DAY 1 Date: 14th/15th February 2015
Today was the day we were flying to Swedish Lapland. I was so excited as I had been to Finish Lapland back in 2007 and it was so much fun. On this trip, we were also taking my Mum and Sister along for the ride. It was a very long ride, we drove down to London to catch our flight from Stanstead with EasyJet. It was a late flight and we arrived in Stockholm at around 10 pm. We picked up our rental car and it was so cold outside.
When we booked this trip we got an excellent deal with flights so we decided to drive up to Lapland (1338km away) to where we would be staying at Bjorkliden. It was fun and games trying to get out of Stockholm as we had no Sat Nav and just a map of Sweden. The map only showed the main roads in Sweden and not the smaller roads in each city. We eventually found the correct road that we would be on for hours. We were around 2 hours into our journey when the disaster happened. Mike hit a deer and it made us all jump a mile. We carried on going until the next petrol station which was miles away.
Once we had stopped we notice that the indicator lights were not working. Once out of the car we saw that there was quite a lot of damage with the lights and bumper. We didn’t know what to do as by now it was 1am and we were in the middle of no where in the freezing cold. We decided we would have to drive onwards until morning and things were open again. By this point we were all shaking with a mix of adrenaline and cold. From there on out we were paranoid about hitting something else as the deer jumped out of nowhere.
At around 6am we saw the sunrise and the snow was getting thicker, the scenery was beautiful and so magical. The sunrise was amazing, we decided to stop to watch it and have a nap in the car as Mike was struggling to stay awake by now. We slept for just over 1 hour and felt better. We moved on to Umea where we stopped at a service station, phoned the car rental company to try and sort this out. It took a long time and a lot of work from the person behind the counter at the shop to translate for us. Eventually we were picked up and taken to the closest car rental place.
It took a long time to sort the car out and were told that we had written it off as the whole radiator had gone along with lights and bumper. As we had insurance through a third party we had to pay £600 excess which we would get back from the third party. We learned our lesson and will always book all cover through the company in future. After a few hours we were in our new car and on the road again, heading for Kiruna.
When we got to Kiruna, it was dark, and around 6 p.m., we needed to go to the supermarket and pick up food for our lodge. It was so windy, and the snow was so deep here. We made a quick stop and filled the car up with petrol for the last part of the drive. By now, we couldn’t wait to get to the apartment, as it was getting dark, and we were starting to panic about hitting something else again.
We passed signs for Avalanche Zone which was a little scary and of course the best sign which said ‘arctic circle’. Finally we got to the resort and checked in at the main reception. We were given a key and lodge number. We walked to the lodge on the way we were wondering how people got to the door as the snow was touching the balconies. We noticed there were shovels out for people to dig to their front door, luckily we had neighbours and therefore didn’t have to dig.
We were so happy to arrive at our lodge and it was so nice and had its own private sauna. We were so tired we all went straight to bed ready for fun in the snow tomorrow.
Food and Drink: For the last 2 days we have lived off hot dogs and snacks from the service stations. The hot dogs were really cheap at 50p each. The snacks on the other hand such as crisps and chocolate were so expensive from the service station.
The Highs: The magical look and feel of a place covered in snow. WOW! Even though it is cold I loved dressing up in loads of layers and exploring in the snow.
The Lows: Hitting the deer was the lowest moment and trying to sort all that out with the car rental company. It was rather stressful and lucky my mum was there to help us pay the excess. Another low was before we left we researched service stations so we could stop to get some snacks and drinks and they said they were 24hrs. When we turned up to the first service station the petrol pumps were the only thing open, the shop was shut. This made the first 8 hours of driving interesting.
DAY 2 Date: 16th February 2015
We woke up early to see the sunrise over the mountains and lake. The view from our cabin is the best view I think I have ever seen. Look at how much snow was on the banister. When we stood on the balcony it was strange because the air felt so fresh and cold. It was time to wrap up warm to explore the resort area. We walked down to the post office and small shop to pick up some bits for the cabin. Icicles were hanging from the top of the post office which looked cool. I have never seen anything like that before.
My Mum and Sister had never seen snow like this before and they loved it. It was such hard work walking around in the snow mind as it was so deep it took extra effort to pick your legs up out of the snow. You had to be careful where you were stepping because as soon as you stepped on the verge you were up to your middle in snow. It was very cold, below freezing but it was strange how when you walked around you got hot and started to sweat because of the amount of layers worn. We then went down a huge hill, where we ran and slid down it. We messed around a little pushing each other into the verges and having a laugh.
We then went to the main hotel for lunch which was a buffet and it was rather nice. We walked around a little more and went back to the lodge for a nap. My mum slept in and we all decided to go into the sauna. Once we sat in the sauna for a while we decided to jump into the snow on the balcony in our swimmers. It was so cold. The only problem was when we jumped onto the balcony the snow feel back into the living room.
That night we had a quiet night, we walked up to the hotel to use the wifi and have a drink. We then went back and cooked Spaghetti Bolognese, watched TV and went to bed. It must be the fresh air and weather, we were so tired.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast We all had toast and butter in the lodge watching the lovely view out of the window.
Lunch at the hotel. We had a buffet lunch where we ate salads, bread and meats in gravy with potatoes. Food was nice but a random mix of stuff.
Dinner We cooked Spaghetti Bolognese in the lodge.
The Highs: All of today was a high from looking at the beautiful views to messing around in the snow. It was also great to bring family along for the adventure.
