Traveler III
- 2,410
- First Name
- Todd
- Last Name
- Jackson
- Member #
-
11495
- Service Branch
- Services
This past weekend there was an overlanding meet organized by "overlanding.nu" in western Sweden. 18 vehicles of various makes and sizes gathered in Charlottenberg with approx 40 pers. Of those 40 pers, 3 are OB members (thorstein, nils and myself)
From the get go, there was a lot of km's covered which was mostly on gravel roads with plenty of stops to stretch the legs.
Eventually before the sun went down ( it did go down for a very few hours, soon there will be no darkness for several months ) we made it into camp where there was a few vehicles already there waiting for us with a nice campfire going. Our first nights camp was outside of Malung.
It was a chilly night but when we eventually got out of our sleeping bags it was already 18 degrees.
With many miles promised we were on the road early on day 2 we traveled nothing but gravel roads til we eventually made it to Mora where we took a well deserved break and visited Mora Kniv where many bought knives and also received their pre ordered hunting knives with overlanding.nu emblem etched on the blades.
With 18 overlanding vehicles parked at the main parking lot in town, it didn't take very long before we became an attraction with many passerbyers who took many pictures.
Earlier than the day before we made it to our new camp location in the forest outside of Trängslet, that was next to a mountain runoff river. The water was cold but was well worth the quick dip to remove the dust from the days driving.
The above picture is just a small portion of the camp location, it was big and big enough for all 18 vehicles to spread out finding that perfectly level spot for the night.
With this meet planned as a gravel road trip in Darlana, the dust became an issue for a few of us who had older vehicles that we never designed to be anything near being dust proof. My series 3 Land Rover was nothing but a dust magnet and it became a battle for us to keep valuable things clean. ie: system camera, clean clothing and food.
The next morning we visited Trängslet Damn which is the highest and longest damn in Sweden. The below picture is the group I was traveling in group 3.
Day 3 was blended gravel and asphalt roads with a quick stop in the tourist ski resort town of Sälen.
Further down the road, before heading to our last nights camp we stopped in Torsby shop center to fill up our coolers and vehicles.
It was nice to relax in the sun with an ice cream and just talk as my vehicle has nearly no insulation so it's difficult to hold anything resembling a conversation.
Our final nights camp was in Lekvattnet, another great location next to a large lake and river system.
After another long day travelling a mixture of gravel and asphalt roads, a well deserved meal was prepared on the grill.
Afterwards we all gathered around the fire pit for a few cold refreshments, story telling or lies ( a good laugh for sure! ) that was so relaxing after another long day behind the wheel.
As we had a long trip back to Nybro, so we decided to leave the group early on day 4. We had 9 hours in front of us in the Series 3 Land Rover, even though it was main highways back to southern Sweden, we were again tired when we were eventually back home. ( anyone would be if they were traveling in a 38 year old Land Rover )
We got to see some old faces again, plus many new ones on this trip with overlanding.nu and are already looking forward to the next trip with them. Plus I have to add, exploring the other vehicles on this meet has given me new ideas for improvements...... credit card watch out!
Todd.
From the get go, there was a lot of km's covered which was mostly on gravel roads with plenty of stops to stretch the legs.
Eventually before the sun went down ( it did go down for a very few hours, soon there will be no darkness for several months ) we made it into camp where there was a few vehicles already there waiting for us with a nice campfire going. Our first nights camp was outside of Malung.
It was a chilly night but when we eventually got out of our sleeping bags it was already 18 degrees.
With many miles promised we were on the road early on day 2 we traveled nothing but gravel roads til we eventually made it to Mora where we took a well deserved break and visited Mora Kniv where many bought knives and also received their pre ordered hunting knives with overlanding.nu emblem etched on the blades.
With 18 overlanding vehicles parked at the main parking lot in town, it didn't take very long before we became an attraction with many passerbyers who took many pictures.
Earlier than the day before we made it to our new camp location in the forest outside of Trängslet, that was next to a mountain runoff river. The water was cold but was well worth the quick dip to remove the dust from the days driving.
The above picture is just a small portion of the camp location, it was big and big enough for all 18 vehicles to spread out finding that perfectly level spot for the night.
With this meet planned as a gravel road trip in Darlana, the dust became an issue for a few of us who had older vehicles that we never designed to be anything near being dust proof. My series 3 Land Rover was nothing but a dust magnet and it became a battle for us to keep valuable things clean. ie: system camera, clean clothing and food.
The next morning we visited Trängslet Damn which is the highest and longest damn in Sweden. The below picture is the group I was traveling in group 3.
Day 3 was blended gravel and asphalt roads with a quick stop in the tourist ski resort town of Sälen.
Further down the road, before heading to our last nights camp we stopped in Torsby shop center to fill up our coolers and vehicles.
It was nice to relax in the sun with an ice cream and just talk as my vehicle has nearly no insulation so it's difficult to hold anything resembling a conversation.
Our final nights camp was in Lekvattnet, another great location next to a large lake and river system.
After another long day travelling a mixture of gravel and asphalt roads, a well deserved meal was prepared on the grill.
Afterwards we all gathered around the fire pit for a few cold refreshments, story telling or lies ( a good laugh for sure! ) that was so relaxing after another long day behind the wheel.
As we had a long trip back to Nybro, so we decided to leave the group early on day 4. We had 9 hours in front of us in the Series 3 Land Rover, even though it was main highways back to southern Sweden, we were again tired when we were eventually back home. ( anyone would be if they were traveling in a 38 year old Land Rover )
We got to see some old faces again, plus many new ones on this trip with overlanding.nu and are already looking forward to the next trip with them. Plus I have to add, exploring the other vehicles on this meet has given me new ideas for improvements...... credit card watch out!
Todd.
