I am nervous as we assemble for the 10th and longest stage of this Cross Nordics adventure: 84 km. Two ski marathons. Since entering this event almost a year ago, this single day has loomed in my mind as a huge challenge and in training, my longest ski was a little longer than half of today’s distance. My ribs hurt and I wish I had not crashed and made this challenge even harder. But here I am. In addition to pain killers, Phillipe, a friendly former PT (and now dentist) from a village in the Alps outside Grenoble, France, tapes my chest to help support the ribs. At breakfast we hear that three people are dropping out because of sickness. Of the 40 that started the event, 10 left after Finland and now a few more are gone.

The overnight temperatures are well below freezing and the morning sky is bright blue and the skiing is fast. I settle into a rhythm, find my own pace and enjoy the cold air in my lungs.

I ski alone all morning and reflect on what a rare and wonderful experience this is, to be moving through the Swedish Arctic, past forests, across frozen lakes and under reindeer gates on a beautiful early spring day.

Mentally I divide the day in two. One ski marathon before lunch, one after. The first passes quickly and I arrive at the lunch stop hungry but feeling better than expected. Lunch is in a small riverside village and a couple of locals serve salty beef and vegetable soup, which they serve out of old army canteens from a card table set up in the snow. It hits the spot.

The second half of the day is harder. Warmer temperatures mean slower snow and more work. My ribs throb with each pole stroke and at times I wonder if I can make it. But we push on hour after hour, skiing eight hours in total and stopping only for quick drinks and snacks from our packs.

We arrive in Vittangi via the frozen river and as we walk up the banks, my eyes water with relief and exhaustion.

There are no hotels in Vittangi so our guide has arranged home stays. Ten of us, all men, are assigned a home in the outskirts of the village with just one bathroom, so we shower and sauna in the employee locker room of an industrial machine shop in the village. It’s a bit strange but getting warm and clean feels great.

We proceed to our homestay, where our host Palmer Johansson welcomes us to the home he grew up in and inherited from his parents. He is a bachelor and the decor appears to be original. He tells us the plumbing is unreliable and that we should pee outside and then prepares an ideal bachelor feast of boiled potatoes, potato pancakes, hamburger helper, beans and weenies, salad and some well cooked broccoli. Anything would taste delicious and we all go back for seconds. After dinner, he drives to the gas station and buys an assortment of ice cream bars for us. It’s very kind of him and we enjoy his unique brand of hospitality.

The next morning Palmer makes us oatmeal, eggs and toast and trustingly heads off to work while we eat. We grab our skis and walk towards the frozen river to begin the day’s 60 km ski. Our trusty guide Juha, a self described orienteering master, takes three or four wrong turns but eventually we get there and set off. We ski virtually the entire day on a frozen river and can see the spring thaw in action, with ice chunks breaking and revealing a rushing river beneath and parts of the ski path totally melted or turned to slush puddles. It is gorgeous. I mostly ski alone and the solitude and natural beauty make for a great day.