I’m living a two world life. One with a 100% normal work at the office and one with a lot of the rest of time in the outdoor. From my point of view I think it is the perfect life, the very best out of two worlds. The outdoor activity  can then remain a hobby and not just a job, meaning it will give a lot of energy instead of take. The last weekend it was a tour toward Jämtlands fjällen and the Enafors/Storulvån area. With a peak tour towards Getryggen at Friday, Storsnasen Saturday and Västerfjället in Bydalen on  Sunday. The tour towards Getryggen was fantastic, almost no others on the mountain, and with the sun sparkling in the eyes. The tremendous view of the landscape of Jämtland  spread out in the front of our eyes…The peak of Storsnasen would prove to become a challenge. The reason therefore was both the wing and the snow. The rotten snow become hard to walk on, an d close to the peak the gusts of wind was closed to 30m/s. The peak of Västerfjällen was a really nice trip and all was satisficed when we summing up the weekend. Worth mention is also the stay at Enaforsholm Mountain lodge, it is incomparable one of the best stay in the Swedish mountains..

The trail running season is upcoming, and there will be a couple of tours the summer. I will test some trail products and first out will be a pair of shoes, the Inov-8 trail talon, a shoe that looks and feel nice. With a good grip and also a bit more build up for the feet then normally of a trail shoe it will become interesting to review. Silva has always come up with some nice gear and now I will review a back pack.  Running in the mountains means you need to bring some stuff, so you really need some space for gear. The Silva strive mountain pack 17+3L looks perfect due to size. You can bring some clothes to change with and also a sleeping bag etc. This will become interesting to see how it will feels on the back. So now you got some feedback for gear to look out for…

The next upcoming planned tour….

Rimstigen – Aurland (youtube.com)

Capleton – Dubplate – Little Lion Sound – Rockstone / Raggy Road (youtube.com)

See ya soon…

 Our life consists of a variety of things that we do habitually. In a study, it was concluded that everyone in a test group wanted to exercise more and feel better, but only 25% out of them made the change. The other wanted to do it as well, but did not. How is it that? The reason is that we have a hard time seeing the little things and behaviors that we do in a day. We need to take time to think to reflect.

Our brain is a bit like a cloudy bottle, and we want and are trained to make quick decisions, that result in short term happiness. If the bottle is allowed to stand for a while, the contents will stay clear. It’s the same with our brain. We need to take the time to sit still for 30-60 minutes and ”just” without noise, and think…So it’s just as easy to break a good habit as it is to create a bad one. Lets do a thought experiment -afterword’s a workout session, have you ever regret it? Regretted that you decided to work out? Now we come to the conclusion that we can build god habits, but it is more difficult than bad ones -why?

Because we need 1. Motivation and we also need 2. Discipline. And when it comes to this two there will be a divide. You will not always have the motivation – let’s take the workout session as example again, if you not are motivated -it can result in that you don’t do it. But when you got the self-discipline you will be doing it anyway…

The interesting thing if using the self-discipline you will be rewarded immediately. How you may ask -because you do what you have set to do. And a fact that we can recognize is that everything is hard until it gets easy. So if you keep doing tough and challenging tasks it will become easier. Overcoming obstacle also will give you some good advantage. When we do hard work or hard and tough exercise your brain will release endorphins, this will make you happy to practice self-discipline, to take control of yourself and do the right thing. You will feel good in the moment, and the effect in the future can be tremendously.

Now I might get you hooked on the way of live with self-discipline. But why it is so hard to get it? I think it is because you don’t have seen the good result, and that makes it difficult. So here is a plan for starting the way forward, first of all; create a habit takes 21 days, so for changing your life to something better something different all you need will be: yea the self-discipline. Well, its sounds easy so how to? Here I will give some help on the way forward, but why don’t start with the 30-60 minutes of just quite still thinking. This might sort out just your way ahead. Always remember your mind steer your body, so it all starts with your mind. Always do a day plan, when you have the habit of planning your day, you will for sure achieve your wishes for your life.  Distinguish between what you want to do and what you need/should do, Do the hard, tedious tasks first…

Myles Smith – Solo (Lyrics) (youtube.com)

See ya soon…

Yesterday was leg day at the gym. Today is payday with a training soreness in my legs. a wonderful feeling…And today it will be a blog about trail shoes due to the upcoming season…

The market of running shoes have increased significant the last year. The reason is like of all other sports, new choice of methods and new choice of possibilities of exercise. Today in the blog, I will help you to sort out how to and why choose one shoe or another. First of all we must think about where and how we are going to use the shoe. So lets start with the substrate. The choice will depend on were you mostly will run. So here follows the different types of substrate, Hard Trail, Tough Trail, Rocky Trail, Soft and Muddy, City Trail and Off Trail. Hard Trail is equal with; Electric light tracks, dirt roads or forest roads. Tough Trails means; smaller trails with many technical parts. Rocks, roots, mud and hills are no obstacle for these shoes. Rocky Trails; paths with harder ground and a lot of stone. Imagine a path in the Swedish mountain world or a trail in the Alps. Soft and Muddy; Soft, beautiful forest paths, soft meadows and the really muddy surfaces. Crazy fun, with the right shoes! City Trail; run in a park, on footpaths or light trails. There might be some asphalt and sidewalks on the way there. Off Trail; Hardcore! The shoes for you who take you straight out into the forest, and leave the road and path behind you. You want to be able to easily get over logs and rocks, through bogs, etc. And no, this is not a training program, it is how to chose the right trail shoe ha-ha.

