Áhkkátraversen, Áhkká travers

First climb 31 KM 3 500 Ascent meters on 17:48 hours. Mattias Skantz and Björn Segelbo.

Áhkkátravers (Áhkkátraversen) is this: Áhkkástugan – Västtopparna 1734 – Västtopparna 1780 – Dubbeltoppen 1830 – Borgtoppen 1963 – Áhkkà Stortoppen 2015 – Point 1916 – Áhkkástugan.

We have think of this travers in about 8 years and mostly of the years when me and Björn Segelbo we have never try or even travel there. Because we have wanted to do this alpine travers we have maybe each second years have a week os a couple of days free at the same time. Then the weather show winterstorm and just without. So that years the travel have either canceled of go somewhere else. But 2018 it happening:

• we had one week of at the same time
• we actually have travel to the location
• the weather we at least OK.

The weather have been crazy warm for being in beginning/start of may. It had been super warm and meltet a lot. 2016 me and Henrik Westling was in the same area for Stora Sarektravers and that year it was so cold as -20° and now we hade +10°. The biggest problem to do this travers so late is to com over the ice os Áhkkájaure, famous as the ”lake of death” of the local sami people. Because a large water dam that make the ice extremely unsafe, the take out the water up to 30 meters and sometime the ice hanging free in the air because the have take out so much water so fast. We talk to my friend that are from the local sami reindeer herder and heard about the condition on the ice. We count on the worst, we cross the lake early in the morning around 05:20-07:15 and use floating vest and have a sleed with the gear that is a children sleed. Beacause it light and we could walk or ski around the lake with it on our backpack. To going around the lake had been a tour on probably 2-5 days. BUT THE ICE HOLD FOR US.

The climb have some technical parts and same steep parts but probably biggest problem to succes with it is the weather and the snow condition.

Here is a video of the tour.