An English family in Sweden, working to develop swimming and cycling tourism for our village
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Happy New Year everyone! Of course we celebrated with a sauna and dip! 🏡🏊
Thank you for your fantastic support throughout 2023. We are looking forward to welcoming even more of you to this wonderful corner of Sweden in 2024.
Watch this space for some very exciting news about new accomodation options from Spring 2024..
The autumn colours are getting better every day. Driving/cycling in the forest is such a treat
September has been a month of stunning weather. We had 52mm of rain on the 1st, and hardly a drop since then. Most days have been 20c plus and the lakes are still really warm.
Autumn will soon be here, but it still feels very summery, albeit with misty and atmospheric mornings.
We still have availability for accommodation now and there are some good deals to be had. Come see the Swedish autumn and enjoy the endless freedom, peace and quiet and nature.
These photos were taken this morning, just here:
https://maps.app.goo.gl/srXGzXWri21H5Ho87
A sensational sunset this evening. We were treated to an unusual meteorological phenomenon called parhelia (mock suns) where there were two rainbows/mock suns either side of the real sun. Quite stunning.
And the second photo is what our current guests sat down to for their dinner. What amazing weather we've had.
What a stunning morning! My dawn swim, on the way to work.
We still have availability at Södraträgårdsgatan for the last two weeks of September. Bargain bucket prices too!
We're working in conjunction with a UK Gravel Cycling holiday company called Glorious Gravel. One of their guys came out a few weeks ago to film the course.
We had no luck with the weather on the first two days, but it came good on day three. Storm Hans was apparently a once in 50 years event!
The video gives you a real feel for the area - enjoy!
Josh & Jonathan set off for 4 days exploring the vast wilderness of Smaland, the location for the Off:Roader Sweden ride. Through forests, lakes and rolling ...
Further to yesterday's post regarding cheap air fares, we'd like to extend an offer for Södra Trägårdsgatan (the 2 bed, sleeps 4/5 cottage in Virserum) for the remainder of September.
£260/week, including bills, bedding, towels etc.
We return the house to it's owners at the end of September, and would dearly love to fill those remaining weeks.
We presently have the following weeks available:
3-10 Sept
17-24 Sept
24 Sept to Oct 1
Please send us a message through Facebook with any questions :D
The mist over the lake in the mornings and the view from the sauna at sunset are both magical at this time of year!
We still have some availability (and there are some cheap flights!) in September.
Please get in touch if you are interested in specific dates.
After a sunrise photo this morning, here was today's sunset by the lake in Virserum
Stunning conditions this morning for blueberry picking. It's been a very prolific year (to the point of needing to buy an extra chest freezer) for berries but they're starting to come to an end now. Lingon berries and apples next.
Continuing the theme of forest foraging, the mushrooms are coming in well (especially the chanterelles!)
The freezer is starting to bulge - a good problem to have, and the apples haven't even started yet.
The blueberry harvest is in full swing. As it's been cooler and wetter than normal, the blueberries (called bilberry in England, blaeberry in Scotland) are very prolific.
We're filling the freezer and about to start making jam. I found an especially good patch today and harvested 5kg in 45 minutes.
In the photo in our kitchen, I'm picking out the leaves, twigs and pine needles ahead of freezing them on trays. Once frozen, they can be decanted into tubs. The red berries are lingon berries, which are less prolific.
If you're here during July and August, blueberry picking is a must!
Ladies night last night. 🚴♀️🏊♀️
We got soaked on our bike ride, but wetter in the lake! 😆
The weather has been a bit up and down this week, but it hasn't stopped the kids and our friends enjoying diving at Hesjön. Some great photos resulting from the 'burst' mode on the camera phone.
Air around 19c, water 19.5c. Much warmer and sunnier this weekend though.
There are also some great value flights from Edinburgh and Manchester to Göteborg Landvetter on the same dates in September.
Göteborg Landvetter is an easy 3 hour drive from Swim Cycle Sweden's base in Småland 🇸🇪
Snap up a bargain flight in September!
