RAVEL RIDING HIGH
PINE trees as far as the eye can see, an empty open road and absolute silence.
That’s the scene as we stop to check our route while cycling in Småland. No, not the kids’ area in Ikea, but nature’s blissful playground in southern Sweden.
We had touched down two days earlier at Gothenburg then headed towards Jönköping in the north of the province, a couple of hours’ drive away.
Our base for the night was the Västanå Slott hotel. Built in 1590, it became Sweden’s first castle hotel in the 1940s.
Its sumptuous interior of high ceilings, vast walls adorned with oil paintings, opulent drapes and furnishings left us feeling like Swedish royalty.
We couldn’t wait to pick up mountain bikes and hit the tracks through thick forests, past Sweden’s traditional red houses, and enjoy the magnificent views across Vättern, the country’s second largest lake.
You can take the sting out of hills by opting for an e-mountain bike. It didn’t take the sting out of my two spectacular tumbles, but the soft mossy carpet did.
Dinner at the hotel that night was a rich crayfish bisque, duck breast and, as the chef described it, the traditional Swedish dessert of crème brûlée.
Next day we transferred to Isaberg Mountain Resort, Småland’s biggest adventure destination. It’s a ski resort in winter but just as popular in summer.
There are 14 mountain bike trails, graded like ski slopes and catering to all levels, plus technical courses and road bike routes. Plus there’s a tree-top adventure, lake kayaking and a 1km rail toboggan track.
Bikes can be hired here from about £34 per day, including access to the trails. Guides cost about £41 an hour.
I went for a 16-mile mountain bike ride, this time without eassistance, following two of the least technical routes round the lake. Even on a busy day it felt peaceful. Stopping to try wild lingonberries and blueberries was magical, too.
Isaberg has accommodation including a hotel, cabins and campsite, but we opted for the Hestraviken hotel in the dense forests of Småland, with a view of Lake Algustorpasjön and the River Nissan running through its grounds. My large, stylish room had a private terrace looking out over these wonderful sights.
For dinner that night we headed to the home of Hull-born chef Gordon Cook, of Cooks Catering, near Skärvhult, where we dined in his cosy greenhouse.
A highlight of our trip, all the ingredients came from within the greenhouse itself, the surrounding forests and fields or nearby lake. There were fish quenelles with mushrooms, salt beef with deepfried moss and a herby ice cream served with a birch syrup that Gordon reduced from tree sap he had tapped himself.
The next day, after fuelling at Hestraviken’s breakfast buffet, it was time to switch to a road bike.
An undulating 18-mile outing took us past farmyards, hungry cows chasing their farmer (but thankfully not me) and more beautiful forests carpeted with vibrant green moss.
Few cars passed us and those that did gave us a reassuringly wide berth. After dropping off our bikes, we made a pitstop at Isaberg, where I tried traditional farmers’ lunch raggmunk – a cross between a pancake and potato rosti – served with bacon and lingonberries.
Then it was on to our final destination, the Wallby Säteri hotel, just a few hundred yards from Lake Skirö.
Another charming manor, this familyrun hotel has individual cottages surrounded by fields and woodlands.
After fika – coffee and cake – we went to the lake to try crayfishing, helping jovial owner Magnus prepare the traps and rowing out to drop them in the water. After feeling the autumnal chill, I was far from convinced by the suggestion of taking a dip after going in the hotel’s sauna hut. But three post-sauna dips later, I was fully on board – it certainly livens you up.
As for our crayfish traps, left overnight, our early departure the next morning meant we would miss the spoils.
Just as well then that our hosts had some they caught earlier for the crayfish party they were throwing that night.
This was a feast involving party hats, schnapps, traditional Swedish songs and, of course, crayfish.
“Skål!” as the Swedish would say.