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Nature Travels has just launched a new page on Facebook and also recently begun “tweeting” on Twitter, meaning there are now more ways than ever to keep updated on the latest outdoor and ecotourism holidays in Sweden:
In addition to regular updates on our experiences, the new Nature Travels Facebook page has a discussion board with a series of FAQs about our holidays in Sweden. We have answered some of the most common questions regarding our canoeing, kayaking and timber rafting experiences and will continue to expand this resource over the coming months. We also welcome your contributions – please submit your questions and we will be happy to assist.
The page also has a brand new Photo Gallery where we will be adding photos sent in by our clients from their holidays in Sweden. Some marvellous photos of early-season timber rafting have just been added.
With “tweeters” from Stephen Fry to Barack Obama, Twitter (www.twitter.com) is one of the latest innovations in social networking. The Nature Travels tweets (username: Nature_Travels) will provide regular bite-sized updates on the latest news additions to our portfolio.
WILD SWEDEN BLOG
Our blog at www.wildsweden.co.uk has been running since October 2006 and now has dozens of articles on topics on everything related to Sweden and the outdoors, from the conservation of the endangered Arctic Fox to how to choose a sleeping bag.
You can subscribe to the RSS feed from blog by clicking on the “Feed on: Posts” link on the page.
NATURE TRAVELS NEWS BLOG
Our news blog at http://naturetravelsnews.wordpress.com is also a fairly recent project. Here you will find regular updates on new outdoor experiences added to our portfolio and when new dates and prices for the coming season are released for existing experiences.
Again, you can subscribe to the RSS feed from blog by clicking on the “Feed on: Posts” link on the page.
STEP FORWARD NEWSLETTER
If you prefer to receive your news via email, you can get an overview of the latest developments by subscribing to our bi-monthly email newsletter, Step Forward. You can read the latest edition online at www.naturetravels.co.uk/news.htm and sign up using the form at the bottom of the page.
We also publish two specialist occasional newsletters: Expedition Sweden, focusing on adventurous training in Sweden for Armed Forces, University Armed Forces and Cadets, and Paddle Sweden, spotlighting our range of canoeing, kayaking and timber rafting tours for canoe and kayak clubs. Sign up using the forms at the bottom of the page.
As you can see, there is a wide choice of ways to keep ahead of the latest news on our range of holidays in Sweden! We also love to receive comments, photos and suggestions from our clients and are always happy to hear from you.
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
2007 has been a wonderful year for Nature Travels and for ecotourism in Sweden. To end the year, here are a few pictures taken by the Nature Travels Team while out and about in Sweden in 2007, from the wild snow-covered mountains of Lapland to the deep forests and quiet waters of Värmland.
We are already hard at work planning adventures and new experiences for 2008. Watch these pages for updates!
Getting ready for a mass dog sledding tour from Kiruna to the IceHotel in Jukkasjärvi, Lapland.
Waiting patiently for the off.
On the trail at last!
The dogs stop for a well-earned rest.
One of the beautiful individually-sculpted rooms at the IceHotel.
Just one of the many things you can do with a reindeer skin.
Dinnertime in the teepee.
Getting ready for bed near Abisko, Lapland. Time to unpack some VERY thick sleeping bags!
Morning the next day and the last of the spring snows on the mountains.
Let’s hope it tastes better than it looks…
The stunning formation of “Lapporten”, the Sami Gate, visible almost everywhere you go in the Abisko area.
Snowshoeing is a great way to discover the winter mountains.
Driling the holes for ice fishing…
…and waiting for a bite!
Visiting the home of a traditional Sami reindeer herder…
…and meeting some of his reindeer!
Time to say goodbye.
The island of Koster in the eastern archipelago.
Watching some of Koster’s many seals.
Building the raft for a day-trip down the Klarälven.
Finished!
Relaxing on the river.
Admiring the view over the endless Värmland forests.
Sea kayaking in Sörmlands archipelago.
Stopping for a mid-morning snack.
Pitching camp for the night – a whole island to ourselves!
Watching the sun go down with a glass of wine…
Unpacking for a night in a charcoaler hut.
Goodnight!