We still have availability at Södra Trädgårdsgatan for these weeks..
A wonderful afternoon diving with our children and our friends and their children. We went to Välenbadet, a lovely, clear lake 20 min south of Virserum.
Water 20c, air 23c and a bit breezy. There is also a top notch burger bistro on site too.
(I realise I'm not the world's most elegant diver, but I really enjoy myself 😎 )
I'm just back from a three day and 520km cycle tour of Öland with a friend.
In June, July and August, you can get the ferry from Oskarshamn (less than an hour by car) to Byxelkrok and from there explore one of the sunniest (and maybe windiest!) places in Sweden. World heritage site landscapes, hundreds of kilometres of coast lines and more windmills than you can shake a stick at.
It's something that can easily be combined with a trip to Virserum, for two very different experiences of Swedish culture and landscape.
It's finally here! The (very!) long awaited Swim Cycle Sweden website is now live!! 🥳🥳
Find us at: https://www.swimcyclesweden.co.uk/
Still some availability for the UK summer holidays - 59 lakes within 5 miles of the accommodation!
Discount for the first 5 confirmed bookings, following the website going live today. Get in there quick! 🏊♂️🚴🇸🇪
An evening of outstanding gravel cycling. 70km of almost exclusively gravel and didn't see a single moving car at any point.
Real red letter riding followed by a dip in the lake :D
We've had a week of cool and wet weather. Much needed, but unusual! The water was only 18.5c today! 😂🥶
In the meantime, the council seems to be resurfacing the beach at Lillesjön, in time for the summer holidays.
Swim cycle Sweden on tour, swimming and cycling in Sweden! 😁
Cycled 160km south today to stay at a friend's seaside house. My first swim in the (moody looking) Baltic this year. It was 17.5c, whereas the lakes enroute were both a little over 20c.
I do prefer freshwater though. But the Baltic is 500m from where I'm staying and a diving tower can't be passed up 😎
Went to a real cracker of a lake this evening. Välen(badet), by Fagerhult is about 20 min from Virserum. It's equipped for camping and RVs, and the lake is stunning. Lovely people there too, with excellent food from the burger bistro.
The air was 25c and the water was 24c. There is a diving platform on a floating pontoon, so my older daughter and I had lots of fun hurling ourselves off it. I even did my first somersault in about 30 years!
Swim school about to start and dozens of people enjoying the water here in Virserum. I struggled to get my daughter out!
Air 27c, water 24c
Trollebo badet with the family for an evening swim. Air 25c, water 26c. Genuinely 26c - it's daft! 😄
Its been a marvelous day here in Sweden. It's my older daughter's birthday, so we spent much of the afternoon Tureforsdammen, a large pool on the River Emån at Kvillsfors. Just the right number of other people too - not crowded, but other kids for them to play with.
I also got an early morning bike ride in before it got hot. And a swim at Trollebo badplats (somewhere I've cycled past many times but haven't ever got around to swimming in).
Air temperature reached 30c today. Water was 23-24c
It's been a busy week with family visiting and my completion of the 315km Vätternrundan cycle event on Saturday. We've finally had some rain, but all lakes are still 20-22c and normal service on the weather front has resumed. 28c today.
We took a quick swim in Mistersjö (less than 5km from Virserum) this evening. This was a particular favourite of our most recent guests, who spent almost an entire day there.
We had the place to ourselves, and intend to bring the kayaks next time.
We still have availability in July and August. The exchange rate is presently incredibly good for Brits visiting Sweden, so what was already a very affordable break just got 10% cheaper.
30c air today. This was the fourth and final swim in Virserumsjön. 23c water.
We still have availability for July and August. Please get in touch if you'd like a slice of Scandinavian summer sun 🌞
Third and final swim of the day, this time in Virserumsjön. Only 20c in the water, which was pleasantly refreshing after the 29c air temp today.
Lunch, after a welcome swim after work and before cycling home.
There are worse places to dine!
Lillesjön, 23c water, 28c air
We had a lovely lunch today by the water followed by kayaking on a river and lake, Again, only about 15 minutes from Virserum.
Övrasjön. 15 min from Virserum. Possibly the nicest beach for families. We had it entirely to ourselves this afternoon. The beach is very gently sloping and the water is extremely clear.
Air 20c, water 21c. A cooler day today!
Hesjön, 15 min from Virserum. Air 26c, water 23.5c
Sun, cycle, swim, repeat.
The water was 20c in the river first thing this morning and 24c with the kids at lunchtime in a bay of the lake. Air 27c.
We've got friends visiting this week and it's been so lovely to watch the kids enjoy the water. They'll have webbed feet by the weekend!
We still have availability from the end of June, with some weeks in July and August still free. Please get in touch if you'd like to book or ask any questions!
Sunrise over Ångelgöl, just north of Virserum
Virserum
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We've had a week of cool and wet weather. Much needed, but unusual! The water was only 18.5c today! 😂🥶 In the meantime, the council seems to be resurfacing the beach at Lillesjön, in time for the summer holidays.
If anyone was interested how the downhilling works here in Virserum, this is how! Not for me though. Climbing the hills is my favourite bit.
54km of gentle gravel riding this morning with a friend. Perfect weather and gravel conditions. Here is the Strava link to the ride: https://www.strava.com/activities/8940935897
A wonderful day on the ski slope today with my older daughter. She has only just started skiing, and progressed from the family slope to the main slope with harness, and then at the end without the harness. Had some help from several friends who are far better skiers than me!
We had our first group from England visit last week and it was a pleasure showing them around our part of Sweden. Here is the review they left: Badstigen 35 in Virserum was a real pleasure to stay in! We had a group of four female wild swimmers and this was the perfect property for our Swedish trip! A big part of the appeal of the property for us the was the private jetty onto the lake, accessible by built in ladders and the authentic homely feel the property. The other reason we booked was the property was it’s just an hour’s drive from Växjö airport, which has a direct flight from Stansted! The airport is tiny so we were through security and baggage within 10-15 mins max! If you do hire a car, make sure you ask for a petrol/diesel, we were given an electric one which wasn’t what we were expecting (note there is a charging point in the village a 20 min walk away). We dealt directly with Jonathan right from the start (who is the liaison for the property owner). He was extremely helpful in every way possible! He and his wife suggested lots of lovely activities like hiring a session in the village sauna to booking our own private hot tub on a jetty in The Baltic Sea! We felt warmly welcomed to the country by them and them being native English speakers was really helpful for us. We loved the “hygge” feel in the property, the lighting, the natural fibres the furnishings were all very comfortable and appealed to all four of us, there was even a chaise longue! We stayed in the winter months and were grateful for the under-floor heating and open fire, there was wood to hand too and we luxuriated by the fire on the last evening. A lovely bonus to the house we didn’t realise was inclusion of “the drying cupboard”, we were able to completely dry off our cossies and wetsuit boots in just a couple of hours! This house is a summerhouse used by the owners when not rented, therefore it’s very well stocked with all the practical items you might need. We
If you're wanting to mix cold water swimming/dipping with snow sports, the ski slope is in great shape and should be open until the end of March. All equipment can be hired here, and it's only 1.5km from the village.
We've had more than the usual amount of rain lately and combined with snow melt, some proper waterfall action at the mill at Björnström. Even with heavy rain, the water remains clear and largely sediment free due to the lack of mud
Another one for the cyclists. Here are a few low quality videos from rides in our area, giving you (I hope!) a nice idea of how peaceful it is to cycle here. I apologise for my ugly mug being in a couple of them!
Picking up furniture in Högsby gave us the opportunity to visit Gösjön. It's a camp site with mini golf, tennis courts and other attractions as well as a very tall diving tower. I only went to 5m today but went to 7.5m last time. Not built up the courage to do the 10m yet! Swimming is wonderful, but sometimes it's fun to just throw yourself off high things into water 😁
This afternoon, we popped up to Målilla for a family swim and dive. It had clouded over a little, but still about 20c air temperature. This was my older daughters first ever jump from 2m. She's 8 :)
