In the first of three posts, Three Points of the Compass looks at his participation in Fjällräven Classic Sweden 2023, a 110km hike through Swedish Lapland.

Three Points of the Compass had never previously backpacked in Sweden and had been considering entering the Fjällräven Classic for some years, thinking it would be an ideal introduction to this region while also enjoying the advantage of having much of the logistics taken care of. It may help others to read a little of my experience of this in 2023.

In 2022 I subscribed to the Fjällräven newsletter, thereby gaining an early invite to apply for a ticket. I received my email invite at 09.01 on 30 January 2023 and less than an hour later had received confirmation that my application was successful. My entry cost me SEK 2700. Soon after that email, all places were taken. Fjällräven could easily fill their available slots multiple times over but year on year, continue to limit the impact on the environment and participant experience and keep numbers down. All the worldwide Classic events were cancelled during the Covid pandemic. Classic Sweden has the largest number of available places and places were deliberately reduced by around 500 in 2023 to reduce impact on the trail. There is also great demand for those wishing to participate in other Classics, though I hadn’t applied for any of those. Classic Germany sold out within two minutes in 2023. I will note that I did meet a handful of hikers walking the route at the same time, who were not ‘official’ participants, but wished to experience the Classic nonetheless. This was my first Classic and I am still uncertain if it will be my last as I had intended it to be a one-off experience.

There is a great deal of information on the Fjällräven website, such as suggested (and obligatory) gear lists, and they also provide further information to participants prior to each event, but I include below a few of my photos taken in 2023 to give just a flavour of the help that occurs prior to and during the hike. The way I did things is not necessarily the same as how other participants tackled it. I flew from London Heathrow to Kiruna, via Stockholm (with SAS- excellent), but over 500 people caught a dedicated Trekkers Train from Stockholm and 300 travelled on the Trekkers Train from Abisko to Stockholm at the end. Some people like a bit of ‘luxury’ accommodation prior to and following the Classic while I camped at Kiruna and stayed in a mixed dorm room in a hostel at STF Abisko Turiststation afterward. Two further posts will cover my days on trail.

The 2023 Fjällräven Classic Sweden took place 11 – 18 August. There are staggered start times and you state which you want on first application. My chosen start was 09:30 in the morning of Friday 11 August. My intention was to spend five days on trail, finishing on the 15th, but allowed myself an extra day in case of injury, weather issues or anything else. The checkpoints on trail steadily close as the days pass and numbers on trail decrease. There will have been a handful of hikers who failed to reach the finish checkpoint prior to it closing.

I had no need to trust my vulnerable pack to the baggage handlers when flying out and back as I had my Gossamer Gear G4-20 pack and contents packed inside a suitcase for the journeys. Most others appeared to do the same though I saw that some hikers managed to get their packs on board as hand luggage. I also saw hikers pulled out of the queue when attempting to do the same on the return flights. My trekking poles travelled to Sweden and back inside the suitcase and I also packed a bunch of clean ‘town clothes’ for after the hike which stayed in the suitcase as Fjällräven also arrange the transport of participant’s luggage from the start point in Kiruna, to rejoin them at the finish at Abisko. Despite there being almost no signal throughout the 110km of the Classic, I carried a powerbank for my phone on trail because I intended on taking a lots of photos, but also packed a second powerbank in the suitcase for when I finished the trail.

Some people pack along microspikes to climb Kebnekaise, the highest mountain in Sweden, during the hike. I didn’t as it didn’t interest me. But crampons can be hired from the STF hut at Kebnekaise instead, and I met four hikers (not on the Classic) who had done just that.

The ‘muster point’ for participants, prior to being bussed to the trailhead at Nikkaloukta, is Kiruna and on arrival in Sweden on the 10th I camped at the packed Camp Ripan, next door to the sports facility taken over by Fjällräven for registration and the issuing of kit etc. Campers at Camp Ripan do not need to prebook as it is a ‘walk-in’ with plenty of pitches. However, rooms get booked months in advance. Fjällräven has a long-practised way of providing everything to arriving hikers. It was all a bit of a whirlwind rush to fit in everything as I also wanted to fit in two presentations in the evening. Anything to get the most out of the trail. I was slightly baffled by other people’s lack of enthusiasm to do similar.

