I’m going to the north of the country to see firsthand how Sweden pampers its residents and tourists. This article is my travel diary! I’m writing and updating it in real time. Follow me…

December 30

13.30. Dark. Polar night.

For about one month a year in Kiruna, the sun doesn’t rise over the horizon. We made it on time, for the two last days… or better to say nights. I look forward to seeing the shortest day.

The opportunity to observe the polar night is only in several places in Norway, the USA, Russia, and Sweden. These areas are located at latitudes above 67°24′. The polar night doesn’t mean complete darkness, as if we are used to imagining it, the sky is rather painted in different shades of grey and covered with a pink haze.

It turned out to be a challenge for the body. It seems that the evening has dragged on and that it’s time to sleep, but it’s still only 4 pm. Very unusual sensations, but it pulls out of the usual everyday life.

We climbed deep to the north of Sweden hoping to get real winter. Kiruna is a lovely little town. We were greeted by snowdrifts, snow-covered trees like from a fairy tale, and a complete lack of wind. Therefore, the current -8°C feels fairly good.

December 31

10.00. Well, not as dark, like a gloomy day in Stockholm, but with fluffy snow. Thanks to the snow, everything around is white and the horizon merges with the ground. Today we tried to get to Kebnekaise, the largest mountain in Sweden. Its height is 2,106 m. We arrived at Nikkaluokta village and decided to walk a few kilometers to the Láddjujávri Lake. From there, a gorgeous view of the mountain range opens, we never dreamed of getting here more. We started to move with enthusiasm, but after half an hour we realized that the road was heading in a different direction and it began to be covered with snow.

There was so much snow that getting off the road I fell through to my waist. As a result, the road ended, and it became completely unclear where to go. When it was snowing, we didn’t see any landmarks, we also saw mountains from all sides – it was confusing. The navigator didn’t want to point in the right direction. After a couple of hours of vain attempts, we realized that we couldn’t get there ourselves. We decided to leave the trip to Kebnekaise until the next visit to Lappland. But not in winter. It means that a new goal can be to reach the top.

January 1

Welcome to 2021! We get it on reindeer skins around a campfire on the shore of a frozen lake. We got a company of about 40 people – tourists from all over Europe.

But the morning of the new year became more entertaining. After all, we went on a tour on a dog sledge.

An incredible girl, Helen Mullane, was our guide. She is positive and driven. In 2019, Helen competed in the legendary Femund race, a 650 km in the wild of the Norwegian tundra at -20°C. In this race for the tough Norwegian men-mushers (the name used for the humans who drive the husky teams), a fragile Irish girl looks uncommonly and arouses undisguised admiration.

There was chaos in the clearing with the teams and incredible barking. It turns out the dogs wanted to hit the road as soon as possible. Our group of 10 had got Alaskan and Siberian huskies. Husky is a specially bred sledge breed. They are highly active and can burn up to 13,000 calories per day. Alaskan huskies are faster, and have longer legs, but are less resilient. Siberian Huskies are smaller and slower but stronger.

We got a super team of six dogs – extremely fast, bigger than the rest – they constantly strove to overtake the front carriages from the side. The musher stands on the heels of the sledge, and during the entire journey firmly holds on to the back of the sledge, which must not be released from hands even during a stop. Sled dogs always run. They can be stopped only with a special break with great effort, and then you must feel the reproachful look of the whole team, which turns to you with the question: “Hey, what’s the matter?” Having released the brake, the dogs immediately run forward.

Each team of dogs and the driver is a single unit, a team that works together to achieve the goal. Along the way, a hundred percent trust suddenly appears between a person and a group of dogs. The team smoothly travels to and from the mountains, helping each other in difficult places. It is an indescribable feeling. On this day, we covered 24 km of lakes and forests. It was a superstitious start to 2021.

January 2

9.30. Snowmobile trip.

In general, if you want to see more beauty and get an adrenaline rush – then such tours are what you need. Here in Lappland, you can find morning, afternoon, and night rides. Amusements for every taste: want to have a break for lunch, where moose burgers will be cooked for you on the fire? Maybe winter fishing is right for you? You can also go at night to watch the northern lights or climb into the inaccessible corners of the Abisko National Park during the day. In general, it depends on your preference and wallet size. Recommended!

We were almost on our way to Abisko until we received the news that there was no snow, and the trip was cancelled. This is news! I mean, there is no snow?! The other day not far from there we completely fell through to the waist! As a result, we implemented the plan differently and drove through the lakes and forests to the Ice Hotel. The ride was super, I was most happy about the opportunity to drive at high speeds. But the decorous off-road through the forest at sunset was incredible: branches in the face, a great distance between snowmobiles – such that you feel alone in the forest – it’s so mesmerizing! As a result, we got 32 km of pure buzz.

17.00. Let’s try to visit a reindeer farm before it’s too late.

By the way, we’re hoping for the northern lights. The polar nights are over. Today was the shortest day – a whole hour with a wonderful sunset, although we did not see the sun itself. But the clouds are slightly diverging and there is a chance that we will see the northern lights. I crossed my fingers …

January 3

9.00. We leave for the Abisko National Park! Abisko is a landscape reserve two hundred kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, and almost on the border with Norway. Abisko has a deep canyon of the Abisku River, Lake Torneträsk, which freezes over 6-7 months a year. And many, many mountains. In summer, the sun does not set here for exactly one month – from June 13 to July 13.

