparently sick man, burned down the village a couple of years after our visit. There is now a boat connection between Ritsem and Vaisa across Akkajaure, but it leaves Ritsem early in the morning, and it is probably planned mostly for people who want to enter into Sarek from Vaisa. There was just no way we could get that boat crossing to fit in with our somewhat cramped schedule. There are now tourist cabins at Akka too and we will probably plan on spending a night there next time around.

Instead, we were lucky to catch the helicopter to Staloluokta, thanks to the friendly Sami man who runs the little store in Ritsem and obviously also runs some kind of taxi service from Ritsem to Kebnats and maybe on to Gällivare. We only gave him a warm handshake and a big smile as thanks and that's all he wanted. He even helped us carry our somewhat heavy luggage to the helicopter.
 
It was a cloudy day but the flight was sensational.  We put on our  headphones and life vests and settled into the small cabin.
 
Flying over Vastenjaure was like a fairy tale. The friendly pilot from Lapplandsflyg told us what we were seeing down below. First we flew over Akkastugorna and then Kutjaure, the place we took the boat from 50 years ago, after a few hours' hike from Vaisa. I remember vividly how we nearly got lost on the moors, but we found a beautiful reindeer horn in a swamp and also finally the boat dock - in time for the departure. There were a couple of other passengers, but certainly no crowd. This unique boat trip took a few hours and we arrived at Stalo towards the evening.

This time we saw a bunch of tiny houses down in Kutjaure and then the incredible beauty of Vastenjaure opened up down below. We were leaving majestic Akka behind us on the left, partly in the clouds, the way it is most of the time.  The snowy mountains over to our right were most likely in Norway. It was difficult to imagine how one and the same boat could have taken us from Kutjaure to Staloluokta, but that is the way it was. The water close to Kutjaure seemed to be mostly spotted with islands and sand bars today and it is of course possible that there was more water in those lakes at the time.  
 
 The snowy mountains over to our right are most likely in Norway.

We landed at the helicopter space at Stalo and our three fellow passengers set out for Sarek with their enormous backpacks.
 
This is where we found out that we had brought too much luggage. We had to drag it up a hill to the house, part of the way on planks and partly on what might be called a path. We decided that bigger backpacks and no rolling piece of luggage would be de rigueur for our next visit. Lugging on a suitcase down to the lake from the house was a drag that we don't want to have to repeat. We'll pack more wisely next time. In Ritsem too, this darn rolling piece of luggage was ridiculously uncomfortable.

The house is roomy and pleasant even though there is no electricty or running water. The cabins on the Padjelantaleden were set up by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Svenska Naturskyddsföreningen) but they are now run by Sami families. You pay for your stay and you are supposed to abide by the rules of the house. Which means, for instance, taking your shoes off when you get inside the front door and get water at the pump once you have used some. Cleaning of one area or another is allotted to each room - four bunk beds to each room - so that once you get inside, you know which section it is your responsibility to take care of. It seems to work just fine, even though a couple of German ladies complained about young people not getting water after they had used some.  Our only small complaint was that there was not even a peg to hold on to when climbing up to the higher bunkbed - to lighten the task for the weary wanderer!
 
On the left is the house and the small church as seen from up the hill. This is where the river Stalojåhkå runs into Virihaure.

On the right is sunset over the lake the first evening in Stalo.

A close-up of the church - kåtakyrka - with bell tower below. And below on the right is John getting water at the pump. He carried in three buckets so we felt we had done our share of the communal work. The gas stove in the kitchen was a little tricky to get lighted but with the somewhat dry help of one of the German women we finally managed. In the morning, before leaving, it was our job to clean the dining room, sweep, wipe off tables and do whatever else needed doing.
 
  The outhouse was a few hundred meters away, which seemed a bit unnecessary as far as distance goes, but there are four spotlessly clean 'heads' - as we say in this family.

The simple and beautiful interior of the Sami church - reindeer skins to sit on and a simple altar. It is very similar to the Sami church we admired so much in Vaisaluokta in 1950, but on a smaller scale.

We had been told by our contact person at STF that we could probably get something to eat, smoked trout (röding) and some other things from the Sami families who live and fish at Staloluokta. That turned out to be right, but there is no way you should come to Stalo without bringing your own provisions. A good breakfast and some vacuum-packed food for dinners is the most important thing to carry in your backpack. We now know how to do it right next time. People often leave things behind that they don't need any more, such as sugar and powdered milk and obviously you don't have to carry things like dish soap. But we should at least have brought some oat meal to cook for breakfast, some tea bags, instant coffee and a few more essentials.  Tunnbröd (thin dry bread, very good, a Norrland specialty) you can buy at the kiosk from the Sami family up the hill, but many things can  be carried along in the pack without adding a lot of weight.  
                                         
In the old days we used to carry vacuum-packed food and that is probably still the way it is done. I remember that pea soup and brown beans were among the dishes that seemed delicious after a long day's hiking. Dried fruit and chocolate are good things to carry along too. 

