Culinary Kayaking Adventure in Sweden

A culinary adventure that will take you kayaking along the coastal landscape of the Saint Anna Archipelago as you discover its history through food. You’ll source ingredients such as fish from a local fisherman, lamb from one of the islands, local boar, and fruit and vegetables from the mainland, for your talented group chef to create a gourmet menu every night.

Your hassle-free adventure includes:

• 4 days kayaking and foraging
• 3 nights wild camping
• Local, certified kayaking and culinary guide
• All kayaking equipment
• All camping equipment
• All meals and drinks
• Local transfers
• All taxes, insurances and licenses relative to the trip

**Perfect for: ** Foodies who are excited to learn about wild cooking techniques, local ingredients and foraging.

Friday: The Roots of our Culinary Traditions

We begin our journey in the inner archipelago, surrounded by large forested islands and a cultural landscape that invokes the feeling of travelling back in time. Traditional old wooden houses are dotted along the bay.

After a short paddle we take a lunch break by a pretty sea meadow, one of Saint Anna's most unique habitats, where salt-resistant plants thrive along the edge of the sea. We forage edible greens as well as rose hips, hawthorn and barberries, wild remains from a time when the island was inhabited.

We continue our paddle through the inner archipelago. By now, we're completely submerged in the area, with a maze of islands stretching out in all directions. In the late afternoon we arrive to our camp for the night, where our culinary guide is waiting, already busy preparing for an evening and morning full of wild cooking.

We all help cook a delicious meal for the evening as well as prepare items for upcoming days. We forage for sorrel, orpine, chives and juniper berries.

• Dinner: Slow-cooked venison stew served with potatoes, lingonberries and pickled cucumber
• Dessert: Regional cheeses with rosehip marmalade & sourdough:

Saturday: Darlings of our Modern Culinary Soul

As we peek through the opening of our tents, we are hopefully met by a mirror-calm sea with the blue sky reflected in the water in the most gorgeous of ways. A morning dip is a refreshing way to start the day.

After breakfast, we set off for our paddle exploration of the day. We paddle through stunning bird sanctuaries, clusters of little islands with abundant bird life. Very likely we'll see Sea Eagles gliding high up in the sky, and if lucky we may spot seals.

We're in the middle part of the archipelago now, where the islands are smaller and more plentiful. We aim to reach our next camp in the early afternoon, a completely different habitat than the pine trees and moss of our last island. Here we are surrounded by deciduous forest with open glades marked by grazing animals. It's a great landscape for foraging mushrooms and berries. Wild herbs grow on the meadows, and we pick oregano and ground-ivy to use for dinner.

• Breakfast: Cast-iron waffles, strawberry jam
• Lunch: Flatbread wrap with wild boar, juniper mayo, leek, apples & buckthorn preserves.
• Dinner: Dutch-oven lamb roast with mashed sun chokes and wild mushrooms
• Dessert: Cloudberries, whipped fresh cheese & cardamom

Sunday: A Fisherman’s Catch of the day

If the weather allows, we'll head to the outer archipelago. It's a very different landscape than the one we left behind - hundreds of tiny barren islands with sparse wind-pined trees and a unique flora of salt-resistant plants. The blue horizon is our backdrop and the solitude out here is amazing.

After quite a strenuous paddle we make our way back to our camp by late afternoon. The local fisherman will arrive with his catch of the day and we'll make a proper feast for our last night in the archipelago. We invite the rest of our crew to join!

• Breakfast: Grilled bread, muesli with fresh blueberries & hazelnuts
• Lunch: Root vegetable hash with lamb sausage, pork belly & pickled beets
• Feast:
  Smoked salmon on butter-fried toast with horseradish & dill creme, 
pickled red onion, pickled cucumber and smoked seaweed
  Smoked whitefish in flatbread roll with chive & mustard creme 
topped with roe
  Pan-fried perch fillets with mashed potatoes 
and wilted wild greens
• Dessert: Dutch-oven Apple pie with wild-made custard

Monday: Brunch to Fuel the Journey Home

Our last morning of waking up in our tranquil island wonderland. We pack up our camp and fill our bellies with a hardy breakfast.

We paddle towards a different site on the mainland than where we started, passing though new bird sanctuaries as we near the end of our fantastic exploration. A narrow canal takes us from the wilderness maze, then all of a sudden civilisation appears in a bay full of little cabins and old houses.

You will leave Saint Anna full of inspiration to take your wilderness cooking to another level, just about anything is possible!

• Brunch: Frittata with wild mushrooms, greens & goat's cheese


Note: This itinerary and the duration of the activities are subject to change due to group abilities and preferences, and weather conditions and forecasts.

Wild camping is permitted anywhere in the area. You will use one of Hilleberg’s sturdiest and highest quality free-standing tents and Haglofs sleeping bags with appropriate temp rating depending on the season.

A comfort upgrade is available with inflatable mattresses, camping pillow and chair.

The Saint Anna Archipelagoes consists of more than six thousand islands and you are free to paddle and camp wherever you like. With all its islets and reefs, it is a delight to experience, and whether you’re an expert or novice paddler, it’s a great way to get closer to nature.

Although the epitome of seclusion now, this area has also been home to fishermen, miners and farmers for centuries; a time that has left its mark still to this day.

Wildlife encounters are plentiful with countless sanctuaries for seabirds; Saint Anna also boasts the largest population of sea eagles in Sweden. If you’re lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of the odd seal.

Norrköping Train Station - 10:00 or your accommodation in Norrköping - 10:00
Your adventure begins with a pick-up from Norrköping Train Station or from your accommodation in Norrköping at 10:00. Please schedule your flight to arrive the day before.
Norrköping is just a 55-minutes shuttle bus transfer from the Stockholm Skavsta Nyköping Airport (NYO) (closest airport). Alternatively, you can fly in to Stockholm Arlanda Airport (ARN) and take a 2-hour train to Norrköping or spend a day in Stockholm beforehand.

Norrköping Train Station - 17:00 or your accommodation in Norrköping - 17:00
At the end of your adventure, you will be dropped back at Norrköping Train Station or your accommodation at 17:00.