The Kungsleden - Day 4 - Tjäktja to Singi

Distance: 17.0km (10.6 miles)

Climbing Elevation: 604m (1,981ft)

Maximum Elevation: 929m (3,048 ft)

After waking up from a deep sleep, I was confronted with a new first... when peering out of the tent, I discovered that the tent and the scenery was all shrouded in a thick layer of frost. I took a deep breath and my goodness, the air was fresh. Wiping away the sleep from my eyes, I had a look at the route for today's trail. Ahhhhhhh, this is one of those days that I was really looking forward to. A simple, downhill stroll though the valley alongside the river. A few small inclines but definitely straight forward.

I clambered out of my sleeping bag, still aching from the past few days trekking and indulged in my now regular porridge delight, with a cup of hot mint tea. Followed by my usual dip in the river and the obligatory dissemble of the tent. I now had the whole morning process down to 90 minutes, and recognised that it the process was becoming a bit of an obsession.

The walk began. My original expectations of a steady walk was soon amended as even on a reasonably level stretch, there are small ascents and descents spotted around. Nothing major but not flat. The frost soon thawed as the morning sun warmed my face and soul. I made great, yet cautious, strides towards Salka and onto Singi.

I stopped at Salka cabin (STF Salkastugan) to get some much needed snacks to boost my calorie intake. My first time inside a building since leaving Abisko. The cabin was very small with a dozen wooden shelves. It was just after the Fjallraven Classic event and approaching the end of the season, so the choices were limited. Options ranged from pringles to biscuits to chocolates, noodles to cuppa soups, cookies to tinned fruit. I opted for two bars of fruit and nut chocolate, a pack of "Jammy Dodger" jam filled cookies and a box of fruit teas. The first bar was scoffed within a few minutes, the second packed away for later.

My walk continued and I had my first close encounter with wild reindeer. A group of 6 reindeer trotted over the path directly in front of me. Was this for real? I became overcome with awe and emotion at the experience. Not only was the scenery breath-taking, but my dreams of getting close to a wild reindeer was not only achieved, but exceeded. This goes down as another moment that served as a reality check that I really was north of the Arctic Circle and in the wilderness.

I was becoming accustomed to the fact that sunshine one moment, doesn't mean that the next moment will be equally as sunny. By the afternoon the storms had returned with vigour. Nonetheless, the breaks in the cloud gifted me some amazing photography opportunities, including a rainbow at the side of Kebnekaise mountain.

My final "new experience" of the day was going through a deer fence gate. Another thing checked off the "Kungsleden Achievement" list.

There are a few things you need to consider when trekking this far north, regarding how far you walk each day. The first is your fitness. Unfortunately, I didn't do as much training as I wanted to do before the trek, so knew that I had to limit my distances each day. The second is the amount of daylight that you have, and it reducing as you go deeper into Autumn. Considering the uneven ground, the last thing you want to be doing is hiking in the dark. Thirdly, is how much the temperature drops once the sun falls below the horizon. Not only does the temperature drop but the ground starts to get frosty and very slippery. Oh, and there is one other thing to consider, and that is how many photographs you take. For me, I was lucky if I managed 100m before stopping to take another picture.

About half way between the STF Salkastugana Hut and STF Singistugan Hut there was a metal bridge crossing a babbling brook with a perfect pitch of flat ground, the perfect camping place. It was slightly elevated so I had a perfect view of the valley in both directions and Kebnekaise mountain was visible in the distance. The sun was setting and I knew that I could make the extra 1km back up the next day. So I stopped, dropped my backpack and set up my tent.

On the menu tonight was a lavish meal of chicken curry, with the usual compliment of tea followed by hot chocolate. The jam cookie on the side were devoured with delight. As I munched on each mouthful, I couldn't help but close my eyes and enjoy the crunchy, sweet, dry texture. As this adventure continued, not only was I learning about survival in the wilderness, I was also learning abut being away from the creature comforts of civilisation. It was only the end of day #4, but I was already starting to appreciate the simple things in life. A simple cookie, the simplicity of texture, the taste of sugar.

I put on my tent shoes, unzipped the door and climbed outside to clean my teeth. The drop in temperature was really noticeable and, for the first time on the trek, I began to shiver. Within a blink I was back in the tent and cocooned myself in my sleeping bag. Zipping it up to leave just a small gap to breathe out of. I closed my eyes and fell into the land of nod immediately. Goodnight all!