Extra enjoyment in my nomadic life

A beautiful sleeping spot truly adds so much extra enjoyment to my nomadic life. And this place is one of those. I am sleeping in a magnificent spot, right by a pebble beach, and I have almost the entire night with my tent open. That’s exactly why I wanted this tent: I want to enjoy the view while lying down. And today, it’s fantastic. I see the sun rising and brew my coffee while still in my sleeping bag. I am enjoying one of my last days in Sweden. I really have had a great time in this country!

Colorful houses

Fortunately, the route today is much more beautiful than yesterday. It still goes along the coast, but not all the time on that bike path next to the busy road. What a relief. I enjoy all the colorful houses. It seems as if everyone is just doing their own thing. All the houses are different and have different color schemes, but they all fit together nicely. Why don’t we have that in the Netherlands? Everything has become such a uniform mess, and if you have a different color or a different dormer, the beautification committee comes after you. Really, I can’t stand that. Creativity and somewhat artistic expressions are stifled right from the start. Ugh.

Pastry chef

At a tiny harbor village, I actually see a ‘restaurant’ with a pastry counter holding the tastiest bread and the best pastries. I can’t resist the temptation and buy a pastry called ‘Nespresso brownie’. A little further on, I sit outside at a picnic table, brew coffee, and devour this treat. I lick my fingers and can’t suppress a moan. It is simply delicious.

Petanque

Continuing along the beach, through the low dunes and winding paths, until I reach yet another little harbor. There are two large tables there. One of them is already occupied by an elderly gentleman. He greets me kindly and smokes a cigarette. As I start to cook, more and more people arrive. It’s a cheerful gathering. There is laughter and conversation, and suddenly I understand why they have come together. A little further down is a pétanque court. Small cases are pulled out, shiny balls come out, and the game begins. It’s clear they have done this before. Although they play vigorously, it seems to be mainly a social occasion. Just a few hours together. Nice to see.

Running from the rain

On the weather radar, I see that huge downpours are coming. I have been dilly-dallying with my food and fear that I will pay for it now. It will be difficult to arrive dry at the shelter. I better hurry. I need to cover a stretch of asphalt and decide to run. Maybe I will achieve the FKT, the Fastest Known Time, on the Skåneleden. Not that this interests me, as I don’t need to be fast, but suddenly I think of Geert van Nispen, whom I follow on Instagram and through his blog. He has the FKT of several caminos and I think he’s far from done with that. Even though this is not really my thing, it’s very enjoyable to follow him. Precisely because we are so different.

A cleverly built shelter hut

The first shelter on my list, where I arrive dry, turns out to be a lookout hut for bird watchers. Staying overnight there is not the intention. I must still walk two kilometers to the next one. The sky is getting darker and darker, but I manage to get inside just in time. Tonight, I am sleeping in an egg. It is a shelter shaped like an egg, on top of a hill. Very cleverly constructed and quite different from the norm. I just hope no one else arrives who I would have to let in, as the egg is not exactly large. We would really have to lie side by side with the mattresses due to its round shape.

I sleep alone

As I am almost asleep, it’s already ten o’clock, someone arrives on a bicycle. I can’t see well since I don’t have my glasses on, but a person looks in and shines a light inside, says something unintelligible, and rides away. Fortunately, I can continue my night alone.

Overnight: Smygehamn