"THE ACHIEVEMENT SEEKS US"

Sweden’s KUNGSLEDEN is a remote long-distance trail running through Arctic landscapes, where spectacular wildlife and Swedish culture put it in a class of its own.

WORDS

The words were carved in Swedish into a smooth white boulder, flecked with grey crystals. “Insatsen söker oss inte vi insatsen.” Midday, late summer, high on a mountainside in the Arctic Circle. Hot sunlight baked the tundra and wrung sweat from my face, while a sharp breeze quickly dried it to salt. I used my phone to translate the inscription: “The achievement seeks us, not we the achievement.” Which seemed very apt, as it felt like a decent achievement to have reached this spot, after a 70km hike through Swedish Lapland. But this was not my goal. I had kit on my back to last three weeks as I followed the Kungsleden – The King’s Trail – for another 390km south through Swedish Lapland. Around me, the terrain showed the colours and…

You're reading a preview of

Trail United Kingdom (Digital) - 1 Issue, August 2024

DiscountMags is a licensed distributor (not a publisher) of the above content and Publication through Zinio LLC. Accordingly, we have no editorial control over the Publications. Any opinions, advice, statements, services, offers or other information or content expressed or made available by third parties, including those made in Publications offered on our website, are those of the respective author(s) or publisher(s) and not of DiscountMags. DiscountMags does not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness, or usefulness of all or any portion of any publication or any services or offers made by third parties, nor will we be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in any Publication, or your use of services offered, or your acceptance of any offers made through the Service or the Publications. For content removal requests, please contact Zinio.