Not in the mood

Even though I sleep wonderfully in the woods and am delighted by a deer that passes by my shelter barking, I am tired. I’m not in the mood for anything. No desire to write, no desire to walk. Reluctantly, I set off around noon to stop for a coffee break just two kilometers later.

Afternoon nap in the sitting hut

It’s a beautiful spot by a lake with water lilies and a shelter to sit in. It’s not meant for sleeping, but there are two benches in it, just a little narrower than my sleeping mat. On a bench by the water, I drink my coffee. And another coffee. And another. I’m not in the mood. I don’t want to walk. I’m tired. I decide to give in. I inflate my sleeping mat, grab my pillow and sleeping bag, and settle down on one of the benches in the sitting shelter. Apparently, I needed it because I sleep for an hour and a half!

Although this afternoon nap was lovely, I still wake up feeling like a truck has run over me. I hesitate for a moment. Should I stay here for the night or push on a bit further? It will be further. Two kilometers ahead is another hut by the water meant for sleeping. That’s not far.

Two hours of slogging

How I calculated or saw that, I don’t know, but it’s not two kilometers. More like double that or a bit more. And with all that climbing and descending over bumpy paths, it takes me nearly two hours. It’s a good thing I didn’t know that beforehand.

Today I’m not participating

But then the reward is great. Truly a beautiful place by a small and a large lake. With not even seven kilometers on the clock, I settle into my new home. Today I am not a hiker. Today I am not a writer. Today I will just let whatever needs to happen happen.

“If you’re not in the mood, you just have to make it happen,” my grandmother used to say. Sometimes that is indeed the case, but today I’m not going along with that. I refuse!

Overnight: Stora Tjärnet