Unclear route

In the Skåneleden Coast to Coast, there is a section I don’t quite understand. The route runs more or less in a straight line from east to west – or in my case from west to east – and suddenly the route goes almost fifteen kilometers back and forth over the same path to Olofström, a fairly large town with supermarkets. I don’t find back-and-forth walking very useful and/or fun. Therefore, I decide not to follow the official route entirely, but to take the shortest path to Olofström from my shelter and then continue on that stretch of fifteen kilometers.

Alternative route

On my app, I see an alternative route over a street, albeit marked with a dotted line, but that should be fine, it seems to me. A dotted line means that the road is unpaved. Such a road can have bumps and potholes. It might be a bit tricky for some cars, I wouldn’t do it with a Fiat Panda, but with a solid 4-wheel drive it should be fine, and on foot, it should be a piece of cake.

Is this a street?

That’s also why I don’t like to plan routes myself. Especially not when they go over walking paths. You never know what you’ll encounter. But who expects problems on something marked as ‘street’ on the map? Well, not me.

Fear on the way

It is terrible. I have to plow through towering ferns with Wheelie, maneuver over paths that no longer exist, and I sink into muddy areas. Yes, there was probably a path here once, but that was fifteen years ago, I’d guess. In moments like this, I get a bit anxious. Not entirely justified, as I can always turn back, but it’s mainly that I don’t know what else to expect. Am I stepping on a snake? Am I going to get stuck? Are there cliffs? Sharp stones? Am I going to get lost? Luckily, I manage to get through almost unscathed – with just a few scrapes – and I feel very happy and relieved when I finally find my way back onto a well-trodden path. Deep sigh and on I go.

Lunch goes down the drain

All that trudging has made me hungry. Gratefully, I sit at a picnic table in a parking lot and cook my meal. My plate is only half empty when it starts to drizzle. Couldn’t it have waited? Until I finished my plate? Apparently not. According to the weather radar, the heavy rain was supposed to arrive in an hour and a half. Well, no. It’s pouring down. Within fifteen minutes, I’m standing ankle-deep in water. Luckily, I’m wearing my barefoot sandals – yes Zora, I’ve completely converted! – and I splash happily through the puddles.

Good drainage system

In Olofström, the water flows into the drains. They definitely have a good drainage system because ten minutes later, everything has already disappeared. For three quarters of an hour, it felt like I had landed in a complete monsoon, and immediately afterward, the sky is blue again and it’s sunny. Things can change.

Shopping hell

Then grocery shopping. I hang my wet poncho on my cart and place it in a little aisle by the entrance of the supermarket. A puddle forms under the cart. I decide to go to Willy’s instead of Lidl. Cheap and some different products this time. Always fun to discover. Wrong choice. My goodness, what a large and confusing store. Indeed cheap, but I keep wandering and wandering until I find what I need. Too much stuff, too many choices. Help!

Comfort chocolate and shelter occupied

With a cart full of groceries – again too much and too heavy, including comfort chocolate – I continue. It’s a struggle with all those extra kilos to my sleeping spot. Shelter number 1 is occupied by three German fishermen. Too bad, I’m disappointed. I decide to set up my tent, walk around looking for a good spot, and then see the hidden shelter number 2. Much nicer than the first one. This one is by the water, with a view of huge boulders. Simply beautiful. Shelter number 1 is in the woods, nice, but not like this. What luck I have again. And the Germans are out of luck because while fishing, they are found in front of ‘my’ shelter for part of the evening.

The best is yet to come

But the best is yet to come… A sunset so beautiful that I can only gasp and marvel.

Overnight: Halen