This tour was originally intended to take place last New Year, but the start of that winter was so shaky that by that time there was simply no snow left to ski on. This time around things seemed much better at first, but then the week before Yule the dreaded thaw made an unwanted reappearance. It did not succeed in bereaving the land – and especially not the fjelds – of all snow, however, and then the weather stabilized. I was in contact with Vålådalen fjeld station the last days before I was to leave, and they reassured me that there was still enough to allow for skiing along the various trails. The forecasts also promised snowfall on the day and night before the first day of the trip, which was delivered upon, so it was a go!

As for the itinerary, I planned a round trip of the Vålådalen basin, stopping at the cottages of STF which are open and manned for a limited period around New Year. I would start in Vålådalen itself and go to Stensdalen on the first day, which would be the 30^th of December, and then proceed to the Vålå cottages for the actual New Year's Eve celebration. This was due to my knowledge that Stensdalen in particular tends to draw quite a lot of people that day, likely due to its sauna and easily accessible location, whereas the Vålå cottages lie further away and include no sauna; I was simply looking for some peace and quiet rather than the bustle of what was sure to become an overcrowded site.

I was very conscious that this choice might well mean that it would be only me and the warden present on the Eve, but, well, come what may. Then I planned on remaining there for another day, making a shorter tour in the area, and continue to Lunndörren (where I spent the holiday two years past) on January 2, finally completing the circle by returning to Vålådalen the day after that.

My packing list was as follows:

Add to that a liter of hot water in the thermos, and a half-liter bottle of cold water I carried in the anorak's chest pocket.

Since the tour was going to be a fairly short one and I would not be bringing a sleeping bag this time, I had some "bonus" weight to dig into, so I did not really hold back when putting together the food module. As it turned out I was offered a lift to Vålådalen on the Sunday of inception, so I only had to reserve a bus/train ticket for the return journey. It had snowed rather extensively in and around Östersund, but the further west we got the thinner the layer of fresh snow became, even though it increased somewhat again closer to Vålådalen, so everything seemed to turn out alright.

Here, then, is the full account of what transpired during the subsequent five days. Each section has a header consisting of a short overview of the stage in question, complete with a map showing the route travelled. A ring marks the starting point, a square the lunch break location, and a star the destination. Vertical distances have been calculated from the map and have an accuracy of 20 m. Cottage breakfasts consisted of oatmeal porridge, tea and a sandwich, and all lunches of two cups of instant soup and a sandwich.