Go Sweden: Isabel Conwaygot close to nature on a wilderness safari in the Swedish province of Värmland – and even found time for a little luxury
SILENTLY OUR canoe glided through the greenery. Hanging willow enclosed us in a green cave of leaves, and the light cast a silvery sheen as it caught the backs of reeds and made pewter-coloured rocks glow. A cloud of dandelion heads floated above us like gossamer.
The engine behind me – an athletic Swede doing most of the paddling – had hoped for a sighting of a beaver or two, or even an elk swimming across the pristine waters of Lake Eldan, in the Swedish province of Värmland.
That type of experience isn’t too much to hope for around here: at one point, in an idyllic nature reserve, I eyeballed 600kg of male elk, complete with big horns, that was grazing lazily in a pasture one minute and galloping full speed across the road the next, to the consternation of nearby drivers.
Three or four hours west of Stockholm and north of Gothenburg, Värmland is one of Europe’s last remaining wildernesses, home to Sweden’s four native predators: the wolf, brown bear, wolverine and lynx.
We began our wilderness adventure at the Big Four (www.bigfour-scandinavia.com), a “predator centre” devoted to these far-from-extinct animals – the centre is handy for identifying cries, paw prints, tracks and droppings – then went to meet our wilderness guide, Leif Eriksson-Wallin.
A Swedish version of Crocodile Dundee, he had the same glinting knife sheathed at his side. Eriksson-Wallin can track a moose, lynx or wolf for kilometres. He can also hack down trees, bind them into a floating platform for one of his raft safaris and cook up a tasty supper on his campfire. Rattling along in his four-wheel drive through endless forests, he distributed leaflets telling us what to do if we encountered a bear or a wolf – “try to appear big and dangerous”.
Late in the evening, having notched up sightings of six elk, a beaver, several wild turkeys, rows of owls and a rare glimpse of a white-tailed eagle, the biggest of the birds of prey of Sweden, we were beginning to doubt the presence of Värmland’s roaming wolves. Then, on the edge of the woods high above Lake Rada, we came upon the cadaver of a young roe, bearing, our guide said, the unmistakable hallmark of a wolf attack: a deadly bite to the poor creature’s neck. The bears had not been around yet, he surmised, because the bones had not been crunched, just picked at by other predators.
Swedes love nature in general and Swedish nature in particular. They are taught from an early age to respect it – Sweden’s nature education starts at the preschool stage – and enjoy the mysteries of the forest and the flower-filled fields, searching for mushrooms and berries, hiking and picnicking.
The law of allemansrätten, or "everyman's right", allows pretty much unlimited access to any land or waterfront area. When a Swede suggests that you get out and enjoy the great outdoors you will need hiking boots; a change of clothes, in case you bathe in an ice-cold glacial lake; and a hip flask, because there won't be a pub anywhere in sight.
The first time you come to Sweden, what strikes you most is that Europe’s third-largest country is pretty much empty. But that is the attraction of one of the world’s unspoilt areas of natural beauty, comparable to Canada in its awesome remote scenery.
Värmland has 11,118 lakes. The huge inland sea of Lake Vänern, the largest in western Europe, has 30 kinds of fish and 22,000 islands, many of them deserted and hundreds owned by the Church of Sweden, bequeathed by their deceased owners.
From the town of Kristinehamn, east of Värmland’s capital, Karlstad, Christine af Bro (www.bojorten.se), a replica of a 17th-century Dutch sailing boat, runs excursions, passing gorgeous traditional cottages right out on to the archipelago.
Eriksson-Wallin, with his expert tracking abilities, home-cured elk sausages and campfire-barbecued salmon trout, was a hard act to follow. But another modern-day Viking was just as impressive.
At the wilderness village of Naturbyn, Thomas Peterson, a survival expert retired from UN peacekeeping duties, welcomes guests who are prepared to reel in their own fish from Lake Eldan, collect and chop firewood for the campfire and have a shower by lighting a fire under an enormous boiler.
The place is popular with Swedish, Swiss, German and British guests, some of whom bed down, 20 at a time, on the floor of a communal log cabin, heated by a heap of hot stones surrounding the open fire. (There are also four-person huts.)
Peterson single-handedly built this village of hand-hewn timber cabins and carved furniture. His romantic honeymoon suite, complete with a four-poster bed, is a tree house well anchored in tall, straight trees, so the room sways in the breeze. Soft lighting from candles adds romance. There is a secluded sauna on the lakeside and a bathing spot where skinny-dipping is encouraged; you’ll have only an elk for company.
If lighting a fire under your shower to heat the water, or the prospect of a dry toilet, is a tad too close to nature for you, then Värmland’s gracious manor- house hotels and guest houses beckon. On the shores of Lake Glafsfjord is Hillringsberg Manor, where apart from the dawn chorus and the waves lapping on the shore the only thing visitors hear is the silence.
