May appears to be a month when everything is possible – I’ve been skiing, walking and cycling so far, and now I can add snowshoeing and hiking to the list. That’s really all the outdoors activities I ever do (after I point blank refused to run any more, because I hate it and can’t get over it), so doing it all in one month – actually, one week – is a first for me.

The other day when I drove past Hamrafjället, I saw how the snow had melted on top. It’s a short hike from the car to the tree line, so I figured I should be able to do it on snowshoes, even if the snow was soft. I was right, on both counts – the snow cover was at least half a metre thick and it was very wet and very soft. It was doable, but it was really heavy going. Steep uphill with the snowshoes sinking through most of the time and every time I lifted my foot, the snowshoes scooped up a load of that heavy wet snow. It took me one hour to do the first km and there’s no way I could have done it any faster, and I haven’t needed to take this many mini-breaks since… since… ever? But after that 1 km, I was out of the forest and could finally take off the shovels.. eh, snowshoes, and hike to the top.

When I was standing on top, the snowshoe trek was all but forgotten. There is nothing, nothing!, that beats the feeling of reaching a peak of a mountain and whatever trouble you had on the way, it is always worth it. I walked around on top to find some good photo ops and when I got what I felt was the best opportunity available, I turned back.

Going down through the forest was even harder than going up. I didn’t need to stop to get my breath back, but I had to walk extremely carefully because now the snowshoes were sliding down in the snow. Or rather, the snow under my feet was sliding – imagine having a mini-avalanche under your foot with every step. I fell several times because the way my feet kept sliding was very unpredictable, but falling in this soft snow is of course no problem. Getting up again was another thing, when you sink down to elbows trying to get some support with your arms… good thing I have strong stomach muscles now, so I could twist myself up!

I’m thinking that I’m probably making things a bit too difficult for myself, but it was a lot of fun anyway! Crazy, but fun. An everyday adventure. 🙂