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.

Nissan

A year ago today, I ran all 80 kilometres of Gotaleden, following parts of Säveån and its valley, carpeted with wood anemones. Arriving early in Halmstad this morning, I sought a similar river encounter along Nissan with the spring that is now unmistakably here.

With thesis seminars starting at 10 am, I limited myself to 13 progressive kilometres. Stopping to reply to student e-mails and snap photos, the run became a kind of unstructured interval session. The legs felt surprisingly fresh after Pembrokeshire Ultra – perhaps thanks to the extra rest day yesterday.

The places we’ve swum

Though no longer a Monocle subscriber, I could not stay away from their “Swim & Sun” guide when it was published earlier this summer. From Fanore Beach to Rügen, I have so many fond memories of diving into the blue and, hopefully, I will be able to add a few more memorable swims before the year is out.

Making Korean chicken with home-grown sprouts for dinner, I am surprised by how well I have already recovered from yesterday’s run on Vildmarksleden. Clearly, trail running is so much better for your body than road running, even if it goes on for many more hours. Having done Vildmarksleden, my next challenge is Gotaleden which is 75 km long with about 1,500 meters of climb. With a bit of luck, I will be able to run it with Justin who has recently moved to Alingsås which happens to be one of the endpoints on the route (the other is right here in central Gothenburg).

Seeking balance

Tomorrow morning, I plan to run all of Gotaleden up to Alingsås for a total of 75 kilometres of trail running. Right now, the weather forecast looks a bit ominous though so I might have to postpone this undertaking to next week or the week after. In any case, knowing that I would do this eventually was a good excuse when trying out a cinnamon bun from our local sourdough bakery “Lilla Sur” (which I guess is sort of the opposite of Big Sur?).

Otherwise, I have been happy to return to Nordic Wellness Örgryte which is really a very nice gym with its large windows and smoothie selection for post-exercise indulgences. Today, I just did 6 km on the rowing machine and then an 8.3 km virtual Nydala run on the treadmill.

Beaverland

Today, Anna and I took the kids back to Floda for a short hike along Gotaleden. As I was walking rather than running, I had time to see all the trees that showed signs of beaver activity and the ponds full of tadpoles. Stopping for a cup of extra strong coffee, Canaries-style, along Säveån I have to say that I felt surprisingly recovered from yesterday’s ultra adventure, possibly thanks to the relative low intensity. Hoping to run 100+ km this week, I will nevertheless try to limit myself in the weeks ahead as I have both Göteborgsvarvet and Borås Ultra Marathon coming up now in May.

Djagacida

Thanks to my mother-in-law, I have come in possession of a new cooking book by Zeina Mourtada with a lot of inspiring recipes, including the rice dish “Djagacida” from Cabo Verde which I made for dinner last night. With Anna’s dad Harald visiting us from Kiruna, it feels great to be able to cook something different from my usual fare.

Having Harald here also means that Anna and I were able to check out the bar on the 27th floor of Jacy'z Hotel in Gårda last night for some Japan-inspired drinks as well as going for a few longer runs together in the mornings. Given that I did all of Gotaleden last Tuesday, I did however decide against running the 30k “Nordens Ark Trail Run” yesterday despite the allure of earning one additional ITRA point. However, I hope to give it another shot next year, especially as they also organize a shorter race for kids which I know William would love.

Brödfabriken

Though I was tempted to continue all the way along Aspen to Lerum as the trails were absolutely lovely this morning, I stopped as originally planned at Brödfabriken in Jonsered for a post-run breakfast in the sun since I had to return to Gothenburg for a few online meetings.

Following Gotaleden for 19 kilometres, I was reminded of last summer’s great adventures, and excited about the arrival of spring as I sprinted up Getryggen. With Öland Ultra now on the calendar for June, I have got four ultras lined up this summer, so I am making the most of every opportunity to get those longer runs in.

Lunch spin

Feeling better in my right calf, though not ready to go running just yet, I took Stålhästen out for a ride in the sunshine. Following one of Strava’s suggested routes, I got to ride along beautiful Landvettersjön for a few kilometres before taking on a wild climb up to Kåsjön, making me wish for a bike with gears. Yet, Stålhästen surely has a charm of its own and, as I got closer to Furulund, the Gotaleden signs put a big smile on my face.

