Sweden 🇸🇪 - the decision falls in Umeå

Sven Walther

July 17, 2026

The decision

When planning our route back to the upcoming service in Austria, we had kept all options open for a long time: straight back through Sweden - or the big loop via Finland and the Baltic states? Right here, in Umeå, it falls: we carry on north and go around the Gulf of Bothnia.

Before we drive even a metre towards Finland, though, there is work to do first. Directly opposite the campsite there is a car park with a stable signal, from which Sven can take his meetings. Saskia and Lou take the hiking trail next door in the meantime.

Boardwalk in the pine forest near Umeå splitting into two directions — Right or left?

Speaking of forks: Lou likes to walk ahead, but at spots like this she reliably waits until the decision has been made.

Wooden shelter beside the boardwalk in the forest near Umeå — Shelter along the way

Lou standing on a large boulder in the sunny pine forest — Lou has found the best viewpoint

Lou standing on a wooden jetty leading out into a lake — At the end of the trail a jetty is waiting

Lövånger

After that we move on to a wonderfully remote campsite near Lövånger. The main road is only a few minutes away, but a few kilometres of gravel track make for absolute quiet. We are parked right by the water, looking across the bay at the forests on the far shore.

Turns out the best window in Mammothon is the one at the table.

View through the window at the table onto the bay and the forest on the far shore — The view from the table

And then the evening puts on one more show.

Red and orange evening sky above the trees, with the roof of Mammothon in the foreground — Red sky over Lövånger

Bjuröklubb

The next day pulls us onto another trailhead car park - this time on the Bjuröklubb peninsula in the municipality of Skellefteå. A lighthouse, a nature reserve and a coastline made largely of bare rock.

Red Swedish house with a Swedish flag, forest and the sea behind it — Red house, blue and yellow flag, sea behind

The way down to the coast leads over flat, polished rock where only moss, heather and a few wind-bent pines hold on.

Wide rock slabs with low vegetation and scattered pines, the open sea behind — Rock, heather, sea

Offshore lie the skerries, and in between the rainwater collects in small pools straight on the stone.

Rocky coast with a small pool in the foreground and a view across the skerries out to sea — Looking out across the skerries

Particularly beautiful is a narrow rib of rock that lies like a natural dam between two stretches of water.

Narrow rib of rock lying like a dam between two calm stretches of water — Natural dam

Sandy beach with large boulders at the water's edge and forest along the side — And then sand after all

Somewhere in between, a stone mermaid sits in the middle of the rock, her tail completely covered in coloured glass. In a spot where there is otherwise only wind and water, that is not what you expect to find.

Sculpture of a mermaid on the rock, her tail clad in coloured glass mosaic — Mermaid on the rock

Lou standing on a large boulder on the rocky coast, the sea behind — Lou at the coast

The further we explore the Swedish east coast, the more we notice: this side of Sweden has an incredible number of beautiful and surprisingly quiet places too. The west coast gets the postcards - here you get the beach to yourself.