My introduction to bikepacking (Part 3) - Our first multi-night adventure

We were now at a point where we knew what we should bring, we were confident in the distances we could ride, and we were starting to understand some of the dynamics of what a longer trip could look like. To test ourselves, we decided to take a long weekend trip around the lake that we live near, Lake Mälaren, the third largest freshwater lake in Sweden. A cool but little known fact is that, according to Wikipedia “The etymological origin of the name Mälaren stems from the Old Norse word mælir appearing in historical records in the 1320s and meaning gravel. How appropriate for our first multi-day gravel bikepacking adventure!

Planning

The trip would take four days and would test both our planning and navigation skills. We were fortunate to find a route on social media that avoided major roads and took us through singletrack and gravel roads, avoiding the major highways. Guided by our ever evolving packing list, we loaded our gear onto our bikes, uploaded the route into the GPS, and took off.

Day 1

For those of you who know me, you know I don’t give up easily. I am stubborn to a fault, and I was fully determined to make sure this trip would be successful as well. Our first day was spent partly on a familiar road route that brought us through Södertälje, on the southern side of the lake, before embarking on the proper gravel roads we were seeking. The first part was easy, if not a bit boring, as the route was well known. Soon we started onto the gravel and the true joys of bikepacking began as we ventured into the unknown. This is truly the part I like best, the part where we really don't know what is coming. THIS is what exploring is to me, seeing something new and experiencing things for the first time. This trip would provide an endless amount of fresh views and experiences as we gained and lost sight of the lake over and over again throughout the journey.

Soon we reached our first "major" town on our route which was the city of Mariefred. We were quickly greeted by an ornate castle, Gripsholm Castle, which was an amazing sight to behold.

The purpose of this trip was to ride around the lake, but in doing so, we wanted to see and explore the small villages and cities around the lake. Our first taste of that would come rather quickly. After emerging from the woods we were treated to a beautiful view of the lake and a fantastic single track alongside a small rail line. This led us into the city of Mariefred, a small town that has been grandfathered as a city for historical reasons. The centerpiece of the city being the stunning Gripsholm castle. We soaked in the sun and grabbed a few pictures at the castle before walking around the small town and enjoying an ice cream.

Camping

Camping in Sweden is allowed almost anywhere thanks to a fantastic law called Allemansrätten, which means the right of public access or outdoor access rights. Because of this, I employ a method I stole from a friend called “google camping”, where I turn on Satellite view in google maps and start looking for small roads that lead to open spaces near water. This method works extremely well in Sweden given that you can camp almost anywhere. However, this method is not without pitfalls as you never really know what a place is like until you arrive there. For our first chosen spot on this trip, the location we found was ok, but it looked like it was a bit of a party spot for local teens. Not wanting to be up all night or have our bikes tampered with, we decided to pedal on and search for other places to camp. In the end, we decided to ride another hour to a local campground as we could be sure that it was both available and safe. We were met with a beautiful sunset but unbeknownst to us, the campground turned out to be near a local park and fire pit, where a large number of teens turned up to party and drink until 2 AM. So much for that!

Day 2

Day 2 started with a nice morning cycle through the town of Strängnäs, which is known for , amongst other things, the place where the famous king Gustav Vasa was elected.

We passed by a beautiful cathedral that we had been looking at from across the lake the previous night, before venturing through the town and eventually back into the quiet countryside. After passing through a small military area, the true beauty began. We were now amongst nature and riding through pastures with friendly cows and freshly seeded fields.

The uniqueness of the barns caught our eyes, as each barn seemed to be unique, well maintained and in some cases modernized.

Eventually our stomachs started rumbling as we approached mid-day. One of the benefits of riding is the countryside, is the abundance of beautiful and unique lunch spots. Golf courses are always an easy find, and you can generally get a proper lunch including a salad and coffee. But the best places are the small garden cafe's offering full lunches and tasty fika. We were fortunate to find the perfect spot to relax and re-energize for what was to come over the rest of the day.

Soon we were back on our bikes and heading towards our final stop for the day. We continued across many beautiful fields and passed through several small villages. We caught a few glimpses of the lake along the way but most of the route kept us inland. The riding was mainly flat which made for an easy test for our first multi-day adventure, but there was not enough elevation to give us any views towards the lake.

The day had started sunny, but soon the darkness appeared, and with that, the rain loomed. Eventually the rain came and when it did it came down hard. The last hour of our ride was in the pouring rain which made the decision for sleeping even easier. We ended up in a Best Western hotel in the municipality of Köping, located on the far west side of the lake. Our bikes ended up having a dry night and we were able to wash our clothes in the shower and enjoy a Sauna. Given that it was covid times and a holiday weekend, there were less than four people in the hotel which allowed us to have the sauna to ourselves.

