Taking the Scenic Route
Lapland - The Husky Trail
It all started late one evening as I was idly surfing the net, looking for inspiration. Where to next for a holiday? Somewhere exotic, obviously, with the chance to try some new activity. Crossing the Mongolian desert perhaps? Or canoeing down the Amazon? Possibly a trek in the Himalayas? Then I found Global Adventure Challenges and The Husky Trail. Job done; look no further; just fetch the credit card and sign up! Now here I am, about to embark on my biggest adventure yet.
On March 22nd I set off for Lapland with a small group of fellow adventurers. Over six days we will travel through the rolling highlands and deep forests of northern Norway and Sweden - on sleds pulled by teams of dogs. We will sleep under canvas, cook our meals on a primus stove, and possibly even see the Northern Lights.
Day one takes us via Tromso to the Dog Sled Centre for a crash course in ‘mushing’ and camp building. Next morning the challenge starts in earnest as we set off for the Tri-Nations Border (Norway, Finland and Sweden) sledding through mountains and forest.
Day three promises some steep uphill work to admire the views. Of course for every ‘up’ there’s a ‘down’ and this is where it gets scary - falling off and losing the sled is a real possibility! By day four we’ll be deep into the homelands of the Sami people in Sweden, pushing through the forest along snow mobile trails before coming down again out of the mountains on day five.
The final leg crosses a frozen lake – where the dogs can really pick up speed - finishing at the famous Ice Hotel for a celebration dinner.
Meanwhile, as the days tick down, I’ve had to become a regular gym-bunny, training for what promises to be a really crazy adventure.
Apart from having a good time, I'm hoping to raise funds for the Air Ambulance Service. We regularly see them flying over our house and I always wonder where they're going and who needs them. If you'd like to help, you can sponsor me by clicking this link:
www.justgiving.com/fundraising/simply-lynn
Thank you!