Surviving the Fjällräven Classic
In December 2016 when our friends Mark and Maddie asked if we would be interested in doing a supported three-day backpacking trip in Denmark at the end of June 2017, we didn't need to ask any other questions--our immediate response was YES.
Our second response was: Oh goodness. What did we just get ourselves into?
Josh had some backpacking experience from a trip with his dad in the Colorado mountains, but in December of 2016, I hadn't trekked more than casual day hikes. I didn't even know how to pitch a tent!
On the Fjällräven Classic
The Fjällräven Classic is a multi-day backpacking trek hosted by Fjällräven, a Swedish outdoor gear company. The purpose is to encourage people to spend more time trekking by providing logistical (food, safety, & transport) support throughout the hike, which makes long hiking accessible for newbies. There are currently four annual Fjällräven-supported hikes around the world: Sweden (the original), Denmark, Colorado (USA), and Hong Kong.
The hike we experienced, the Classic Denmark, is a three day, 75km hike on the South Funen Archipelago Trail.
It took several months for us to prepare and save up for, and we made plenty of mistakes along the way (more about our lessons learned in an upcoming post), but most importantly, we had an unforgettable outdoor adventure with some great friends.
While we were preparing, I had a hard time finding decent information about the Classic in Denmark. Beside the basics provided on the Fjällräven Classic website and a few picture videos on YouTube, we really didn't know what to expect. My hope is that this post will provide some insight to anyone else thinking about or planning on undertaking the Classic Denmark!
DAY ONE
The night before Day One, we arrived to southern Denmark by car from our home in Germany. We stayed the night in a hotel to ensure a solid night's sleep. When morning rolled around, we hurried through last-minute packing adjustments, check-out, and rushed over to the finish site. Since we drove up, we decided to park the car at the designated site at the finish line and shuttle to the start.
Bright-eyed and ready to hike (this is the before picture).
Because of some confusion with our shuttle reservation, we wound up on one of the last shuttles to the start line at Faldsled Havn . . . not how we had imagined the beginning of our adventure! We had to hurry through check-in, pick up our Day 1 food supplies, and stuff said food supplies into our backpacks before our group start at 9:15am.
Before we knew it, the start horn sounded for our group, we passed under the Fjällräven start banner, and we were on our way!
The first half of our first day turned into a "settling in" period. Josh and I had done many practice hikes and one overnight backpacking trip while training for the Classic, but things were a little different with our finalized full packs. Problem 1: I hadn't accurately factored in the extra food weight, and that extra weight affected everything, from my stride to my gait.
We were blessed with sunshine and periods of light rain on Day 1... little did we know, it would be the best weather of the trip. The first few hours of the hike were harder than I had expected, and the mental game set in early for me. As the least fit and shortest of our group, it was difficult for me to keep pace, which made me frustrated and emotional.
I was incredibly relieved when we reached our midday checkpoint at Østrupgaard, which was a bit over the halfway point for the day. We got to sit in the grass, take our boots off, and bask in the sun while digging into our first Classic lunch: rye bread, fish in tomato sauce, liver paste, an apple, and coffee. We supplemented with a few snacks we brought from home.
After taking a break and eating, I felt much better, especially once I downed a cup of coffee and fixed the tape on my feet (Problem 2: While training for the Classic, I discovered my hiking boots became a tiny bit too narrow while wearing a full pack, which caused bad blisters. I figured out how to tape my feet to prevent blisters since I didn't have time to break in new boots before the hike).
The rest of Day 1 went a little more smoothly after that. My initial frustration leveled out, we had beautiful sunny weather, and we were able to relax and enjoy the rest of the day's hike. When we reached the campsite at Holstenshuus, we were exhausted and ready for food!
We set up our tents in the designated camping area, changed into our camp clothes, and cooked dinner... it was the first time I used a camp stove and my first time eating a freeze-dried camping meal! I felt so outdoorsy and accomplished.
DAY TWO
We left the campsite at Holstenshuus feeling a little more sore and tired than we wanted to be, but ready to tackle the next section of the trail. Our good vibes dampened after it started raining about an hour into the day's hike... and did. not. stop.