The helicopter (left)  is Fiskflyg carrying away another German woman who arrived from Kvikkjokk (Tuottar) with her family and a badly sprained ankle. 
 
The second day, we set out on the Padjelantaleden, walking some way up north, just high enough to get a good view over the lake. We made it up to a high point where we had a wonderful view over the lake, even though the mountains on the other side of Virihaure (in Norway) were mostly covered by clouds.
 
We were up on a hill here when we saw the rain clouds coming in from the south-east and decided to turn back.

Views of the fabulous Virihaure as the rain clouds closed in and finally burst. The colors on the lake were unbelievably beautiful. I could just have stayed there and stayed and stayed, admiring the colors on the lightly ruffled surface of the water and the mysterious mountains in the background, half covered in mist. We were pretty soaked when we got back, just in time to have a quick bite, get our things  together and catch the helicopter back to Ritsem.




This walk on the Padjelantaleden was a most memorable one - the views over Virihaure were sheer magic, the colors on the water going from green to blue to grey.







I will never forget the shock of beauty from our first visit to Stalo in 1950, as we arrived by boat from Kutjaure. The mountains in Norway on the far side of Virihaure were like gleaming jewels.

One Sami hut was the only place for tourists to sleep in back in those days. Reindeer hides were available for added comfort and you made your bed with whatever you could find, leaves and dry moss, which had mostly been left there from former occupants. We were all carrying sleeping bags of course, mounted on our packs.

I am not sure if I remember right here, but it seems to me that the cooking was done in a big kettle attached to a chain hanging down from the center of the hut, by the hole in the ceiling. There certainly was a kettle like that. In Vaisaluokta, there had been the same kind of arrangement. And I know that we always had a warm meal every evening and a good breakfast in the morning.  Water was available from a pipe attached to a tiny natural stream coming down the hillside. We just fell in love with Stalo back in 1950 and we spent two nights there, just to enjoy this earthly paradise. This stretched our food supply a bit too much and I remember well that the last day between Nunjes and Kvikkjokk we had to eat cloud berries and bake some bread over an open fire.

There was a middle-aged philosopher already at the Sami hut  in Stalo in 1950. He would just be standing there taking in the scenery, as if he were storing up on beauty and peace for the rest of the year. He said he just had to come to Stalo every summer. After that he could stand his humdrum life and civilization for the rest of the year.

And it was as if things had not changed very much. The first day in Stalo, towards the evening, while it was still perfect daylight, I came up behind John and a man talking and looking out over Virihaure. It turned out to be the brother of the German ladies who were a bit fussy about the cleaning and water fetching. He was also just standing there admiring the scenery and he was more or less saying the same thing as our man way back in 1950. One of the women spoke perfect Norwegian and they were going on to the Norwegian mountains after Stalo.

When you leave Stalo and take off eastwards in the direction of Kvikkjokk, you get up on a plateau where the view over the lake is unique in its beauty. The walk up the Padjelantaleden and the view from the helicopter were the closest we got to relive this magic.

This panorama was taken from up the hill on the Padjelantaleden. The mountains over in Norway are covered in clouds and understandably so, since there was going to be a cloudburst a couple of minutes later. Once again we admire the astoundingly beautiful shades of green on the water.
 
The flight back was just as magnificent as the arrival. Somewhat of an adventure too since we were in rain storms a couple of times and the pilot was constantly in radio communication with a colleague in the vicinity to make sure they were not about to run into each other. It cleared up some before we landed in Ritsem and this is the last picture we took from the helicopter, looking west over Vastenjaure coming back.

The pictures of Akka were taken after the landing at the heliport in Ritsem.

As was the case with so many other sites, we saw them in such different weather conditions back in 1950. It seems to have been clear weather all the time that year. Or could it be that my memory deceives me!? However, we were told that the peaks of Akka are usually partly covered in clouds.

  Akka (Stortoppen 2015m, Borgtoppen 1963m) with Akkajaure in the forground. We are now back on terra firma and ahead of us is the climb up the hill to Ritsem tourist station. There is no restaurant there either, so again, we had misplanned the food detail. ( And again, they could make it a little easier to climb up to the upper bunkbed - a little peg to hold on to is all it would take.) The next day, however, we were back in Saltoluokta (no breakdowns on the road this time), and it was, after all, a good feeling to be back in 'civilization', being spoiled once again by having excellent meals served and hot water showers. There is hot water and electricity in Ritsem, but you are totally dependent on yourselves for food.

At the little store next door, unfortunately, you can only buy big packs of everything. But, the same way as in Stalo, people do leave things behind and it helps a lot. Most of the electric stoves were in working order and there was even an electric kettle for fast water heating. Oh, glorious civilization!


 
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