The red dot

Mountain trails, the main subject of this years’ research in the Abisko region in the Northern Scandes.

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It means hiking a lot, and thàt means meeting The Red Dot everywhere. Piles of stones, trees, big rocks, or whatever other typical mountain element you can meet on the trail, all of the nicest ones got marked with The Red Dot.

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It becomes a true travel companion, a friend to look out for on the track. You start to like them with them staying at your side for your whole adventure.

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Especially high up in the mountains, where a trail is not always a ‘true’ trail anymore. There The Red Dot becomes a necessity to stay on track. A guide through the fog, that so easily obscures your orientation.

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It is these small things in the mountains that I like the most, that make me feel at home.

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Picturesque

Every time we pass this adorable little lighthouse in the Skjomen fjord in the high north of Norway, I have to think of the definition of picturesque (visually charming or quaint, as if resembling or suitable for a painting).

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Every time again, though, I just pass that little spot, admire it through the window of the car. Never stopping, just to hurry on to the fieldwork that awaits a bit further in the next – luckily almost as picturesque – valley.

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This year, I decided to break the ban on this spot, that grew into one of my favourite views of our recurring Scandinavian fieldwork trip.

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Sometimes, you just have to allow yourself that one minute of admiration in between all the work. Or else, in your hurrying search for data and results, you might miss out on why you wanted to work here in the first place.

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Luckily, work is becoming more predictable and manageable every year, with my growing experience with fieldwork in the north. My little lighthouse has been here every year since the beginning, and finally, I can cross it off my list.

Most likely, however, I will stop here again next year, as now I am definitely hooked.

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Midnight sun

One of the many perks of fieldwork in the high north is the midnight sun, the ‘endless day’ of weeks in a row.

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Midnight sun above lake Törnetrask, Abisko

While it has its advantages for long days of fieldwork, it surely also adds to the spirit. If there is anything that one loves, it is light, and the Arctic summer has plenty of it.

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Equisetum sylvaticum, the woodland horsetail, the little Christmas trees of the north

I am now getting used to this pretty much, though: no worries about when to end your day, no worries about how long the hike can be, or how early it can start. A blessing for a short field trip like those we have in the north.

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Behold the buttercup

We had to battle the fog and rains, withstand the iciest fieldwork conditions and climb above 1000 meters in the ice-cold subarctic mountains (in the valley of Laktatjakka, close to Abisko, Sweden), but we finally sow it flowering: the glacier buttercup, Ranunculus glacialis.

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It is a wonderful sight, this ‘last man standing’, this one flower that survives so much higher than the rest. And that with such delicate beauty, the most perfect contrast with the harsh environment created by ice and rocks.

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It might have been tough sometimes, this fieldwork ‘on top of the world’, but hey, for such flowers you’d do everything!

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From valley to mountain top

“I care about lots of things,” said Slartibartfast, his voice trembling partly with annoyance, but partly also with uncertainty.

“Such as?”

“Well,” said the old man, “life, the Universe. Everything, really. Fjords.”

“Would you die for them?”

“Fjords?” blinked Slartibartfast in surprise. “No.”

“Well then.”

“Wouldn’t see the point, to be honest.”

From Douglas Adams’ A Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

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I might not feel like dying for fjords either, but I sure don’t mind a 3 day fieldwork/camping-session in my personal favourite fjord-and-valley in Norway, as part of our yearly visit to our long-term observation sites. As always, the fjord did not disappoint.

Not sure what I liked the most: having a day of beautiful summer weather, or finding out that the data look super interesting…

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Changing the view

I changed my office view again for a while…

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Up north again, above the polar circle, hunting for our beloved plants. With a tight schedule and lots to do, but hopes are high for amazing output.

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I’ll keep you updated!

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