Day 30 – 19 Jul, Track above Lake Bekajavri to Riksgransen and then Narvik by train

(19.5 km, total 764.5 km, 5h, 0550 to 1050)

Last night at around 0200 I started hearing this really weird noise. It was sort of a barking/screeching noise and really loud. The last hut I stopped at had an entry talking about Lynx in the area and I think that is what is making the noise. It is either close to the tent or has good volume (In Narvik I confirmed the noise Lynx make and that was what it was).

I was woken by my alarm and ready in super fast time. I am up early as I want to catch the midday train in Riksgransen to get to Narvik. The next train is not until 1700.

The track continued on the old road but then deteriorated to overgrown single track and I was worried my time estimate would now be off.

Thankfully it wasn’t much further before I was back on the old road. The old road was so overgrown that it basically was single track and even though it was overgrown the track was still pretty clear for most of it. There were bridges and boardwalk but these look like they had not been maintained for a long time and many boards were rotten and broken. Some of the bridges had collapsed.

The track was between the E10 road and the railway line, sometimes right beside on of them. There were a couple of times walking a short distance on the road. There were small railway stations which helped to keep track of progress. Every four or so km there were open shelters with picnic tables inside that you could sleep on comfortably in wet weather.

Even the signpost is in bad condition. You can see the km but not where they lead to

Then I reached Lantatjakka there was an information board explaining that the trail was the supply road for the construction of the railway which was needed to transport ore. There was a pamphlet you could take with detailed map and more information but I just took photos. It had the trail in a lot of detail from there all the way to Riksgransen which came in handy trying to see where to go when going through the small settlement of Vassejaure.

From Lantajakka the trail was obviously in a lot more use and became wider and clear of vegetation, though the bridges and boardwalk was still in poor condition.
I was pushing the pace but not being to silly about it and was happy with my time, though sometimes the signs would state a longer distance than I expected causing a little worry only to be put at ease when the next sign was back to the distance I expected.

The track spend a sort time on the other side of the railway lines

Good that the seat has been raised on the pallet so you can get the full view of the dirt bank. This must be for people overwhelmed with the great views everyhere

Vassijaure

Overall I enjoyed the trail more than I thought I would but I was relieved to reach Riksgransen in time for the train, though the timing was 20 minutes later than I thought. Shortly after I arrived a cafe opened so I was able to get a Fanta and a coffee while I waited. I asked about tickets and the lady said I could buy online or on the train. I went online and it said they were sold out so I would try on the train.

Riksgransen

The train was on time and the scenery spectacular as we wound high through the mountains. It was only a 45 minute journey. I kept waiting for the staff to come through for tickets but no one did so I stopped a train employee who walked past and asked about buying a ticket and she said not to worry about it.

In Narvik it was raining lightly and I walked to the first option for accommodation but they were not open for check-in until 1600 so I went to my second option and was given a room immediately (it was 1300). It was a cute room on the top floor with an angled roof and funny window in the roof. If I stood on the chair I had lovely views of the town and the water. The hotel, Narvik Hotel, is old but the room was spotless and the price reasonable for Norway.
I had a shower and then headed back too the pizza place I saw walking in. The Pizza was amazing. Now I headed to a sports shop for new socks and some shoe repair glue to fix the front of my shoes. Then to buy a phone screen protector and the post office to pick up my resupply that had all my remaining food an all of the maps for the rest of the walk. I was planning to sort out my resupply packages here for the rest of the trip.

Unfortunately my package was not there. Apparently there is a 2 week limit for poste Restante and it had been sent back to Honningsvag. Luckily Honningsvag did not throw it away as they could have. The Post Office staff were very helpful trying to find options for me. It would not arrive in Narvik for 6 days due to the weekend so we came up with a way to order and pay for it online and have the Honningsvag Post Office send it to the post office in a town 30km from my next rest stop. The biggest issue is my maps but they were nice enough to print out the maps I needed, even though it is in black and white and poor quality. I will need to put them in a plastic bag as they are on normal paper, not waterproof like my maps. It should be enough and I have them on my phone if needed. Excellent service from the staff.
Now I needed to go shopping for all of my food for the next 9 day leg.. Unfortunately as I did not have my own food I was now going to be heavier than it would have been, which is especially bad given it is a 9 day leg, Luckily I do have leftover 4 dinners to use. The supermarkets here do not have a great range of things suitable for hiking but I found enough. The main issue is they do have many muslea bars so snacks is the most challenging thing. I would prefer some variety from nuts but at least I can easily get nuts. I could not find any milk powder in the three supermarkets I went to so no deserts. For breakfast I found some sachet which I am not sure if it is porridge or muslea so I will give it a try. I also got a couple of Real Turmat (freeze dry meals) despite how expensive they are. Electrolyte powder was the last thing I needed and I ended up having to buy a large container of it. I will ship the rest of it to my next destination.
Back in my room I did my washing that had been soaking and cleaned my shoes. By this time it was dinner and conveniently there is a Chinese Restaurant next to the hotel so had a huge meal and then relaxed for the rest of the evening.

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