The first fascinating presentation was by a researcher from the Tarfala Research Station (just a few kilometres from Kebnekaise) about the ongoing research taking place there on glacial retreat etc. When I turned up in the auditorium I immediately doubled the audience. At least the second presentation drew a dozen or so more attendees. This was on the flora, fauna and geology of the trail, that also included insight into the indigenous Sami, and some advice on where to find the best wildcamping. A good few hundred participants never attended the talks and it was very much their loss.

While main meals are provided, participants are encouraged to bring anything extra they might want. I took out from the UK my brew kit, a handful of bars, good chocolate and some cheeses. I appreciated not needing to worry over finding gas for my stove as two sizes of canister were available at Kiruna (and further down trail if I had required a restock). I took a 240g cart as I was intending on boiling water in addition to filtering it at certain points on trail as there had been instances of viral gastroenteritis (stomach flu) reported at the huts in the weeks previous. As it was, I never needed to boil any water unless it was for rehydrating a meal or a hot drink. I had no intention of visiting the huts en route, but most were closed to Classic participants anyway, including the saunas. What does have to be visited are the six checkpoints between start and finish. Fjällräven staff at these tented stations provide a stamp in your ‘trekking passport’ and all stamps must be collected to qualify for the successful participant’s medal and patch at the finish. ‘Pop-up’ loos were also provided at each checkpoint.

Each of the various Classic treks takes place in a ‘classic’ trekking landscape and the Swedish Classic includes the northern section of a respected long-distance trail- Kungsleden (The King’s Trail). The Swedish Classic is 110km, from Nikkaluokta to Abisko, partly following the Kungsleden and takes place above the Arctic Circle. I took my standard three-season backpacking gear, with very few changes. I experienced a fair bit of rain and bugs and had no issues with any of my gear selections. My pack was around the 8.5kg mark though some carried a great deal more. A Korean I met in the hostel at Abisko had just completed the trail carrying a 24kg pack. Because the ticket price includes Fjällräven taking care of many of the logistics, I could simply concentrate on enjoying the experience. I still had a few things to sort out and arrange myself, but this was all pretty basic stuff, such as flights and a couple of nights accommodation at the end of the trail. Even with the help in logistics it is still a demanding trail and not all those who start manage to finish. 66 participants had to retire in 2023 before reaching the northern terminus at Abisko.

Fjällräven Classic is not a competition, or race. Each annual event is simply an opportunity to enjoy trekking through a fantastic landscape and, if desired, enjoying it with others. Needless to say, there are a handful of people who attempt to complete the trail in the quickest time possible, somewhat negating the primary intentions of the organisers. Others really slow things down and spend as much time as they can out there, enjoying shorter trekking days and more of a convivial camp experience each evening. Some of these will also take one or both boat ride options encountered on the route that together knock off over 12km of trail. I was somewhere in the middle in completing it in five days and I eschewed both boat options.

The first Fjällräven Classic was held in northern Sweden in 2005. The goal was to help and inspire more people to get outdoors through providing actual assistance in planning and transport, also supplying provisions and fuel. All the while encouraging and supporting an environmental leave-no-trace ethos. It was an extremely successful concept and the number of participants grew. A new Classic was created in Denmark in 2014, then another Classic in the USA in 2016. Then China, Germany, Hong Kong (2017), South Korea (2023) and the UK (though this wasn’t held in 2023). 152 people completed the first Swedish Classic in 2005 and 2136 in 2015. Not all of those walking are general public. There were 1496 Classic Sweden participants in 2023 from 44 countries, plus a large contingent of Fjällräven staff. The most common nationality was Swedish, forming 14% of those on trail. 44% of those taking part were female. There were 28 participants aged under 15 in 2023, undertaking the walk with their parents, usually taking six or seven days to complete the trail. In contrast, there was also five people over 70 that took part in Classic Sweden in 2023. Slightly younger than those, I thoroughly enjoyed my participation but did often find the trail too busy for my liking, though on many an occasion I paused to look around me, finding not a soul in sight, with just cloud wreathed hills and arctic tundra for company.

Trail talk: Fjällräven Classic Sweden- heading west to the Kungsleden. Nikkaluokta to Sälka

Trail talk: Fjällräven Classic Sweden- heading north on the Kungsleden. Sälka to Abisko