We hope that this gives you a small taste of some of the wonderful experiences the Nature Travels Team had on their visits to Sweden this year. The winter photos were taken during a visit to Lapland in April, the location of our Reindeer Sled Safari and Experience Lapland tours. Photos of timber rafting, seal safari and sea kayaking were taken during June. The Klarälven river is the setting for both our Canoe on Klarälven and Timber Rafting on Klarälven experiences, while the forest view is taken from the area above the cabins from our Log Cabin Escape in Värmland experience. The sea kayaking photos are from our 3-day Sea Kayaking in Sörmlands Archipelago experience in June. The charcoaler hut photos were taken on a visit in September and are featured in our Elk Safari Adventure experience.
Nature Travels would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year, or “God Jul och Gott Nytt År”, as they say in Sweden!
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Nature Travels is proud to announce our new cutting-edge Interactive Map tool, giving an aerial overview of all Nature Travels wildlife, outdoor and adventure holidays in Sweden at a glance.
From My Maps to embedded maps
For some time now, Google Maps has had an enormously useful additional feature – the facility for users to customize maps with placemarks of their own. This My Maps feature has allowed users to interact with the Google Maps interface in a completely new way, creating personalised maps of everything from a world travel tour to the best places to buy ice-cream in London.
Various content can be added to each placemark, including text, pictures and even video. A pop-up displays the content when the marker is clicked. Being able to combine the enormous power of Google Maps with the ability to add personal customised content has proved hugely popular, but only quite recently has it become possible to embed My Maps in a website or blog, and only very recently has it become possible to do so reliably and easily. With this development the tool has become extremely useful to both tour operators and travellers. Where before users were forced to leave a site to navigate a map through the Google Maps interface, customised maps can now be embedded directly in web pages and blogs, giving the full functionality of Google Maps without the need to navigate away from the site you are viewing.
The Nature Travels interactive map feature
Sweden is a large and beautiful country, but its enormous range of outdoor holiday opportunities is surprisingly little-known. While some of our clients have a very clear idea what kind of experience they are looking for, many others are seeking inspiration, and our interactive map is an ideal and fun way to browse the wide variety of wildlife, outdoor and adventure holidays in Sweden we have available, with the ability to zoom in right down to street level with a choice of map, satellite or hybrid views. Clicking on each placemark will show a brief summary of the experience available at that location, including dates and prices. For full details, a complete list of links to the experiences is available down the left hand side of the page.
As transport networks become increasingly complex, a visual mapping system is an ideal way to find your way through the maze of possibilities for international and domestic connections. The Nature Travels map currently gives details of flights between the UK and Sweden, plus other useful connections to/from Norway and Dublin. With the growth of low-cost airlines, routes are being added all the time, and a visual map makes assessing the most convenient options much easier. As the concept develops, we are planning to add ferry and rail connections as well as other features to the map to further increase its usefulness.
Of course, the map is not only a map, but a full-featured route-finding tool, with the facility to display suggested routes and estimated travel times to/from or between any of our experiences. We hope that this will go a long way towards simplifying the planning process for our clients when travelling to and around Sweden.
How to make your own Google My Map
The joy of Google My Maps is that anyone can get involved, sharing information of almost any kind with the world. If you have been on a Nature Travels holiday to Sweden, you’re sure to have some wonderful tales to tell and some eye-catching photos (or even video) to share. Why not create your own Google My Map and share it with friends and family, or tell us about it and we’ll share it with the world?!
If you’d like to have a go at creating your own My Map, here’s how:
1. Go to maps.google.co.uk
2. Click “Sign in” in the top right hand corner.
3. If you already have a Google account, log in as normal. If not, follow the steps to create your own free account.
4. Back on the maps page, click the “My Maps” tab on the left hand side.
5. Click “Create new map”.
6. Follow the online tutorials to help you create your first map!
If you’d like to embed your new map in your blog or website:
1. Click on “link to this page” in the top right hand corner of the map.
2. Choose “Paste HTML to embed in website” or click on “Customise and preview embedded map”.
3. Place the code into your website or blog and you have your very own map!
4. Alternatively, simply choose “Paste link in email” to send a link to your map to a friend.
Google My Maps opens up a world of possibilities for sharing your memories and experiences of travelling. So get exploring!
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
It is with great sadness that we learned today that Ingmar Bergman, widely regarded as one of the greatest directors in the history of cinema and certainly one of Sweden’s most iconic figures, died today at the age of 89.
Born in the university town of Uppsala, to the north of Stockholm, Bergman began making his own movies at the age of six. These early works were made from a collage of film cuttings, and just a few years later Bergman was producing his own plays for puppet theatre.
Bergman went to university in Stockholm in 1937, and in 1942 was appointed to the Swedish National Opera following an acclaimed performance of Macbeth. The next few years saw him share his creative talents between stage and screen.
