Day 78 (20): life's a bi... beach

Vassdalstjorn to Ulvtuvtjonn

Distance: 23km

20 days on the trail! Time is flying!

Well, not this morning at least. The storm intensified overnight and is still raging outside when I wake up. No hurry to get going.

I drink one cup of coffee after the other, start reading a book that is laying around, plan my next stages. A lazy morning.

My left foot needs some attention as well. An open wound seems to have gotten infected. The smell is quite bad. With my nearly non-existent knowledge, I clean it with some sanitizer I find, dry it, put some of my antiseptic solution on it. Looking much better now. Hopefully, it will get better.

After some more coffee and some more pages of the not so capturing book, the sun is coming out and I decide to leave.

Leaving the hut behind, I continue skirting around Blasjo, a massive dammed lake, which I have been following since yesterday noon. It's okay going initially until I get hit by a heavy, around 2 hours lasting rain shower with strong winds. The rocks become wet and slippery. I am keeping my head down, just functioning. Surprisingly, I'm not angry or frustrated. 

Eventually, the rain stops. I have gotten uncomfortably cold so it's a delight, when the sun finds it's way through the clouds. 

Time for a break. It's where I suddenly feel exhausted. The last 2 hours have been tiring. Since I have phone signal, I decide updating my blog, just distract myself a bit. 

After doing so, I continue on a trail, which is hard to walk, up and down, partly badly marked. Difficult. 

Then, out of nowhere, there's this beach. Small and maybe not the most spectacular one. But it's so random. Such a welcome surprise. Up here in the Norwegian mountains. 

I can't resist, go for a swim in the clear water. It gives my mood a needed boost. 

However, I don't walk to far anymore. As I cross two lakes via a natural causeway, I decide to call it a day. The wound on my foot hurts, and anyway, it's kind of a magical place. Surrounded by water, out there on this small strip of land. 

A short day. Late start, early finish. But a tough day. Very challenging hiking. Many times did I have to use my hands climbing over rocks, many times I was close from slipping on the wet rocks. While not that many kilometers, it still feels like I have achieved something today.