Gotaleden

After a couple of failed attempts, the conditions were just perfect yesterday as I took on the 75 kilometres long “Gotaleden”. Running in sunshine, I made it to Jonsered in about three hours, feeling excited about the upcoming section to Lerum which I knew would be quite technical. 

Right there, however, the zipper in my running backpack tore which gave me a few moments of panic. Luckily, with the help of a friendly car mechanic and a bit of metal wire, I was able to fix it within minutes and was soon on my way again. With the steeper ascents having red ropes attached to the cliffs, parts were more climbing than running but once I got closer to Lerum, I could pick up the pace again.

After a brief stop at Hemköp in Lerum for a cinnamon bun and some drinks, the most beautiful trail followed along Säveån for nine kilometres to Floda. With the valley filled with wood anemone flowers, it was like a spring fairytale. In Floda, I once again stopped for a snack as I knew there would be limited service for the remaining kilometres up to Alingsås. Passing the white Nääs estate where Selma Lagerlöf spent a total of eighteen summers with Sophie Elkan, I decided to return later to see more of the lovely grounds but, wanting to register a FKT for my run, I hurried on towards the northeast.

 

Approaching Alingsås, I was thrilled to see road signs saying that only a few kilometres remained but, unfortunately, Gotaleden took a different turn, heading into the woods again for some exhausting technical trails. Once in Alingsås, I lost my way a couple of times, adding a few extra kilometres for a total of 80 kilometres, 1,507 meters of elevation gain and just above 12 hours all in all.