In a previous blog entry we mentioned that there are plenty of rivers and rapids in northern Sweden. We have quite a few of those represented here in this blog entry. But we also want to point out that hiking also is a big thing in Sweden. There are many interesting hiking trails ready to explore for anyone who wish to do so. Below we will write about four of the hikes we made during our vacation. Three of them are along rivers, and one is along a former river. All three hikes are short and can be walked without bringing anything other than perhaps a bottle of water and some sunscreen.
The nature centre is located next to the Vindel River Rapids. The rapids themselves are nice but not really spectacular. The hike was maybe four or five kilometres long and encircled the rapids.
In Sweden there are thousands of remnants left from the Ice Age. We have in previous blog entries posted photos of a kettle, rebound and massive deposits of sand and gravel.
Glaciers arent stationary. They behave a bit like a liquid and they very slowly float down and out. While doing so they grind the rock they float across and stones of all sizes then trapped in the ice.
When temperatures are above freezing point glaciers melt. Rivers can then be formed within or under the ice. The stones that were trapped in the ice often end up in these rivers and are deposited where the flow of the water is no longer strong enough to flush them further. When the circumstances are right, a so called esker, a long thin hill made of debris, is then created.
Ice Age River Trail follows a river that ran in the ice during the ice age. The section of the trail that we hiked follower a very impressive esker. We cant say how high the esker actually is, but 20 meters is a conservative estimate.
Mrdseleforsen is the name of a series of rapids in Vindel River and also the name of a nature reserve protecting those rapids. This nature reserve is easily accessible since there is a network of trails there and several suspension bridges allowing the rapids to be crossed.
Next to Mrdseleforsen is a restaurant named Wild River. This restaurant is open in summer only and their speciality is to find ingredients for the food in the wild such as edible flowers, mushrooms and berries. The meat and the fish they get from local farmers, hunters and fishermen.
The food is expensive but it was totally worth it, because it was some of the best food weve ever eaten. If you are considering eating there, make sure to book a table well in advance because it is a small but very popular restaurant.
Near Wild River and Mrdseleforsen is a small village named msele. We went there because we had to buy some things in the supermarket. msele is one of those places that typically is totally
anonymous, and even unknown, to most Swedes. msele would have been just that had it not been for three people being murdered there on July 3 1988. The murders and the hunt for the murderes made big headlines in the tabloids for several weeks that summer. Most Swedes old enough to remember the late remember the msele Murders.
msele may not be known for it, but they also have an old and rather pretty watermill in the village centre.
Vilhelmina is one of three small towns that were named after the Swedish queen Frederica of Baden (the other two towns are Fredrika and Dorotea by the way). We stopped in Vilhelmina mainly because it was on the way to Vildmarksvgen, where we were heading.
But we decided to make a stop for the night because they have a hostel in a historical church town. After having visited one church town in Lule and and one in Pite we felt that we wanted to stay a night in a genuine church town now that we had the chance to do so.
This section of the Ice Age River Trail follows an impressive esker. We cant say how high the esker actually is, but 20 meters is a conservative estimate.
We can also mention Trappstegsforsen/Stairway Rapids which are not far from Vilhelmina.
