Packrafting 2021: Videos

2021 has been an exciting packrafting year with at least one fun & scenic paddling trip every single month of the year! Most trips have resulted in a video, although not all, due to occasional laziness on my part. Next to close-to-home trips in the Flemish and Walloon parts of Belgium, I have also been using my raft further away, i.e. in Sweden, Finland and Norway.

Interesting to note is that in June we decided to buy a second Alpacka Classic packraft, basically replacing the Intex K1 inflatable kayak that we have used quite a bit in 2020. This second packraft makes it possible for Masha and me to make packrafting trips together without constantly having to worry about leaks and other issues…

Below is an overview of all the packrafting videos that I shot during the course of 2021.

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

Made a nice trip on Semois between Vresse and Les Hautes Rivières (France), but unfortunately no video…

November

December

Scandinavia 2021: Videos

Videos of the packrafting part of our 8,000 km family trip through Sweden and Finland in August.

Scandinavia 2021: Packrafting Moskoselet

An evening packrafting trip with Masha on the Moskoselet lake system in Swedish Lapland, approximately halfway between Arvidsjaur and Jokkmokk. Conditions are absolutely stunning and the combination of blue skies and sandy beaches gives tropical vibes, if it wasn’t for the chill of the water.

Scandinavia 2021: Packrafting Malingsbo-Kloten

The Malingsbo-Kloten Nature Reserve is one of Sweden’s southernmost wilderness areas. As it is conveniently located and merely a 2-hours drive from Stockholm, it has become popular among Swedes for multi-day hiking and paddling trips.

After having spent the night at a camping by Lake Råsvalen, we follow a series of gravel roads to the tiny village of Kloten, where the most obvious put-in to the Malingsbo-Kloten lake system is located. We inflate our packrafts as well as the girls’ inflatable kayak and set off on a day trip across the scenic lake system.

Masha and the girls decide to return a bit earlier than me, which is somewhat unfortunate as while I am paddling alone, I am suddenly joined by a beaver. It is probably not too pleased about my presence though, as it splashes its tail onto the water to warn the rest of the colony of imminent danger.

The weather remains good throughout the day, with large sunny spells, nicely shaped clouds and little wind.

Scandinavia 2021: Packrafting Råsvalen

A late evening packrafting trip with Masha on lake Råsvalen in central Sweden, during our recent 8,000 km roadtrip through Sweden and Finland. Next to packrafting, there was also room for sightseeing, camping, hiking and family visits during this memorable trip.

Scandinavia 2019: Reports

It’s almost been one year, but I finally managed to get all 4 reports ready of last year’s early-season hiking / packrafting trip to Scandinavia:

• Report > Denmark 2019: Northern Jutland
• Report > Sweden 2019: Långfjället & Rogen
• Report > Sweden 2019: Sånfjället
• Report > Sweden 2019: Skuleskogen

Packrafting 2019: Videos

Here’s an overview of all the packrafting videos that I produced in 2019.

It turns out that I did at least one trip every single month of the year, except for the month of May, for some unclear reason.

In addition to the trips below, I also paddled the river Leie in August and the river IJzer in December, but of these trips I do not have video footage.

January

February

March

April

May

No trips!

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

A Brussels Waste Bag in Jämtland

In the southwest corner of the very sparsely populated Swedish province of Jämtland lies a remote farm by the name of Käringsjön. This farm is the gateway to a complex lake system, and at the heart of the lake system is a wind shelter that can only be reached by boat. Just like anywhere else the idea is that everything that is packed into a place like this, is also packed out, especially garbage.

During my recent visit to the Käringsjön wind shelter I notice a waste bag attached to the shelter’s wall. This is surprising by itself, but what is even more surprising is that the bag appears to be an official waste bag of the community of Brussels, Belgium. Apparently some fellow country men or women considered it appropriate to just dump their waste instead of packing it out as everyone else does. What were they thinking? That a Brussels garbage truck is going to pass by to collect their junk? Really despicable behavior…

Scandinavia 2019: Videos

Footage of some highlights of this year’s 8 day, 140 km solo hiking and packrafting trip through the Långfjället, Rogen and Femundsmarka wilderness areas in the Swedish & Norwegian borderlands.

The first video covers about 2.5 days of the Swedish part of the trip. In order to give a feel of the serene atmosphere and solitude of the trip, I deliberately kept the original sound and did not overlay it with music.

The second video was taken during a paddle under windless conditions at 10:30 pm on remote lake Krokathåen, in Norway’s Femundsmarka NP:

Bear in mind that on a trip such as this, I unfortunately never give a lot of priority to shooting video footage, since there is also nagivation, taking pictures, paddling and hiking to be taken care of… The videos are therefore not a comprehensive nor accurate representation.

Scandinavia 2019

Another memorable Scandinavia experience at the end of June and beginning of July:

• In Denmark I do some short walks on Tornby beach and pay a visit to the massive dunes surrounding (and almost engulfing) the Rubjerg Knude lighthouse. I spend the night on an official remote forest bivouac spot, which is a new experience for me in this country.
• On the border between Norway and Sweden, I do an adventurous and physically strenuous 8-day trek including packrafting through the adjacent protected areas of Långfjället, Rogen and Femundsmarka. Nights are spent wild camping, and as usual I have to negotiate endless boulders, tree roots, marshes, … while walking.
• I subsequently head further into Sweden and do a fairly comprehensive 1-day exploration of Sonfjället NP on foot. This park consists of a mountainous area surrounded by extensive forests, and hosts Europe’s densest population of brown bear.
• Finally, I end up in Skuleskogen NP at the shores of the Gulf of Bothnia. Skuleskogen is part of the so-called Höga Kusten, where since the last ice age the land has risen 300 m from the sea. I do a 2-day trek during which I walk most of the park’s trails.

Full-blown reports including pictures will follow in due time, here is however a sneak preview: