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Adventures / Adventure School

Autumn Bushcraft and Fire Cooking in Sweden

Hone your bushcraft skills as you learn how to thrive in the forest and forage for wild ingredients

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Trip Ref #10167

Adventures / Adventure School

Autumn Bushcraft and Fire Cooking in Sweden

Hone your bushcraft skills as you learn how to thrive in the forest and forage for wild ingredients

DURATION
3 nights
LOCATION
Sweden
ANNUAL LEAVE
2 days off work
SEASON
October
GROUP SIZE
Up to 8 people
MEETING POINT
Västerås, Sweden
ACCOMMODATION
Cabin
DIFFICULTY
Easy

This trip is all about learning the skills to help you thrive in the wilderness.

Discover Nature's larder as you learn all about the flora, forage for mushrooms and berries, or fish for perch

Learn how to build a fire to keep you warm all night, cook gourmet meals on an open flame, or carve beautiful tools from wood

Get into a hunter gatherer state of mind as you relax in total isolation in a beautiful pine forest accessible only by foot or canoe

Included

Bushcraft Guide

You'll have an expert guide to teach you Bushcraft skills

Accommodation

Sleep in open-sided woodland shelters or in tents

Meals

Delicious fresh food cooked on an open fire

Equipment

All camping equipment, plus materials for craft projects to bring home

Transfers

Pick-up and drop-off in Söderbärke or Västerås

Not Included

Travel to and from the start point

Flights to and from the meeting point

Travel insurance

Personal expenses

The Area

Logistics

Starts

Västerås: either the train station or your hotel

10.00 on Day 1

Ends

Västerås : either the train station or your hotel

17:00 on Day 4

Transfers

You can be picked up either from your hotel/AirBnB, or directly from Västerås Train Station at around 10:00 on Day 1 - the major hub of the area. Alternatively you can also be picked up at Söderbärke Train Station at 11:00.

At the end, you'll be dropped back in Västerås at around 17:00 either for your onward journey, or at your accommodation for the night.

Travel options

You can fly to Stockholm Arlanda and get the train to Västerås Station for the 10:00 pick-up. The train takes 1 hr 50 mins. If you're combining it with a visit to Stockholm, then take the Arlanda Express to the city, which takes 20 mins. The train from Stockholm Central to Västerås then takes 55 mins. You can check out train options here

There is time to catch a late evening flight home Stockholm Arlanda any time from 21:00 onwards, or depart the next day.

You can also fly direct to Stockholm Västerås airport, although there are more limited fights.

What about all the carbon?

We mitigate 4x the carbon generated by all our customer flights annually through our partnership with Cool Earth.

Day 1

Cabin · Mixed dorm

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Day 2 – Day 3

Cabin · Mixed dorm

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Day 4

Departure day

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

What is the food like?

The pine forest at this time of year offers up a wide variety of mushrooms, juniper berries, lichens, heather and other plants. You will also taste and learn about wild ingredients that can be foraged during other seasons and preserved to be used all year long.

A few of the dishes you'll make are:

  • Fire-roasted whole trout with potatoes, Jåamoe cream and pesto of garlic mustard, wild onion, sorrel & nettles.
  • Slow-cooked lamb stew with foraged mushrooms. Cast-iron baked bread and smoked lichen butter.
  • Juniper marinated venison with smashed root vegetables, spiced caramelised wild apples with spruce salt and pickled spruce tips & young cones.
  • Thin sautéed slices of reindeer with smoked mashed potatoes and juniper sweet pickled lingonberries.
  • A taste of spring! Pears poached with plum blossom sugar, flambeed in rhubarb snaps and drizzled with birch syrup.

All soft drinks are included and alcoholic drinks can be pre-ordered in advance from your host.

Given the culinary nature of this trip in such a remote location, it can challenging to accommodate alternative dietary requirements. Please get in touch with your local host before booking to discuss.

What is the accommodation like?

Wooden Shelters or Tents

You'll be sleeping in shared open-faced wooden shelters which sleep 4/5 people each. The shelters are rustic but comfortable with warm sleeping bags and inflatable matresses. If you prefer a little more privacy, you can request your own Hilleberg tent for solos or pairs, for no extra charge.

Day 1

Head into the wilderness

You'll be picked up at either 10.00 in Västerås or 11.00 in Söderbärke and head to a beautiful deep pine forest in central Sweden. It’s located in a vast wooded region full of lakes, hills and mires. A short hike takes you to rustic wooden shelters by a pristine forest lake. Your bushcraft guide will be waiting with a pot full of warming stew, stacks and stacks of firewood and all kinds of tools and natural materials for crafting projects.

Each day from your base in the forest you chose the projects which you enjoy the most, and it's very flexible to both your personal and the group’s preferences.

Day 2

Cook, forage, craft

Over the next few days you’ll cook, craft, build, forage and explore together. Learn how to build fires for cooking, use embers for baking and make setups for smoking foods. The group will build a nice solid prep table learning rope lashing techniques that you can use to build almost anything. When darkness falls you'll use different techniques with bigger logs to keep comfy all night long.

Each day there are options for hikes to see what you can find in the forest: October is an abundant time for mushroom and berries. Some wild ingredients are used in cooking delicious dishes, others you will be taught the uses and applications for.

Day 3

Carving, canoes and more cooking

If you chose, you can spend a lot of time around the fire working on craft projects to bring home. It’s completely up to you how long you wish to spend and the level of difficulty. Your bushcraft guide will assist every step of the way. Some of the options include:

  • Carving a handle for a knife out of birch wood, treating it with pine oil and attaching a great quality blade
  • Making a handle for your farro rod out of reindeer antlers and a lanyard
  • Producing pine tar from fatwood and use to make birch bark cups.

There also are a couple of canoes for excursions on the water or peaceful angling for perch. The forest and lake is also full of wildlife and you may spot moose, roe deer, foxes, hares, badgers and birds like herons and cranes.

Day 4

Hone your craft

There is time for one last hike, and to finish of your carving before getting packed up and ensuring you leave no trace. Fill your rucksack with crafts and head back out of the forest with a whole array of new bushcrafting skills you can take with you onto your next adventure.

Please Note

All our adventures take place in wild places. Things can go wrong in wild places. Your perfectly planned itinerary may change a bit (or a lot) if the weather turns, someone gets hurt, or a volcano erupts. Usually though, changes make it all the better.

15% Off Outdoor Gear

In need of a few more items? All bookings receive a 15% discount on us to use at Cotswold Outdoor, Snow + Rock, Runner's Need, and Cycle Surgery.

What's Included

Top quality equipment, warm sleeping bags, inflatable matress.

What you need to bring

Hiking or trekking boots Backpack for your personal items Waterproof shell jacket and trousers suitable for autumn temps Warm sweaters Sturdy outdoor type trousers Base layers Wool socks Beanie Gloves Normal shoes Cozy clothing for sleeping Towel Sunglasses, sun block & toiletries Camera/phone

No previous experience of any kind required and the hikes can be a short or long as you like. The days can be flexible to suit your preferences.

Sure can! Over 50% of our travellers travel solo, it’s a great way to meet like-minded people.

Temperatures are likely around 7-13 degrees during the day and 3-8 degrees at night. It's a beautiful time of year to visit the forests.

We’ve teamed up with the guys at World Nomads to offer insurance designed for adventurous travellers across 140 countries that includes overseas medical, evacuation, baggage and a range of adventure sports and activities. To get yours sorted, click here.

We suggest that you book travel insurance as soon as you book the trip, just to cover you for any last minute life changes. We know you’re an active lot and injuries do happen!

We automatically convert prices from the local currency that a host receives to your chosen currency. We update our exchange rates on a daily basis so this does mean that prices displayed on the site are subject to currency fluctuations, which is why you may see them change over time.

If you wish to change the currency you pay in, head to the bottom of the page.

All of our group adventures are especially designed for adults to enjoy (18+) as we want these adventures to bring together outdoorsy people who are truly like-minded.

"I cannot recommend this highly enough! The people on the trip were amazing. Easily the best trip I've ever been on!" Charlotte, 2019, Trustpilot.

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Transferrable Deposits

Cancel up to 31 days before departure and we'll transfer your deposit into credit for a future booking.

Free Date Changes

Free date changes up to 31 days before departure.

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