Bergman’s first film, Crisis, was made in 1945, but it was not until 1956, with the release of The Seventh Seal, that Bergman produced his most popular and critically-acclaimed work. This story of a knight who challenges Death to a game of chess has earned a place in cinematic legend. He went on to make a number of other films which displayed his characteristic intensity, including Wild Strawberries, The Magician, The Virgin Spring, and the ambitious trilogy of Through a Glass Darkly, Winter Light and The Silence.
Bergman’s career continued until 2001 with the release of Faithless, written by Bergman but directed by Liv Ullmann. Although Bergman was less active creatively in recent years and had perhaps his best works behind him, he is nevertheless remembered as one of the pivotal figures in cinema and an acknowledged influence on many of our most well-known modern directors, including Woody Allen.
And so, today Sweden has lost a hugely influential cultural figure and one of its most famous sons. He leaves behind a substantial creative legacy and Swedish film continues to be a thriving and vibrant industry through the works of such directors as Bille August (Smilla’s Sense of Snow, House of the Spirits) and Lasse Hallström (Chocolat, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape).
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Nature Travels offers a wide variety of outdoor holidays in Sweden from dog sledding to canoeing. Browse our range of activities at www.naturetravels.co.uk.
Last week, the Nature Travels team packed their raingear and their suncream (you never know at this time of year!) and headed to Sweden to visit some of our existing providers and research new experiences for our portfolio.
It was a hectic week, but a memorable one, and in the end we made good use of both the rainclothes and the suncream. Travelling from the beautiful and cosmopolitan city of Gothenburg up to the wild forested expanses of Bergslagen, we mixed business with pleasure, making sure we scheduled a little time between meetings to participate in some of the wonderful experiences on offer.
We began our tour visiting Lars and Monica, just to the north of Gothenburg, the providers of our Western Sweden Cycle Explorer experience. A beautiful rural area perfect for cycling on quiet country lanes and forest tracks, and home to one of Sweden’s rarest breeds of sheep. Thank you to Monica for her excellent fish soup and delicious cakes, and to Lars for his enthralling tales of local history.
Our journey took us next to the famous Göta Kanal and one of Sweden’s most environmentally friendly youth hostels. We spent a warm and friendly evening in the beautiful candle-lit dining area before retiring to the most spacious youth hostel rooms we have ever seen! Our warmest thanks to Jonas and Margareta for looking after us so well and for regaling us with tales of the canal’s past.
After a brief stop in the attractive county capital of Karlstad, the journey continued to visit Uta and her husband Oscar at their country manor. Uta is an excellent chef renowned for her knowledge of Swedish cuisine, and will be hosting this year’s Wilderness Chef contest in Sweden at the manor. After a wonderfully peaceful afternoon exploring the fascinating bird life of the area, including the magical red-throated diver, we retired to the manor dining room to feast on a selection of local specialities and admire the sweeping view down to the lake. We had binoculars at the ready in case the osprey nesting on an island just out in the lake should show itself, but as the evening darkened we began to pay more and more attention to the food and the wine, so perhaps we just missed a glimpse! Thank you very much to Uta and Oscar for their hospitality and welcoming accommodation, and to Aulis for his knowledgeable guidance and keen eyes during our afternoon of birdwatching.
Finally a chance to stand still for a while came when we visited IngMarie and Anders, who run our extremely popular canoeing and timber rafting experiences. Värmland is a wonderful place to be on the water. There is certainly no shortage of lakes and rivers in the area, and a wide variety of experiences are available to suit young and old, novice paddlers and experienced adventurers. IngMarie was ready with advice and assistance as we carefully selected our logs and then stood knee-deep in the river puzzling over knots and assembling our raft. Building and piloting your very own timber raft is a unique experience and a very good way to practise your teamwork skills! Our heartfelt thanks to IngMarie and her team for making our days on and around the water so very enjoyable.
The call of the wild was very much in evidence as we visited Björn at his beautifully situated forest lodge deep in the woods. Björn operates our Log Cabin Escape in Värmland experience and has received an award this year for his commitment to ecotourism. As well as fishing, the area is ideal for hiking and canoeing, a welcoming oasis in the wild woods. Thank you, Björn, for looking after us so well and for showing us one of the local beaver hides!