(Merrel Agility peak 4 Men, is a good example for a combination shoe) When choosing a shoe you shall also look into the damping and drop. For a trail shoe you might not have so much use of damping due to the substrate, it will damping own itself. Drop is the difference between heel and the front of the foot. Trail running also include need of grip. The material and pattern of the outsole determine the shoe’s grip. Different rubber compounds can give different grip (just like car tires). Depending on the type of surface you will be running on, the tread depth can affect the grip. Larger tread depth of the rubber studs is better in muddy and soft areas, while stony areas and rock outcroppings often provide better grip with more contact surface with the surface, i.e. a smaller tread depth. When it comes to drop, the drop is the height difference between heel and toe. A high drop (7-12mm) means a tendency to first land on the heel when the foot is planted. A low drop (0-7mm) means you will tend to land on the toe, a more “aggressive” running style. The next step of choice will be the damping, a good damping will be more protecting but on the other side it will be less nature ”feeling” from it. Less damping means better feel of the surface. Gore-Tex or not on a trail shoe? The easy answer here will be no, it is more important that the shoe will able to drain incoming water in a fast way.

I have also a review for the Lundhags men’s authentic jacket. This jacket is not windproof neither waterproof. For a jacket with a price of 276 Euro I expect some more. But it has all other details I’ve expect for a outdoor jacket so from that point of view it is ok. Real good ventilation solution, and it fits nice. But with a need of some kind of rain cover/wind cover I am sorry it can be more than (NNN) even if I can add a + (NNN+) But not more. But I think it will become a favorite anyway, I like the jacket even if its not living up to my expectations…

Paolo Nutini – Candy (Official Video) (youtube.com)

See ya soon…(next week it will be about happiness…)

Since it is Easter I want to give you an extra blog. The topic for this blog will be scouting for the trends in outdoor activities. First of all I just want to clarify that this area is tricky, the area will not change direction 180 degrees at once. But here you got some of the areas you can keep an eye on. First of all there still is a expectation of ”getting out there” after the pandemic. A need of freedom feeling. The market has also opened up, to reduce the barriers such as Airbnb, Booking etc. make it easier to travel. The boomers (1946-1964) and GenX (1965-1980) have a healthier lifestyle, and got money. They will retire and want to fill the time with adventures. If we take a look at generation Y1 and Y2, we can see a big difference from Boomers and GenX. They are much more self directing and a high character of high level of individualism. But on the other hand they have a strong connection with social media which will force them to do challenging activities. My own reflection of all this is a market opportunity. For what you might ask? -Well, shell I give you that knowledge for free…Well I think if you read this you are well suited for the secret. The clients today want to have a unique experience, that is the key here. If you can give them the experience of ”something else”. Something different with a heart and soul in, you will get the market. Of course there will be a lot of new gear as well, one you can se in this move. Fliteboard & Lift eFoils side by side – Idaho Mountain Lake (youtube.com) There will also be social platforms that will help people of choosing activates such as About us – Skouty, the Platform for Outdoor Sports and Manawa – Book outdoor activities worldwide At the same time I think the genuine will also be one of the real upcoming areas. We can also see that Scandinavia will grow as destination for adventures. Especially Norway has done a real good result here. Hiking between huts is still a high trend. ”Women only” trips looks like it will increase as well, here the focus will be more of the ”feeling” instead of the result. The peak will not be the target, the trail  will be…

Morgan Wallen – Last Night (Lyrics) (youtube.com)

See ya at Sunday…

The spring is coming in full speed, and the sun warms us. Every year at this time I want to get out and run. It is a feeling of freedom to put on the trail shoes and run. Trail-running, cross country-running, sky-running you can do it or call it whatever you like, but it will be just…running. The base of all my training will be the running. With speed play (sv. fartlek) or hill running is really good for become prepared for the upcoming summer season in the mountains. There are some really nice place to run in the Swedish mountains. Idre is one really nice place, The kungsleden is also a good choice. And why dont you try the Jämtlandsleden from Ramundberget-Helags-Sylarna-Blåhammaren-Storulvån. My favourite is to run from Tossåsen towards Lunndörren and from there towards Vålåstugorna and so on….If you want some challenge and some goal- check here: Outnorth Trailtour – korar Sveriges bästa traillöpare och team Trailrunning Sweden

When it comes to the mindset in the mountains I can see a change the last years. People become more selfishly. My take on that is that the influencers and  social media is a part or reason of that. It has become more of an competition of doing most and more challenging adventures. It is easy to forgot the spirit the soul of the nature and why we really are there, the experience shall be the reason. But sometimes we need to stop and reflect and enjoy the silence and the slow speed for get a full minded experience…or what do you think…