Regardless of the many methods I tried to avoid blisters, they formed anyways, so I decided to wear my Chaco's (hiking sandals) on Day 2 to let my toes breathe. It was great to not have to worry about wet socks! But then... Problem 3: After a few hours, I noticed my trusty old rain jacket, an 8-year old fishing jacket from Alaska, had stopped repelling rain. My rain pants held up well, but I put them on too late after it had already started raining, so I felt damp all over.
Eventually we reached sections of the trail that at one point were probably dusty dirt tracks. Add relentless rain + 600 hikers = mud pit trails. In that mud, our pace slowed by half as we navigated our way through. It was hard work to keep from slipping!
We were tired, cold, and cranky by the time we reached our midday checkpoint at Præstens Skov. There was little to no shelter from the rain, so we huddled under an awning against the side of a lodge. We were chilled and pretty miserable, so we heated up an extra freeze-dried dinner from the night before and made coffee. The hot meal helped, but we still weren't in great spirits when we left the checkpoint.
At this point, my hips were hurting quite a bit, partially because of my backpack weight, partially because I think I had adjusted my gait to keep my blisters from pinching against my sandal strap.
Everyone was feeling the mental game at this point, so we started singing different songs that got stuck in our heads while we walked (ranging from Ed Sheeran to Shakira). Somehow, even though I was in pain and exhausted, I wasn't the slowest of our group anymore; the rain kept us all at an equal level.
When we reached our campsite for the night in Egebjerg, we were soaked through, drained of energy, and every step felt like wading through wet concrete while also being run over by a bus. The relaxation we had felt the night before was nowhere to be seen. We hung up our wet gear as best as we could in our tent, changed into our dryest clothes, and Josh gallantly ran to the cooking site to heat our food. We ate an unglamorous meal in our tent and went straight to sleep.
DAY THREE
The last day was painful. My body hadn't recovered as much as I wanted overnight, my walk had turned into a hobble, our gear hadn't fully dried out, and it was still raining. Despite this, I was amazed that we had survived thus far, and we were determined to power through to the finish.
The initial thrill of the hike had become a grueling trek. Our group mood swung from giddy to irritable, but it was at this point that hiking with friends became invaluable: we leaned into each other, supported each other, and encouraged each other when the going got tough.
It was cold, raining, and once again, there was little shelter at our midday checkpoint, Svendborgsundbroen. If the weather had been nicer, it would have been an amazing spot to enjoy the coastline! As it was, we found a somewhat dry space (under the bridge we would be about to cross) and once again heated up an extra freeze-dried dinner and coffee. It wasn't enough to warm us up fully, but it was definitely better than nothing... and better than cold fish in tomato paste.
The final 15km of the hike leveled up from grueling to arduous. We powered through a massive mud pit, crossed through a beautiful pine forest, and were so ready to get to the finish line. We were overjoyed almost to the point of tears when we reached the 75km marker!
But then the trail kept going. And going. And going.
While we thought the finish line would not be much further past the 75km marker, it actually turned out to be another half kilometer further, which basically felt like death at that point.
We almost started crying when we could hear the music and see the celebration at the finish line... but had to follow the trail to the opposite side of a lake to get to it.
BUT WE MADE IT!
It was raining (surprise) when we finally crossed the finish line at Valdemars Slot, and our arrival was met with a lone Fjällräven Classic volunteer cheering for us and the others crossing the finish... it felt a bit anticlimactic, but that was possibly due to the rain keeping the afterparty contained to the open air tents nearby.
We got our checkpoint booklets stamped for the last time, received our completion medals and patches, picked up a Fjällräven Classic t-shirt, and grabbed a (surprisingly expensive) plate of catered hot food. That roasted chicken and the rhubarb pastry made it so worth it.
While we had originally intended to stay for the afterparty, socialize with fellow hikers, and camp out at the finish line camping site, we were SO cold, wet, and exhausted we just wanted to escape the rain. We wound up hobbling to the car and finding a nearby hotel, which was an amazing treat.
The Fjällräven Classic Denmark was not quite what we expected it to be, and it was so much harder than I expected, but we learned so many things about backpacking, camping, and hiking! And despite the pain, exhaustion, and rain, we were already talking about our next hiking trip at the finish line.