The Day The Sun Came Back

As New Year approached, we felt the need to get some proper outdoor time. Something other than a trip to the supermarket or a quick walk squeezed into a lunch break. We ventured out into the snow on Christmas Day but that was definitely more of a waddle after a huge roast dinner.

The alarm went off on New Year’s Eve and I could have happily gone back to sleep. We couldn’t dilly-dally too much though because daylight hours are short and we’d already slept in a bit.

We headed to Erstaviksbadet. It’s one of our favourite spots but we hadn’t visited since September, so another visit was definitely overdue. It was a bit greyer than last time!

Scott snapped an absolutely priceless photo. He photographed some branches but didn’t pay much attention to the people in the background until he loaded the photos onto his laptop. They weren’t doing what it looks like they are…

I finally got around to sewing the Norge patch onto my rucksack (top left). One I picked up for a bargainous 50p at a Summer flea market. I’ve never been to Brudslöjan but it’s a nice design and I love Norway.

Seeing sun was the highlight of the day. It broke through the clouds just as we reached a clearing in the forest. This was the first time we’d felt sun on our skin or seen proper daylight in 5 weeks. Glorious. It disappeared back behind the cloud a couple of minutes later but we soaked up every last drop.

Most of the hike was soggy but the second half was especially bad — luckily boards helped us cross some of the larger areas of water. Things improved as we hiked higher, eventually up to a clearing where we were greeted by this amazing sunset.

Most of these higher areas are giant slabs of rock (I often say it’s like being on the moon) with trees perched in the gaps. After several days of rain, a layer of slime had formed on some of the rock surfaces. I fell over and almost did the splits with my bum in the air. Splits are something I 100% do not recommend doing involuntarily.

With my groin muscles intact, we picked up the pace. Dodging slippery rocks and tree roots in the dark didn’t seem like the best idea.

As you can see, civilisation reappeared just in time. We went home and celebrated New Year’s Eve in PJs with spaghetti meatballs, drinks, Christmas chocolate and films.