Jah Cure – All Of Me (Audio) (youtube.com)

See ya soon…

Think now that you’ve been out skiing or hiking, your body feels slightly cold from the humidity. You approach the mountain hut and can already smell the smell of the wood burning in the hut. That feeling is hard to beat…Many are the cabins and mountain stations I visited and spent the night in, but the experience of coming in after a long day on the mountain is great. Today’s blog will be about the area around Lunndörren. A cabin with four-bed room, with a fireplace in every room. There is also a sauna next to the cabin. The cabin i situated close to the Lunndörrs U valley. In the valley the gruvfjället rises majestically, and tell us a bit about the history in the area. It is here on the slopes if you look carefully you can spot the trace from the earlier copper mining from the middle of the 1800s. The power man from Vallbo Jon Olofsson with the nick name Stor-jo could be found here. At least a head higher than all the other he was easy to discover, When you had to build scaffolding to be able to carry out the mining, there was only one man who came into question, Stor-Jo. He was totally free from fear of heights and was balancing  at the heights as a pure circus performer.

The area is well suited for ice climbing and it was during one of these climbing trips that alpinist Franz Fisher from Östersund found dynamite. This resulted in a sheriff’s visit and which ignited the remaining dynamite. worth mentioning in this context is that the barn man at Stor-Jo was living 25 years! in a cave at the West side of the Gruvfjället, The both men build the Vallbo chapel. For ice climbing there are three different choice; 1. Breivik ice about 120 m. Much ice, steep and fine. Quite large so there are several variants to climb.2.S kruvisen approx. 250 m. Thin line but not as steep as the other ices. March 2005 it looked like it was ice all the way, but it’s usually a mixed line. 3. Tvillingisarna approx. 230 m. two steep icefall which goes to do together. You start on the left and finish on the right. However, it is fine to just climb the left, which offers a steep and serious climbing. Then you can also simply celebrate the entire fall instead of walking around and down inside the pass. You then avoid the hang drifts and probably save time!?..

Naâman Feat. Dub Inc – Crazy (Official Video) (youtube.com)

See ya soon..

Three weeks ago we completed the winter examination for our IML candidates. Tis was the fourth examination in Sweden. This time it was in Norway-Stordalen. The condition was demanding with a difficult avalanche forecast and also tough weather. Transceiver test, navigation among a lot of other areas to be controlled and tested. With a high level of requirements, it is required that the candidates have a high level of ambition for meeting up the required level. Three days filled with different kind of challenging assignment. Also sleeping in a snow cave is one of the part of the examination. The second fully course for Sweden is now completed with a fully expected result. Totally we are now nine IML’s trained and approved as IML in Sweden.

One of the question due to apparel will be to wear west or not. I have a fondness for the west. It is a perfect middle layer , and I will seldom get cold on m y arms. It will also give you the opportunity to provide full freedom of movement for the upper body. It will take less space comparing to a whole jacket, but this apparel will be a ”wave divider” either or not:-).

Here comes a west I really like; the Montura All track west Tobacco

Benjah ”Purpose” ( official music video ) (youtube.com)

See ya soon…

Hi all, after some trouble I will be back again. Today I will start to figure out what Mountain Safety is.

Today we got a lot of information about mountain safety from different kind of organizations and authorities. This information will of course help us with planning our mountain tours. We have never got so much and good sources of fact for planning a safe journey in the mountain. Good weather forecast, homepages with detailed maps and packing-lists and what safety equipment to bring and so on.

But it is still our own experience and know-how that will be one of the most important factors in our choice of level of challenge. Even with a lot of good surrounding fact, our limitation must be done by our own skill level. This together with making good decisions, good judgement…

Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright (youtube.com)

See ya soon….

January, and a new year full of adventures…The calendar started to be filled up, and plans started to become active in my mind. With just a couple af weeks ahead it is time for the Winter Assessment of the becoming IML-guides. So the planning is in full bloom, I can promise. But I still got some time for test some equipment.

This time it will be the Mil-tec Medical Knife. With a blade of 27,5cm 440 steel and with a belt cutter and glass breaker it will be a good choice to bring with you.

And since I’ve been writing of ice climbing I will suggest two hidden ice climbing places. First one in Norway in Oppdal,

The other hidden place will be in Jämtland and in one of my favorite area Offerdal close to Rise, Next week I will blog about knowing yourdelf a bit better and how you can develop yourself.

Waylon Jennings ”Don’t Think Twice It’s Alright” (Alternate Version) (youtube.com)

See ya soon…

This week I got an new challenge – i was to proofread a outdoor book. To read a book from this perspective was a new experience for me. But it was very exiting and instructive. I don’t think I ever head read a book with that  approach. I f I read every book like that, it has become very hard:-) But at the same time very good. This is a book that will be published by Calazo, and I will for sure get it for my own..

This weekend I been to Älvdalen for a ice climbing session.  With -30 degrease on Friday it was tough. But it been a bit better at Saturday morning when it was about -26, during the day the mercury in the thermometer rose bit by bit. So it become a really nice session in the end…

3 Doors Down – Kryptonite (Official Video) (youtube.com)

See ya soon…