Autumn...again

Aaaaand summer has gone (not that there was much of it), autumn has settled in and its been a great autumn so far. It started early, with the leaves yellowing in early August, convincing me that there was too much rain in summer making the leaves rust. But,  the weather in autumn has been sunny for the most part, almost better than summer, making many opportunities for a weekend adventure. Nearly every weekend for the last 6-7 has had some outing in one form or the other.

There has been days out with friends, in forests, nature etc. We spent a day picking mushrooms, berries, fishing or anything else that happens on days out like that. Pleased to announce that there is enough lingon, cloudberry, blueberry to go till at least years end. 

And there has been 1 or 2 decent days out fishing. The last Saturday was out on Storsjön, on a boat. After 2.5 years I finally caught fish on that blinking lake. Nice toothy pike to add to the list. There has also been some days out in Lappland, from a kayak. Last feelings of summer that was. 

Apparently too, there are numerous man tests one has to go through in order to be a Swedish man. I have carved a wooden dala horse, driven a volvo, carved a wooden butter knife, been fishing. And now, added moose hunting to that trip. Got an invite to go to Lycksele, Lappland, for a moose hunting weekend. Meeting up with real hard Lappland men, sitting out in a forest in dead silence, listening to the noises of birds etc, and waiting. The build up in cool I must admit, got a chance to shoot in the rifle, prepare all gear, food clothing needed. See the maps, meet the team, hunting dogs and all else thats part of it. And then you wait...

Eventually after a day and a half, finally some moose were spotted and dispatched (ie, shot), but not without some excitement. The one calf that was shot was only injured, which resulted in a 2 hour chase of the beast through the forests, until it jumped into the water and was shot properly. Imagine the guy who had to swim to get it from the water, in about 6 degree water. Yes, this is why i called them crazy hard men.  

I also got a chance to run up a mountain in Norway. Seems a better way than hiking. A friend saw a mountain on a recent holiday with his family, asked around if anyone had been up there or knows what its like. No one had or knew anything. So he checked a map out, saw no paths, decided that it looked like a good idea to run up and check it out. So that was the adventure. 26.8kms in total, up a mountain (which was already covered in snow), 1320metres high, in Norway. Total time: 5 and a half hours up and down. Not bad for a day out, especially as the weather was really great. It was really a better alternative to hiking, if I can be honest. 

and we are off

That mountain, in the tiny distance...

and after

And so, I close this blog with my thoughts of family and friends in South Africa. Its the 24th of September, National Braai Day in SA. I miss home, and its worth a few minutes to remember where one hails from. So to celebrate and enjoy the sunshine of autumn, SAndrew lit a fire, grilled for a few minutes and tucked into a proper SA meal, of braai'd meat, pap, sauce, coleslaw and a salad. Not bad for a monday feast. I did though get a few funny looks, on a monday grilling at lunch, but hey who cares, Im a saffer and proud of it....

Happy Braai Day everyone...