Finally, as the sun shone gloriously from a clear blue sky we had the opportunity to explore the rocky archipelago off the west coast of Sweden and view some of the 3,000 or so common seals living around the islands. A wonderful day both on the water and exploring some of the islands, and a big thank you to Einar for showing us around (and to the seals for obligingly showing themselves off so beautifully)!
And so, rather tired but with hearts and minds filled with wonderful memories after a week of warm hospitality and stunning scenery, we made our way back to Gothenburg and so once more to the UK, already looking forward to our next visit to the wide open spaces of Sweden.
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Each year in winter and summer, a select group of tour operators, journalists and equipment retailers gather somewhere in the wilds of Sweden for the Outdoor Academy. A partnership between the Swedish tourist authorities, SAS airlines and the Scandinavian Outdoor Group, the Academy aims to spread the word about Sweden as a wonderful holiday destination for outdoor experiences year-round.
This year, the area chosen was Swedish Lapland, in the far north of the country well inside the Arctic Circle. The Nature Travels team joined colleagues from Germany, Holland, France, Belgium and Switzerland for six days of snowy adventures, exploration, and VERY good food!
This year’s winter Academy (or rather “spring winter”, as the mountain areas of Sweden are said to have eight seasons) showcased the potential of this vast and beautiful area as an outdoor destination, both for those who enjoy the challenges of winter camping and those who prefer to keep the pleasures of home a little closer to hand!
As well as sampling the comfort, excellent cuisine and hospitality of some of the mountain stations in the area (perfect for a hot sauna after a hard day in the hills!), we spent cozy nights by the fire in a Sami Lavvu, a kind of teepee, sipping hot lingonberry juice and being slowly hypnotised by the crackle of the fire and the rising woodsmoke. The temperature was well below zero, but even now in early spring it was still light as we made our way with happy hearts and full stomachs towards our sleeping teepees. But with thick down sleeping bags and a mattress of reindeer skins to keep us warm, we were soon fast asleep, our dreams made sharper by the crisp night air and filled with sensations of endless space and silence. This part of Sweden has a population density of less than two people per square kilometre, compared to an average of 20 people for the country as a whole and around 250 for the UK, so there’s plenty of space for everyone!
We awoke early (it gets light around 3am up there at the moment) to the sounds of Ptarmigan echoing across the hills, feeling refreshed and oddly invigorated despite the brevity of our first night’s sleep in the Lavvu. It took a couple of days to acclimatise to the late sunset and early sunrise, but by the middle of the trip and a few adventure-filled days in the mountains, sleeping in was definitely no longer a problem!
And the days were adventure-filled (and sun-filled) indeed, with dog sledding, snowshoeing, telemark skiing, ski touring, ice fishing and caving all on the agenda. Lapland is a limitless playground for all who love the outdoors, and though our muscles are still rather sore from our attempts to master telemark technique and the exertion of mountain ascents on snowshoes, we have returned again to the UK with only happy memories.
How strange to see spring and early summer already in full swing here again, the forests and gardens bursting with new life – but we just need to close our eyes and we are transported once more to a very different world: a world of ice, of the cries of eagles and the snuffling of reindeer, and all around us a horizon of rolling mountains, colossal shapes dominating the landscape like patient guardians, and everywhere snow lying thick on the ground like a winter duvet over a sleeping world…..
Our greatest thanks to all those involved in the planning, organisation and running of this winter’s Outdoor Academy of Sweden – we can’t wait for the next one!
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Nature Travels offers a number of summer and winter holidays in Lapland, including horse riding in Vindelfjällen on Icelandic horses, the chance to drive your own reindeer sled on a Reindeer Sled Safari, and our multi-adventure Experience Lapland. Keep an eye on our website at www.naturetravels.co.uk for new summer activities in Lapland to be added shortly.
Find out more about this winter’s Outdoor Academy of Sweden in Lapland on the official OAS blog.
Björn Särnmark and his team, who operate our Log Cabin Escape in Värmland experience, have been awarded the prestigious Grand Travel Awards Ecotourism Prize for 2007.
The prize, administered by the Swedish Ecotourism Society in conjunction with the trade journal Travel News, is now in its tenth year. It is awarded to operators who display standards of excellence in their delivery of ecotourism products in Sweden.
Björn, who received the award, said, “This is an important demonstration that Swedish sport fishing can create employment in sparsely-populated areas…We have long prioritised quality, skill and responsibility in our fishing experiences, instead of providing cheap fishing licences and allowing people to fish in any way they wish.”