The trip to Abisko is 85 km from Kiruna, but the weather in Abisko is completely different. The difference was 10 degrees, and Abisko turned out to be very warm. There really wasn’t much snow, and the first thing that caught my eye was the bare trees. The fact is that in the vicinity of Kiruna, every tree is covered with a huge layer of snow and therefore everything looks like a fairy tale. There were few spruces and pines in Abisko, so a palisade of bare bushes and trees greeted us. But the mountains and rivers were covered with snow and looked amazing.

The Abisko is not a one-day attraction. The reserve stretches over 77 square kilometers. We wanted to climb the mountain, but the lift and the Abisko station were closed. We looked at the frozen waterfalls, Lake Torneträsk (which by the way didn’t look frozen), and the mountain range, which could be seen from the lake. Then we practically ran through the forests (due to incomprehensible signs) to Lake Abiskujávri. We had no idea about the lake, we just took a course to the enormous mountains. Efforts were crowned with success – the lake was covered with crystal ice, and we got great photos of the mountains in the sunset.

15.00. Nothing is visible again. In general, the new goal is now to go to Abisko during the warmer months. For instance, at the end of September. There is a chance to go hiking in the mountains, enjoy Aurora every day, and fish at the foot of the Kebnekaise.

21.00. I am still waiting for the northern lights, but there is less hope. Well, we can predict Aurora a few days before the event. The glow is caused by the collision of charged particles with atoms in the upper atmosphere. Aurora occurs in the circumpolar regions during periods of geomagnetic activity.

So, I analyzed the K-index for recent days, the index of geomagnetic activity with an integer in the range 0–9 with 1 being calm and 5 or more indicating a geomagnetic storm. The numbers above 4 promise Aurora in the coming days. But the index stubbornly showed numbers no higher than 3.

Since it’s impossible to sit outside for a long time in the cold, I was also constantly tracking the info on the Space Weather Prediction Center website. Seems none of the lights today.

January 4

10.00. Perfect day, -17°C, blue sky. Today is only walking in our timetable.

19.00. It’s time to talk about food and housing.

Residence. There are a lot of hotels, hostels, and camping here. There is even an Icehotel. It consists of a large complex where you can rent a house, a room, or live in a real ice suit. The room temperature is -5°C. They rebuilt the ice section every year. This winter, the 31st reincarnation of the ice-hotel ICEHOTEL #31 took place – this is the name today. The hotel is in the village of Jukkasjärvi, on the bank of a river, next to the Sami Village Museum. In the hotel itself, you can go on a separate excursion.

Staying at a hotel in Kiruna directly is a little boring in my opinion. There is not so much to see and visit. Living in Kiruna is a good option for those who come to ski. A small ski resort is located right in the city. And also, for those who love the familiar comfort of hotel chains like Scandic.

You can live in Abisko Village. But this is an option for those who want to devote a few days to walking in the park and observing Aurora. It is in Abisko that one of the best spots in the world (!) for observing the Aurora. It is also convenient to go to Norway from there.

We lived in Camp Alta 15 km from Kiruna. I had my eye on this place back in the summer. Wonderful camp with bungalows in the forest by the lake Alttajärvi. Highest marks for service, hospitality, and list of entertainment (the camp offers itself without reference to tour operators). The activity includes warm clothes. But you can also rent mittens, hats, and the like separately. Camp Alta is also a good spot to watch the northern lights as there are no city lights around the camp. But be prepared for a bathroom in a separate building.

Tips: take bungalows numbered D1-3.

My rate: 5/5.

Northern cuisine.

Northern food is, first, venison, elk, fish, mushrooms, cranberries, and cloudberries. Cloudberry jam is sold at every turn. They also like VERY peppery soups here, probably to warm up the body in the cold. In the Sami village, there is also a café with their national cuisine. However, we were unable to try it due to the COVID-19 limitations. We found the best entrecote at Mommas Steakhouse and the best venison and snacks at SPIS. In general, I didn’t notice any peculiarities of the cuisine in those places where we were. The food was not typically Swedish, but not special either. The menu was intercultural everywhere we went. Perhaps we missed something or there were few opportunities to visit the original places.

January 5

I want to finish my journey with a piece of history. The north of Sweden is where the Sami live, who are the indigenous population of northern Europe. Their number is very small, in Sweden, there are about 20,000 people. The ancient Sami population lived on a much larger territory than their present territory. The main occupations of the Sami, depending on the habitat of a particular group and natural conditions, were reindeer husbandry, fishing, sea, and land hunting.

When we were going north, my checklist included a visit to a real Sami village. Google gave out the village of Jukkasjärvi and I was sure that we would come to a real village where people live, work, do their own thing, and at the same time receive guests, sell souvenirs, show their way of life. I have seen such places in other countries. What was my surprise when we found an ordinary museum with an installation of a pair of huts and walking deer! In addition, the cafe with the traditional cuisine was closed and we didn’t even manage to get closer to these people even in a gastronomic way. But I’ll leave that on the list for next time.

The fact is that our trip was just a tiny test visit on the way to the discovery of the north of Sweden. Next time I’ll be more prepared and try to visit Sami. Also, my list of must-see places now includes hiking to the top of Kebnekaise, lunch at Enoks overlooking the mountain range, Northern fishing, a few days in Abisko climbing the peaks, daily viewing of the northern lights from different points, and a visit to Sarek National Park. I think the end of September will be a great time to implement these plans! Well, let’s see!