More than 1,000 people used to work in the local iron industry, and the manor and its forge buildings symbolised Värmland’s prosperity. Restored to its former glory, and now managed by a Norwegian couple, it is a favourite wedding location.
Another manor, Bredsjö, in thickly wooded countryside, may be in the middle of nowhere, but it has its own railway stop nevertheless. Trains from Karlstad to Borlange call at lovely Bredsjö Herrgardar.
On the shores of Lake Bredsjö are two manors, one of them from the mid-18th century, and several buildings containing guest rooms, including one said to be haunted – but by friendly spirits, according to a team of ghostbusters who claim to have located them.
Bredsjö Manor is also a centre for canoeing and raft trips. Echoing the grandeur of past times, when wealthy mill owners and iron magnates entertained their friends, one of the manors has a dainty pastel drawing room where the women retired after dinner to drink tea and gossip. Flouting such inequality, given that Sweden is now renowned for its equality, we retired to the male smoking room, enjoying the heavy leather furnishings and the wide range of whiskies, watched from above by a fearsome but very dead elk, one of the many that met with a sad end in days of yore.
See www.visitsweden. com or www.varmland.org
Go there
Ryanair (www.ryanair.com) flies to Stockholm Skavsta from Dublin. Scandinavian Airlines (www.flysas.com) flies to Stockholm Arlanda from Dublin.
Where to stay, where to eat and where to go
Where to stay
Bredsjö Manor. Bredsjö, Hallefors, 00-46-587-80200, www.bredsjoherrgardar.se. Expect charm and a friendly welcome. One of Sweden's best-known cheese farms, Bredsjö Milking Ewes, is nearby. Half-board €130 per person sharing. B&B from €54 per person sharing.
Solbacka Gästgifveri. As Brunn, Östra Ämtervik, 00-46-565-30100, www.hotellsolbacka.se. A traditional cosy Swedish guesthouse-cum-hotel near the birthplace of the author Selma Lagerlöf. Double rooms and apartments from €40 per person, including breakfast. Horse-trekking packages available.
Hillringsberg Manor. Glava, 00-46-570-42009, www.hillringsbergsherrgard.se. A beautiful setting on the shores of Lake Glafsfjorden, a tranquil hideaway in one of Värmland's renowned nature reserves. Locally sourced produce includes game, mushrooms and berries from Värmland forests. Doubles €110 with breakfast. Set two-course dinner €28.
Where to eat
Hennickehammar Manor. Filipstad, 00-46-590-608500, www.hennickehammar.se. The buffet lunch is rather expensive by Swedish standards, at about €18.50, but it's served in a luxurious setting, and the kitchen has won awards. Worth visiting to walk the grounds. Three-course dinner €40. Accommodation in suites and other rooms in the parkland around the manor.
Saffran Vitlök. Storgatan, Sunne, 00-46-565-12009, www.saffranvitlok.se. Anyone who thinks Sweden is expensive – it isn't; even wines are cheaper in the state liquor stores (Systembolaget) than in Ireland – should check out this lively lunch venue, specialising in home cooking. You can eat your heart out – a main course, salads, bread and vegetables – then go back for second helpings, and all for less than €8, including coffee.
Bredsjö Manor. Bredsjö, Hallefors, 00-46-587-80200, www.bredsjoherrgardar.se. Reputedly serves Värmland's best-value buffet lunch, at €9 (€12 at weekends). Swedish anti-drink-driving laws mean many people who want to enjoy food and wine opt to stay overnight. Four-course dinner €47. Sample the cloudberry (hjorten) wine with dessert. It's delicious – and has a kick like a mule.
Where to go
Visit Naturbyn, the wilderness village on Lake Eldan, (00-46-706-629472, www.naturbyn.nu). Sunbathe on one of the giant slabs of rock or hire a canoe and have an adventurous paddle, exploring uninhabited islands on the lake. Longer adventures, over three or four days, include equipment and maps. Off the E18 motorway, between Stockholm and Oslo, north of Saffle.
Alfred Nobel Museum. Stifelsen Björkborn, 00-46-586-83494, www. nobelmuseetikarlskoga.se. The fascinating Björkborn Manor, outside the town of Karlskoga, was Nobel's last home and laboratory in Sweden and the place where many of his inventions took root. An actor re-enacts the great man to perfection. There's an experimental workshop for children – who'll love the make-believe dynamite candy.
Take a walk in the woodsguided by Leif Erikkson-Wallin (00-46-563-22055 www.lewa.nu). He offers a range of guided excursions, from elk-spotting evening safaris, which include a campfire stop and a supper of delicacies from the wilderness, to beaver and raft safaris and hunts for semi-precious stones and mushrooms.