Laponia ski tour

From hut-to-hut on skis in Laponia World Heritage Site

Join our hut-to-hut tour on skis in the World Heritage Site Laponia. In April, or Cuoŋománnu meaning “crust snow month” in Northern Sami language, the days are getting longer and the nights shorter. We enjoy the arctic spring with warmer days and colder nights when the snow freeze to an unbreakable crust. During the days we discover the outskirt of Padjelanta, Stora Sjöfallet och Sarek National Parks and in the night when the temperature drops, we sleep comfortably in heated mountain cabins. We mix day tours with moving days when we travel from hut-to-hut on skis. This tour is semi-supported which means that the food is transported to the huts in advanced. We all carry lighter backpacks packed with lunch pack, extra clothing and other equipment needed for the week.

On Laponia ski tour we visit the area where our three largest National Parks meet. Where the jagged peaks of Sarek National Park meet the high plains of Padjelanta and the rocky hillsides of Stora Sjöfallet. During centuries, the Sami People have lived and worked in the area following the reindeers during their migration to the summer grassing area. Since 1996, the National Parks, all part of UNESCO World Heritage Site Laponia, are protected for its unique combination of nature and culture values.

Our idea is to enjoy the arctic spring in Laponia World Heritage Site. We ski with light backpacks and stay in cozy mountain cabins.

This ski tour is for you

…want to experience a hut-to-hut tour on skis and visit Laponia and the three biggest National Parks in Sweden. To join Laponia ski tour we want you to be in good physical shape and have earlier experience from day tour on skis or longer exercise in the ski tracks. As most of the food is already delivered to the cabins it allows us to travel with lighter backpacks of about 10kg. Recommended age from 16 years old. Please contact us if you have any questions regarding your physical ability or experience level.

Join us and experience:

• A hut-to-hut tour on skis in Laponia World Heritage Site
• The arctic spring
• Spectacular mountain views
• An active but relax vacation
• Good food with local specialties

Experience a hut-to-hut tour on skis in small groups and with a local guide

We want you to have the best experience possible when traveling in the World Heritage Site Laponia on skis. Therefore, we travel in small groups of maximum 8 guests in total. All our guides live in the area and can tell you stories about the culture and history in Laponia. They are all certified guides trained in wilderness first aid or live up to the same standard or higher.

Solo travelers

Many of our guests travel on their own and don’t know anyone else in the group when arriving the pickup location. It is a great way to experience new areas and to find new outdoor friends. Solo travelers are of course welcome to book the tour, but we will need a minimum of three guests in total to give it a go.

Information

Accommodation and comfort

During our hut-to-hut tour on skis we’ll stay in cozy heated cabins without electricity or running water. Here we find everything that we’ll need, bunk beds with duvets and pillows and a well-equipped kitchen. We’ll bring a summer sleeping bag for safety reasons and a pillow case. During the week we sleep in multi-bed rooms. In case there are other guests in the cabin, women and men may have to share a room. We all help to carry water, melt snow and to chop wood. There are outhouses not far away from each cabin and during the day nature offers cool toilet spots, often with a scenic mountain view.

Food

All food is included from lunch day 1 to lunch day 7. In the huts we prepare breakfast and dinner together in the common kitchen. This is also where we meet to eat and chat about mountains, life and other adventures. Food is a large part of the experiencing and we want to eat good and feel well. We cook he food from scratch using local ingredients such as moose and reindeer meet. As long as the weather permits, we’ll have a longer break for lunch to eat a lighter lunch and recover. Please let us know when making your reservation if you prefer vegetarian or vegan food or if you have any allergies.

Start and end location

We will meet you at Jokkmokk bus station at 9.00 on day 1 and the ski tour ends in the same place around 16.00 on day 7. Before you start you journey home you will get a chance to take a hot shower at a hostel in Jokkmokk.

Travel here…

Get on the night train in Stockholm in the evening and wake up in Jokkmokk the next morning. This is not only the best option for the planet, it is also a cool experience. Book your private cabin or just a single bed in a cabin with 3 or 6-beds. In the morning you get off the train in Murjek where you board bus 43 for a last hour of traveling before arriving Jokkmokk bus station. Purchase both the train and the bus ticket online at www.sj.se. Enter Stockholm Central, Arlanda airport, or wherever you choose to travel from to Jokkmokk bus station and it will give you the options.