Day 3

After an amazing (and typical) Swedish breakfast, we set back out for day 3. The rain had stopped but the skies were dark and a bit uninviting. Day 3 of bikepacking tends to be the day where you start to feel your legs and you can tell if it is going to be a day of suffering or a day of fun. I think the two of us were somewhere in between, which made the choice easy to skip a few of the sections of the route that looked uninviting. The great thing about bikepacking is that you make every trip your own. There is no agenda, no race, just fun on a bike and that means you do what works best for you. My wife and I are aligned with this way of thinking and because of this, we are always able to agree on adjustments. This made our route a bit more direct but we avoided some of the sections that appeared less interesting. The day was was mostly cloudy with dark clouds looming throughout the day, the threat of rain present at every moment. The northern side of the like was less interesting than the southern as there were more roads involved (partly our choice) and the farms felt more like larger industrial farms than the older and smaller farms on the southern side of the lake. The result was that we covered distance faster, but the sights were not as appealing other than a few interesting finds along the way. One of which was an old church ruin of the Lilla Rytterne Kyrkoruin church, last active in the early 1800's. This served as a good spot for a break and a short exploration.

Most of the day continued to be uneventful and we eventually arrived in the city of Västerås. The waterfront area looked appealing but we did not find anything suitable for a relaxing lunch. Given the looming rain, we made a b-line to a supermarket for a snack and looked for a poncho to help support my wife's failing rain coat. This was a good choice as we were greeted by rain for the next few hours as we headed towards Enköping.

Luckily the rain slowed as we arrived in Enköping and we were feeling better about a dry night's sleep. Our legs were a bit stiff and we were happy to be ending here. We passed a quiet little canal and rode a nice flat path down to a lakefront campground.

Being early May, the sunset was still an early-ish (if you live in Sweden) 9:15 so we dropped our tired bodies in our sleeping bags and fell fast asleep. That is until we were awoken by a rowdy group of teens having a campfire at the lake. They partied well past midnight and at one point came running through the campground and near our tents and bikes. So much for that quiet campground sleeping experience ‌

Day 4

We awoke to more rain but we were dry and happy in our Naturehike tent. Choosing the right tent was a difficult decision for me. I have always been a fan of buying quality brands and supporting ethical companies. In the tent product space there ae so many choices. It seemed that no matter what I read, every tent had some sort of flaw. Given that were were not sure how we would like the sport, we decided on testing out a cheaper tent brand called Naturehike that had received a number of good reviews, was compact and also lightweight. It also offered two entrances which is helpful for a few reasons. First, when there are two of you setting up your sleeping area at the same time, it is nice to not be bumping into each other and fighting for space. Secondly, the two entrances offer each of you a vestibule where you can store your bags and other gear. Lastly, as I often get up and need a short bathroom break in the middle of the night, this allows me to not wake my wife. So basically this tent had ticked all of the boxes but we had never tested it in the rain. It turns out that the tent performed quite well in it's first test and we were kept nice and dry.

Campgrounds offer other benefits of course such as bathrooms, showers, kitchens (a cool part of Swedish campgrounds) and dry spots to eat when needed. We took advantage of an overhang by the kitchen to enjoy our breakfast and and a nice view of the lake.

Pedaling home

We hit the road full of energy, full from a proper breakfast with our (my) favorite Nutella, peanut butter and banana wrap. The clouds broke after an hour and the warmth of early summer was back in the air. The route became more interesting as well, with better trails, better views and an overall improved mood. It is amazing how much more you appreciate the sun when you live in Sweden, suffering months of what we call "50 shades of Swedish gray" from November through March. With spring comes the sun and with sun the warmth and beauty of the Sweden returns. It took a few years of living here to finally realize why it is important to take time off in the spring and summer. It is the best way to regain your energy and recharge your batteries as you start the cycle over again. We were slowly becoming Swedes, and also slowly becoming bikepackers.

Wrapping it all up

This was a successful trip. We could certainly have done this in three days, but the fun of bikepacking for us is taking it easy, enjoy breaks, and seeing where the adventure leads. We were quite happy with ourselves, and proud to have successfully completed our first multi-night bikepacking trip. This gave us the confidence that we were starting to piece it all together, and that we could make a longer trip work. The next step was figuring out how it would work riding with our daughter's boyfriend for an extended period of time. Would he put up with a bunch of over 50 bikers? Could we keep up with his pace (albeit slowed for us)? How would the personality dynamics work out? Spending days and weeks together is much different than a Sunday afternoon brunch. time for a swim now but I will surely get back to that soon.