The Lows: None
DAY 3 Date: 17th February 2015
Today we rented skis to go down the small slopes as we are hopeless at skiing. After a few hours on the skis I had to give up as it was so tiring and its just not my thing. We went back to the lodge and went across the flat for a bit. My sister and Mike also struggled to ski properly. We said if we were to come back again we would maybe pay for lessons. We did laugh a lot during our attempts mind. We chilled out a bit at the lodge and ate lunch before the skis had to go back. We enjoyed sitting on the balcony and jumping of it into the snow. When we took the skis back we hired sledges for a few days. They were the sledges that you use as kids. We were really looking forward to this.
Tonight we went to the restaurant for food which was ok but very expensive. We booked an excursion for tomorrow where they take you by snow mobile up to the top lodge to have waffles. This sounded like so much fun. We then went sledging.
Oh my god! We went so fast down the hills around the resort. We couldn’t see where we were going because the snow was so fine it would just spray in your face. Many times we ended up on the verge finding it difficult to get back to the road. It was so much fun and we laughed most of the night. We wished we could take the sledges down the slope and get the ski lift back up as it was so much work walking back up the hills all the time.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast at our lodge was toast with butter.
Lunch also at the lodge where we made cheese and ham toasties and crisps.
Dinner at the restaurant in the hotel. We cant remember what we ate, the menu was very strange and sold a lot of fish such as shark and also reindeer. The meal was ok but not fantastic and very expensive.
The Highs: Again a day full on highs, laughs and so much fun. We were truly making memories here. We liked how chilled the atmosphere was.
The Lows: Just as yesterday no lows today.
Day 4 Date: 18th February 2015
We were excited for our tour today and made our way up to the lodge early to get checked in. When we got there we were told it had been cancelled because there was a storm on the way and the weather would be too bad up the mountain. Gutted especially as we couldn’t rearrange another time as we were leaving tomorrow. We asked the hotel what they would recommend we do for the day. They told us about a frozen lake that you can walk across. That sounded like fun so we decided to do this.
On the way down to the lake it was like a blizzard. The snow came down so hard and fast that we could barley see in front of us. We walked down to the bottom of the resort and across the road towards the lake. Once we were on the lake we could see how big it was. It was very strange stepping onto the lake because a part of our brain was saying not to. It was so cool though, so much snow had fallen it was really hard to walk anywhere on the lake because you just felt stuck.
We noticed what looked like a frozen waterfall at the side of the lake. We decided to go for a walk over there. Well that took all of our energy, it was such hard work and every now and then we would fall over and it was really hard to get back up. Once you were sat on the floor, you couldn’t use your hands to push yourself up because they would sink into the snow. The waterfall was amazing, it looked liked it just froze in seconds.
It was so much fun down at the lake. Next was the long hike back up to the resort. It nearly killed me and my mum walking in the snow as the hills were so steep. Once we got to the shop we bought some chocolate and crisps to eat back at the lodge. It took a while to get back to the lodge where we made a snack to eat and had another ‘Nana Nap’.
We then went up to the lodge to have a few drinks and sit in the warm with the best view.
The bar had the best fire, I have ever seen. It was so toasty, once we got in there we had to take loads of layers off. They served the best cider and hot chocolate ever. So nice. We also ate dinner at the bar tonight and we found this much nicer than in the restaurant.
Once we had eaten food the staff called out that the northen lights were not on show. We all rushed outside. WOW! I don’t think anything would top off this experience. The sky was alight with green lines moving around like waves. I was not expecting the lines to move so quickly across the sky. We were told that it was a really good place to see the northern lights as there wasn’t any light pollution and we were looking out over the lake.
We couldn’t take very good pictures as they didn’t really pick up the lights and we wanted to experience them rather than watch them through the lens.
Well what an end to the holiday. We saw the northern lights which is what we were hoping for when we booked the trip. We also had an amazing stay at the Bjorkliden resort. We would definitely be back.
Food and Drink:
Breakfast in the lodge where we made toast with butter.
Lunch in the lodge, we made ham and cheese toasties with crisps.
Dinner: We ate in the bar of the main hotel. We both ate reindeer burger with fries which was really tasty.
The Highs: Seeing the Northern Lights, something we will never forget.
The Lows: The cancelled tour, we were really looking forward to this and wished we had booked it for the first day. Just means we will have to visit again.
DAY 5 Date: 19th February 2015
Today we checked out at around 9am and started the long drive home. We packed up the car and started on our way, already paranoid about hitting another deer. The drive back took just over 15 hours and was much easier than the drive up as we were driving through the day rather than the night.
We stopped in lots of places on the way home, mainly service stations and supermarkets to get snacks and drinks for the car. We took it in turns to sit in the front and stay awake. That was hard as traveling always makes me sleep. The drive was also easier as the weather is getting warmer and the snow thinner. We went over some amazing bridges and also past lakes and rivers change from frozen, to partially frozen to running.
It was a pretty uneventful day, thank god. We filled the car with petrol and parked it at the airport. We arrived at the airport just after midnight and our flight was 6am. We slept on the really hard chairs until we could board. We were all sad to be leaving Sweden.
Food and Drink: Today was full of snacks from service stations. Mike and my sister demolished to many hot dogs.
The Highs: Seeing Sweden in the daylight on the drive back to the airport.
The Lows: Another 15 hour drive, we decided if we were to come again, we would either fly into Kiruna to come for longer and stay in a few places on the way up.