Despite a busy autumn schedule, I hope to go for a few more rides with Stålhästen in the coming months. Unfortunately, I have had to put my long-time dream of riding to Halmstad on hold as I cannot really risk coming late to work, and so many things can potentially go wrong over those 130+ kilometres. However, an autumn Gran Fondo on a Saturday or a Sunday may perhaps still be within reach.

After working a couple of hours in the afternoon while Anna had a beer with her childhood friend Anki (the one who had the loveliest winter wedding last December), I made another chanterelle toast on the veranda thinking that, in less than 36 hours, I will be on a commuter train and that I better make the most of these last moments of freedom. According to Strava, I have done 51 hours of exercise in August (down from a whopping 66 hours in July). Given all the commuting I have coming up, I think I shall be happy if I even manage to rack up 30 hours in September.

Vildmarksleden

After a first attempt with Eddie in early July, it was finally time for me to take on the whole 40 kilometres long “Vildmarksleden”, going from Skatås here in Gothenburg to the railway station in Hindås. Already after a few kilometres, a relatively steep climb up Getryggen began but I was soon rewarded with great views overlooking the city and Karlatornet which is currently under construction. When finished, it will be the tallest building in Scandinavia at 246 metres.

After another eight or so kilometres, I was at Kåssjön and it was here that things started to go wrong. In retrospect, it is unbelievable, but somehow, I was able to make a few wrong turns, and head back the way I came for several kilometres without noticing. In the end, I added about five bonus kilometres until I was back where I was supposed to be, leaving Gotaleden behind and continuing towards the east on Vildmarksleden. 

Anyhow, unlike when I took a wrong turn at Fjällmaraton 100k last year and had to do a thousand meters of extra climbing, I was soon on my way, passing through beautiful forests and some fairly technical trails. When my water was running low, I was given some by a kind family in a red house, and my two Maurten gels really made all the difference to keep me motivated and happy.

As I was approaching the endpoint in Hindås, I passed over a bridge that made me think of the White Bridge at the end of Western States. Unlike on Öland, I felt strong when turning off my watch, and I would definitely had been able to continue for much longer if I had brought more nutrition along. But for today, seeing the station house in Hindås felt almost like getting a medal and, in no time at all, I was back in Gothenburg with the express bus.

Tuesday Trail

After working for a couple of hours this morning, I went for a longer and fairly technical trail run up to Jonsered. Listening to “Western Stars” with Bruce Springsteen (which is quite unusual for me as I normally never listen to music when I run), I followed the same trail as when running Vildmarksleden in August for the first fifteen kilometres and then Gotaleden up to Jonsered, passing many lakes that made me considering going for an icy swim. However, since I had to be back in time for some afternoon online meetings, I prioritized catching the 10:43 train back to Gothenburg. 

Tollered

Resuming our project of running all of Gotaleden together, Anna and I again took the 06:09 a.m. commuter train from Sävenäs, making full use of our summer cards with Västtrafik. 

With the sun already rising later, the colours were simply stunning as we followed the stream through Säveån’s nature reserve to Floda, passing three horses and countless sheep, before stopping at ICA for a second breakfast. After berries and a freshly baked cinnamon bun, we continued to Nääs and Sävelången for some skinny dipping and then all the way up the hill to the cottage belonging to Anna’s colleague Lisa and her family outside Tollered.

Seemingly taken directly from Pettson and Findus, with houses for “mucklor” and everything, it felt like a universe away from Gothenburg city life. Yet, after a lovely fika in their garden and four kilometres of running, we were on bus 533 and soon back with the kids. 

Two hours

More than six years after Kipchoge’s highly choreographed two-hour marathon in Vienna, Sebastian Sawe broke the last great barrier and ran the world’s first official sub-two-hour race in London this morning. Meanwhile in Hamburg, my long-time Strava friend Niklas set a new marathon PR of 3 hours and 17 minutes at the age of 52, proving once again that no human is limited.

