A hearty breakfast of smoked and pickled salmon, egg, cheese curd, berries (and berry powder) and yogurt gets us going.

On the bus to the start, we sing happy birthday to Annti, a friendly and soft spoken Finn who is a veteran of Cross Nordics and many other long distance ski tours. It is his 46th birthday. He skis with metronomic consistency, carries two thermoses of hot and very sweet lingonberry juice and without fail wears a baggy and sun faded purple ski suit that I imagine may have been purchased by his father in the 80’s. He has been a wonderful presence on this trip, though I’m not sure he loves the birthday attention.

The ski track is kind to begin and we make good time, gliding up and down the hills, but after 10 km, it turns to rough and narrow snowmobile trail. It was cold last night, well below freezing, and the uneven track is crusted with ice. It’s hard skiing, but the landscape is beautiful.

Unfortunately, in the afternoon as we are descending an icy and uneven section, I fall hard and land on my chest. At first it just feels like the wind has been knocked out of me, but I soon realize I’ve actually hurt myself. It’s painful and frustrating, but I keep going at a slower pace and by mid afternoon arrive in Muonio on the Finland Sweden border. We have made it across Finland, border to border, which our guide subtly reminds us with red spray paint.

To mark the occasion, we enjoy our second gas station meal of the trip (and not our last as it turns out). The Muonio SEO station welcomes us with bright fluorescent lighting, a plentiful buffet, Formica tables and a fine assortment of ice augers and heavy gloves to satisfy any post-meal ice fishing needs. For those looking for an ice fishing competition, the gas station’s community message board has us covered.

I am tired and sore and grateful for a comfortable bed and a good night of sleep.

In the morning my ribs really hurt and I feel pretty deflated. A dear friend sends me a message I deeply appreciate:

“Hope you’re not in too much pain. I trust you’ll heed your body, and am sending good energy for the mental balance and spirit to see this simply as it is…Funny how we find ourselves with these challenges, offering us the chance to remember that our bodies are not who we are.”

It’s a good reminder to keep this in perspective and that getting sick or having an injury is simply part of being human, not a defect. I make a promise to myself to manage as best I can, listen to my body and try to focus on being aware and appreciating my surroundings.

The ski day is hard, but I get through, thanks in part to a visit to a drug store, and because I let the group I have been skiing with go and just ski at my own pace, listening to my body enough to go easy but not enough to stop.

The Swedish countryside has an austere beauty, a world of pine forests and frozen lakes indistinguishable from Finland. Klaus, one of the Swedes, acknowledges the similarities but says Sweden’s Lapland is a little nicer.