Glad Midsommar!
Over the course of four days, from June 19 to 22, a group of 15 brave gravel riders covered 628 km from Karlskrona to Stockholm. The guiding idea was to celebrate the longest days of the year in the saddle, heading north where the sun stays above the horizon even longer.
Midsommar – a holiday celebrated by Swedes on the weekend closest to the summer solstice. Participants gather on the eve (Friday) in an open, grassy area to enjoy music, dancing, and festivities. The central feature is the Maypole, decorated with green branches and flowers. In the afternoon, various games and contests for children take place, along with traditional group dances around the pole. Later in the day, it’s time for adult celebrations. People gather in gardens, on porches, or under camper awnings to enjoy traditional Midsommar dishes and drinks.
This year’s MIDSOMMAR camp is an evolution of last year’s idea: to ride from Warsaw to Gdańsk over the course of a weekend. This time, we took a ferry to southern Sweden and continued our journey north — all the way to Stockholm.
The Swedish Midsommar holiday made finding an open store a real challenge. Despite the obstacles, spirits remained high and morale was strong. And the route? Absolutely spectacular.
Sweden turned out to be a land of endless gravel roads. Endless perfect gravel roads, to be exact. We rode hundreds of kilometers on ideal gravel highways through fragrant spruce forests and alongside sapphire lakes. Sweden welcomed us with flawless weather that stayed with us throughout the entire camp. We could ride in full touring mode — with no pressure from the clock, no fear of approaching darkness, rain, or cold.
Once we reached the finish line, there was only one way to celebrate — with a victory pizza at the port in Nynäshamn. With a few hours to spare before the return ferry, we let ourselves relax and slowly savor the moment. There was plenty to reflect on. Thank you, Sweden, for this incredible adventure. And thank you — each and every one of you — for making this crazy idea a reality.
It was probably the most intense and epic mission under the NGE banner. And it will stay with us in our memories for a long time.
See you soon in Norway!
And if you wanna follow our steps and ride Midsommar route - you can find GPX file for free here. Enjoy and good luck!