Trying to inspire the kids to adopt some of the same mindset, I took them on their longest hike ever this morning (which, apparently, also became my longest hike activity on Strava) under the most beautiful blue skies, spotting sparring deer and endless spring flowers as we traced Gotaleden eastward towards Jonsered. Topping it off with a record 15-kilometre indoor row at Nordic Wellness Örgryte, I think a recovery week in Halland is just what I need now.

Scouting

Waking up to blue skies, I was joined by Eddie on his new mountain bike for a bit of exploration along Vildmarksleden. 

Though parts of the trail was quite technical, and I had to carry his bike up some of the steeper climbs, other parts were just perfect and we got to spend three hours together in the green. The whole trail to Hindås is about 42 km and I will try to find the time to do that as well as the 75 km Gotaleden before the summer is over. 

Cykelfiket

After falling victim to a bit of a scam at our local Sportson bike shop, this morning restored my faith in humanity in the most Monoclesque way possible as William got his bike fixed at Cykelfiket which is a combined café and bike repair shop at Heden here in Gothenburg. All in all, we ended up paying less than €20 for both the “fika” and the bike.

Running back and forth next to William biking, I then took the other kiddo up to Delsjön for some canoeing, so by lunch time, I felt like I already had my day of activities. Yet, after a Californian omelette with extra everything, the whole family was off to Alingsås to see Ann-Kristin again.

 

Finally resolving my Gotaleden traumas of being lost in Alingsås, Ann-Kristin was the perfect cicerone, starting the tour with ice cream in an Italian Renaissance Revival style building, followed by a longer swim at Playa Mjörn, and a delicious dinner at Cyrano.

The road ahead

Having struggled with overtraining, and a bit of orthorexia to tell the truth, last year, I have sought a better balance this year as my life circumstances keep changing. With the Essex Way Ultra coming up in early July, I have decided not to fall into the same trap again, especially as 52 days is too short for any miracles anyway. Instead of suddenly doubling my running volume or setting off on some wild 80-kilometre adventure along Gotaleden, I will try to stick to my current 50–80 kilometres per week, with a focus on time on feet, a few proper long runs, and some back-to-back sessions.

With that in mind, I traded what I feared would become an emotionally heavy coastal morning run for some gym time in my white paws. Now it is back to teaching statistics and reading student manuscripts.

Last bit

Today, Anna and I ran the last 24 kilometres from Tollared to Alingsås, finishing our summer project of running all of Gotaleden together. Just as two days ago, the morning light in the forest was incredible but difficult to capture with a cell phone camera.

Once in Alingsås, we had scones and coffee with Anna’s colleague Ann-Kristin before taking the train back to Sävenäs. On the train, my dad called, suggesting that we take the kids to Skagen next week so that Anna can get some work done, an offer that I immediately accepted, so now there will suddenly be some more travelling before I start working again as well on 5 August.

Aspen

Taking the train up to Jonsered shortly after 6 am, Anna and I followed up our midsummer run with another 10 kilometres along Gotaleden and Lake Aspen this morning. Stopping in Rådjursviken for a swim, we were treated to an incredible morning in the forest, reminding me that you do not have to travel around the world to experience the most remarkable things.

Once in Lerum, we took the train back to town and Café Wærnet for a highly instagrammable breakfast. Already checked in for our flight to Luleå tomorrow morning, our next task is to get everything packed but hopefully I will also find the time to swim 2,500 metres so that I can secure the June 5k swimming trophy on Strava. Yet, all Strava trophies aside, this morning took an even happier turn as I just learned that my dear wife got her first high-ranked publication accepted in the journal Hypatia!

Parkrun volunteer

For the second time, I volunteered at Parkrun Skatås this morning, cheering on the 100+ runners of all abilities and ages, and directing them up the hill on the red trail. It is funny how many people who start talking to you when you wear a high-visibility vest, including one British lady who was heading out along Gotaleden for a three-day hike.

Since I was volunteering, I started the morning with 16 km of running on my own just as the sun was rising, stopping only for a quick swim in Härlanda Tjärn and to say hello to a very friendly cat. Having taken three days off with the running this week, I still have some catching up to do so after working a couple of hours, I plan to go for a second run later this afternoon.