I'm back!

I've been out adveturing in europe for some weeks. On the road it's not always as easy to find free hot spot even though we live in 2011. This I find great, beleve it or not but there are still a few places in world were you can be completley disconected, I love it! Today is another traveling day, back to Sweden and Stockholm. Getting prepered and psyched for our race on monday, sept 5. I will be back with a longer update from past four/five weeks shortly!

Some pictures from my time off in Sweden!

Arvid kitesurfing on Alskär.

Nice sunset!

 Beautiful!

Another sunset, ocean looks cold and angry!

.Warming fire.

Preparation

I`m back in Sweden for two weeks and meet up with Jonas, my partner for Island to Island. This is what we produced toghter in some small lakes and the amazing nature in and around Växjö. Unfortunately I have no right´s for any music to this movie. So pic your own favorite song, hit play and get inspierd. It show you how Jonas and I are training for ÖtillÖ. 

Last week I have been touring around Sweden. Done lots of traning, meeting friends and seen more new beautiful places. Today I´m back on the road, buy bus to Åre, close to were I grew up. Meeting up with more good friend and my mum. 

What´s up, What´s down? Beautiful evening!

You wake up to another day in paradise!

Klients with the great backdrop of the Mont Blanc Massif from the Italien side.

I wake up, it’s 7:00 am and sweet music from Milow sparkles out my iphone. I get up; pack my backpack for what the day might offer, climbing gear, wetsuit, snacks, water and head down for breakfast.

The morning breakfast is a typically glorious Alpine breakfast with lots of good cheese, thinly sliced späck, this with some hot steaming bread. Fresh fruit sliced into my bowl of yogurt with various nuts and a bit of muesli. A large cup of tea puts down on the table and a glass of orange juice is slipping down while I'm waiting for the tea to cool slightly. After breakfast I send my luggage to next hotel and grab my backpack. (Well, okay then, a toilet visit is mandatory at this time to leave more room for breakfast.) I also brush my teeth and cover my face with a thick layer of sun protection, factor +50.

8:30 am, we meet our group of enthusiastic Hikers and head off on today's Hike. Around 1.00 pm it’s time for a lovely picnic usually perched on a saddle or a pass between two valleys in the open air. If I´m luckey enough, there might be a mountain lake were I could have a swim and do 1-2 kilometer while the group are having lunch. Buy this time we have made 1000-1200 vertical meters up and up to a few kilometers in distends. At around 5:00 pm we step into the next town or village after 8 hours of hiking and there is a new hotel with our luggage waiting. Dinner is served 7:30 pm so during the dead time in between I try to take a run around 6-10 kilometers. Dinner is usually served with 3-7 dishes and takes about two hours, around 9:30 pm we round off dinner. At this point most people are done for today, however, we (me and Daniel) walks up to our room, collect the climbing gear we need, put our headlamps on and head out to climb until around midnight. To sleep after a day like this is not achieved to be a major problem, you happily wake up the day after and do the same thing again. All days do not always look like this but the last 10 days in all cases =)

Show of move buy Daniel

Last pitch

This two pictures were taken in the morning of july 11. Daniel, Mike and I did a 5 pitch climb underneath the Le Brévent lift in Chamonix before I had to take of for work at noon. I travel for 4,5 hours buy train to Meiringen, meet my new klients and had dinner. I finished this day with 7 kilometers of running, a nice cool bath in a beautiful little lake I spotted from the train coming into Meiringen, did some strokes and headed back to my hotel.

Gruetzi Schwiez

From the right, Eiger-Mönch-Jungfrau

Eiger

Uphill, running for Mürren

Lauterbrunnen valley

Swedish summer =)

This time, without warning Zurich and Switzerland gave us a hard welcome. The Promised ski country who always treated us so well. Not a vacant hotel room in town! After two hours of searching, we were puzzled by a Marlbro smoking young Swiss German who managed to arrange a room in Bern. Which meant a train back in the same direction we just came from for about an hour, then finally some deserved sleep after 15 hours traveling.

The day after Keni and I split up. Keni went to Appenzell to meet up with Daniel and I to Mearingen to follow in the footsteps of Sherlock Holmes or, rather, explore the Bernese Oberland and central Switzerland. After a short bus ride, the rain beating against the window, I stoped by Schwarswald Alp. The rain hung in the air and the immediate future was to become a thoroughly soaked history. After three hours of running in thunder and lightning, at over 2000 meters altitude weather finally become clear when I ran into Grindelwald. Grindelwald is perhaps best known for it guarding the north side of the Eiger, a legendary peak in the Alps. In the afternoon I ran the last hours into Wengen mountain village located in the neighboring valley to Grindelwald. Who are also proud organizers of the Wengen World Cup Ski downhill race.

The weather continued to persist with rain the second day, actually quite nice. So much easier to run in the rain, the air becomes easier to breathe, you've probably know this feeling yourself. Lauterbrunnen invited to a magnificent valley that stretches for miles south of the city surrounded by steep rock walls. Waterfall after waterfall rinse out the rocks several hundred meters before they reach the valley floor. Deep in the valley is a charming little “hutt” which I later about a week or so from now will be staying at. The village of Murren is 3 hours up from the Hutt. Murren is balancing built on top of one of the massive rock walls and the village's living are based on tourism and skiing. After running up the steep trail I ended my day here with a 2 km swim in the local bathhouse, and a good dinner at the hotel.

The last day started with a klätterstieg in nice sunshine. 1.5 hours later I thanked for the loan of the climbing gear that I borrowed from the hotel owner, tied on my shoes and ran along the mountain side toward Isenfluh. A few hours later, with the help of Swiss engineer skill I transported myself the last way down to first Wilderwil and finally Interlaken.

Now I`m in Chamonix meeting up with a new group of people. They will walk around The Mount Blanc Massif in eight days with Daniel and me.

Arrivederci Dolomiti

Dolomiti

Milano trainstation

Ken & Me

After three great weeks in Italia we are now leaving the Dolomites behind for Switzerland. I have some days of before I start working again in Chamonix. I will spend my time of running through Central Switzerland, about 100 km in two and a half days. Just traveling light with my backpack.  I look forward to exploring as many new wonderful valleys, people and views as possible in central alps. 

Lago del Sorapis

Lago del Sorapis with Dito di Dio

My fanclub are sharing and taking photos!

Took a quick opportunity for a cold swim in this beautiful mountain lake during the esspresso break. Talk about high altitude training, 1950 meters (5850 feet) above sea level. Luckily the rock peak of Dito di Dio (Finger of God) was watching over me.