The company has been operating fishing tourism experiences in the area since 1995, and more than 90% of guests come from other European countries. Guests can be assured of excellent pike fishing conducted in an ecologically responsible manner, with full introduction given, the possibility of private fishing guide, and accommodation in log cabins on the shore of lake Stor-Treens. You have the opportunity to fish from shore or from boats with new, quiet, environmentally-friendly 4-stroke engines. Fishing is on a ”catch and release” basis, but as a guest you are welcome to eat from your catch during your stay.
But the wonderful fishing is not that only thing that draws guests to the area – the quiet of the forest and the rich plant and animal life of Värmland is an essential part of the experience!
Congratulations!
The Nature Travels Team
Nature Travels offers Log Cabin Escape in Värmland all year round, although the best fishing is usually to be had between May and mid-June and end of August to early October.
Those of our clients who choose to fly when travelling with Nature Travels are given the opportunity to offset the carbon dioxide produced by their flight and therefore help to mitigate the environmental impact of their holiday. An offset for a London-Stockholm flight costs just £3.50, and while offsetting is not a panacea to the problems associated with flying, it is an invaluable tool in the fight against climate change.
Offsets are provided through our partnership with Climate Care, which was recently ranked best performing provider in four out of seven categories in a report produced Clean Air – Cool Planet, a leading US climate change NGO.
The report, entitled “A Consumer’s Guide to Retail Carbon Offset Providers” and the first of its kind, is designed to provide guidance to consumers who wish to choose a responsible and effective carbon offset scheme. The UK government has recently announced plans to introduce an industry standard for offset providers, to avoid the danger of “greenwash” and to ensure that consumers can be confident that their money is being well spent, a move which emphasizes the increasing public awareness of climate change and increasing public willingness to tackle the problem.
Climate Care was listed first in the following categories:
• Prioritisation of offset quality
• Buyer’s ability to transparently evaluate offset quality
• Transparency in provider operation and offset selection
• Provider’s understanding of the technical aspects of offset quality
It was also listed second for:
• Ancillary environmental and sustainable development benefits of offset portfolios
• Use of third-party protocols and certification
So, congratulations to Climate Care on being formally recognised for its work in combating climate change!
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Read more about Nature Travels’ ecotourism policy including information on our partnership with Climate Care.
Read more about Climate Care at www.climatecare.org
Mountain station wins environmental award for innovative heating system
The mountain station in the Grövel Lake area of Dalarna used for a number of our cross-country and hiking experiences has received the prestigious Royal Accommodation Award for Sustainable Tourism 2006. The awards, organised by the European Network for Sustainable Tourism Development and the EU project TourBench, are given for “major achievements towards more sustainable development in the tourist industry, including highly innovative measures to minimize environmental impacts.”
The mountain station, situated in an area which is covered in snow for much of the year, received the award for its unique new geothermal heating system. The lodge was also recognised for its organic cooking and range of ecotourism activities.
The criteria for entry into the competition are very strict. The facilities must carry an environmental certification or have received an environmental award. Working practices must be ecologically sound and entrants must have exceptional systems in place for reducing their ecological footprint. The business must contribute to sustainable development within the local region, for example by making use of locally-produced products.
“We have been working actively with environmental issues and long-term sustainable tourism…for 20 years. This prize demonstrates that it is not only our guests who appreciate our work,” said Charlie Ekberg, manager of the mountain station.
To browse some of the experiences on offer at this award-winning mountain station, please see:
- Winter Weeks in the Mountains
- Single in the Winter Mountains
- Spa and Hike in the Summer Mountains
- Single in the Summer Mountains
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Calling all salty sea dogs! Does your heart yearn for life on the ocean wave? Do you long to feel the breeze through your hair? We have added an unusual and unforgettable summer experience – a journey back in time where you join the crew of a fully-restored Schooner on a voyage along the Baltic coast!
This experience is a modern-day voyage of discovery. Experience everything from setting sail, towing the sail and manoeuvering the ship to helping in the galley.
However, life on board is not all hard work. A large part of the time on board is spent relaxing, taking in the sea view and enjoying your time together with your fellow crew members.
The Schooner was built in Sjötorp, in Skaraborgs Län in 1915 from oak and pine. She is one of the many sailing merchant vessels that used to sail the Baltic. She was used for cargo until the mid 1960s, when she was bought by Egil and Kerstin Bergström and used as the family home until 1977.
Share an experience beyond the usual – navigating the Baltic in a Schooner under full sail! For more information about this experience please see: Sail on a Schooner: Navigating the Baltic
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