If you prefer you can also fly directly from Stockholm to Luleå Airport. Please note that you may have to fly in to Luleå already the day before the tour starts and stay an extra night in Luleå or Jokkmokk. From the airport there is a bus that takes you all the way to Jokkmokk. The airport shuttle you’ll find at www.ltnbd.se and trains and buses at www.sj.se. Please note that the shuttle needs to be booked latest 17.00 the day before.

…and home

Catch the bus from Jokkmokk to Murjek or Boden and continue south with the train or go to Luleå by bus or train and fly home. Information about buses can be found at www.ltnbd.se and buses and trains at www.sj.se and remember that the airport shuttle need to be booked latest 17.00 the day before.

However you choose to travel here, flexible tickets are recommended. Even if we have planned with an extra day during our week in the mountains, conditions can delay our return to Jokkmokk.

How cold will it be?

On a hut-to-hut tour on skis during the arctic spring in Laponia World Heritage Site we see all kinds of weather. We can experience sunshine and +10C degrees during the day but also +5C degrees with snow and strong winds. Night temperatures often drop down to -20. Our packing list helps you to decide what to bring to stay warm and happy on the tour.

Packing list – Laponia ski tour >>

How heavy will my backpack be?

All participant will each carry their own backpack with the lunch for the day, extra clothing and personal equipment for the night. We will also aske you to carry part of the common safety equipment, such as a shovel or a sleeping pad. All food will be delivered to the huts beforehand. Your backpack will weigh about 10 kg when we travel from hut-to-hut on skis and about 5 kg on the day tours. We recommend that you take the time to think through your packing and what you really need. Skiing becomes much more comfortable with a lighter backpack.

Itinerary

Included meals marked each day with B=breakfast, L=lunch and D=dinner

DAY 1 ARRIVAL JOKKMOKK – AKKA  (L,D)

We will pick you up at the bus station in Jokkmokk and drive you to our place just outside Jokkmokk. We give you an introduction to the tour and check the equipment before we head west towards Laponia world heritage site. Along the way we stop at Naturum by Stora Sjöfallet, an exhibition about the nature and culture in the World Heritage Site Laponia. We continue along a winding mountain road to Ritsem from where we travel across the lake Akkajaure by snowmobile. We’ll have dinner and stay overnight in cabins.

DAY 2 AKKA – GISURIS (B,L,D)

We start the day with a generous “mountain breakfast” before we start skiing along the frozen river Vuojatädno. The river leads us up to Kutjaure lake where we ski across the ice to Gisuris mountain cabin on the other side. We have dinner and sleep well in the cabin after a full day in the mountains.

Distance on skis: 15 km, elevation gain/loss: +150/-50, estimated time out skiing: 6-8h

DAY 3 SAREK AND STORA SJÖFALLET NATIONAL PARKS (B,L,D)

In Gisuris we have a day to explore the Sarek and Stora Sjöfallet National Parks. Maybe we get the chance to see tracks from foxes and wolverines living in the area. If the weather and the condition of the group allow us to we can climb one of the easier peaks in the area.

DAY 4 PADJELANTA NATIONAL PARK (B,L,D)

We slide down the mountain side to lake Kutjaure connection all the three National Parks Sarek, Padjelanta and Stora Sjöfallet. We continue through Padjelanta National Park to Kutjaure mountain hut where we stay for two nights.

Distance on skis: 10 km, elevation gain/loss: +100/-100, estimated time out skiing: 4h

DAY 5 KUTJAURE MOUNTAIN HUT (B,L,D)

We explore the area around Kutjaure mountain hut on a day trip. The area is still an undiscovered place for most skiers and we often get the mountain for our self.

DAY 6 HEADING BACK TO AKKA HUT (B,L,D)

Our last full day in the mountain takes us through a sparse mountain birch forest contouring the majestic Ahkka Mountain. We finish the day with sauna in Ahkka cabin and a final dinner together.

Distance on skis: 17 km, elevation gain/loss: +50/-150 m, estimated time out skiing: 6-8h

DAY 7 DEPARTURE AHKKA (B,L)

After finishing the breakfast, we’ll get a snowmobile transport across the lake to Ritsem where we continue in minivans back to Jokkmokk. Enjoy a hot shower and lunch in Jokkmokk before starting your journey home. 

We reserve the right to make changes

Nature is a dynamic place and we may need to adjust the route and the itinerary according to the current weather conditions. We are also in contact with representatives for the local reindeer herders’ communities and other local actors to collaborate in the best way possible.

Do you have any questions?

Please send us an email to info@laponiaadventures.com
We are happy to help and will answer you as soon as we can.