Cesar's Guide to Bohusleden: Stage 5

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This post covers Stage 5, Angereds kyrka-Jonsered, of the official guide to the trail.

You can also check out my report on the section before this one (hiking southbound), Stage 6.

If you have not already read the introduction to this trail guide, you can check it out by clicking here.  It has a list of reports on other sections I have hiked plus other important/useful background information in general--so please read the introduction first before reading my reports.

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*  This section is another good place to begin or end a thru or section hike, with each end having access to public transportation.  At Angereds kyrka there is a bus stop, and at Jonsered there is a train station right next to the trail.  Both will get you to Göteborg.  The bus takes around 20-30 minutes to Central Station, and the train only takes around 15 minutes.  

Some of the best marked trail are here most of the time, there are lots of locals around, and perhaps the best maintained shelter area on the whole trail is here too.  The Freden shelter area has running water, bathrooms, benches, and lots of space.  And if that's not luxurious enough for you while backpacking, there's a fancy café a few kilometers from the shelter area where you can watch all the pretty horses and ponies gallop around.

Zpacks Backpacks Double Review: Arc Blast First Impressions and Zero Long Term Reflections

I recently got my brand new, custom built Zpacks Arc Blast backpack in the mail.  Needless to say, I am very excited about it, and wanted to pack it all up with everything that I plan on using for my updated 3 season gear list (I will write up a post detailing this gear list sometime soon).  While I was at it, I thought that I ought to write a first impressions review on my new pack--note: I have since taken it out on a section hike, see end of this post for a small update.  Then I looked over at my tried and true custom Zero, which is my go-to pack for most of my trips, and thought that it deserved a long term review too.  So why not do both together?  

Cesar's Guide to Bohusleden: Stage 6

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This post covers Stage 6, Fontin-Angereds kyrka, of the official guide to the trail.

You can also check out my report on the section before this one (hiking southbound), Stage 7.

If you have not already read the introduction to this trail guide, you can check it out by clicking here.  It has a list of reports on other sections I have hiked plus other important/useful background information in general--so please read the introduction first before reading my reports.

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*  If you are looking for variety, this stage has perhaps the most changes on a hiking path on the entire trail; but this does not necessarily mean that you will enjoy all of these different paths.  You will walk on small woods trails, big woods trails, boards across marshes, dirt roads, paved roads, sidewalks, cobblestones, wooden bridges, highway overpasses, and more.  Odds are that if you are backpacking the Bohusleden, that you are perhaps in it for the nature and not the town/city life.  If this is the case, you may want to consider taking advantage of public transportation to skip certain parts of this section.  My friend and I hiked the whole stage, but wouldn't have minded doing this knowing what we know now about how things are.

This is not to suggest that things are bad or that hiking conditions are poor--it is a good hike with a lot to offer.  It has both scenic woods at conveniences of society close by, so some might consider this the best of both worlds.  It's very well suited for day hikes and weekend trips, and plenty of locals will be around.  We were just craving woods more than streets, highways, and cars that take up a significant portion of this stage.  This stage is also a good place to start a northbound section or thru-hike at several different points, as are the next few stages which are close to or in Göteborg.

Cesar's Guide to Bohusleden: Stage 7

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This post covers Stage 7, Grandalen-Fontin, of the official guide to the trail.

You can also check out my report on the section before this one (hiking southbound), Stage 8.

If you have not already read the introduction to this trail guide, you can check it out by clicking here.  It has a list of reports on other sections I have hiked plus other important/useful background information in general--so please read the introduction first before reading my reports.

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*  For me this stage marks the end of what is usually a more isolated woods-trail experience on Bohusleden.  This comes with several different pros/cons depending on your preferences for your travels, and this different type of trail experience continues fairly consistently until the end/beginning of the trail in Stage 1.  While there is plenty of woods and nature to enjoy from here until the last/first section, you are always not too far from civilization, such as: paved roads, highways, pubic transportation (both buses and trains), local day hikers, houses, shops, cafés, running (i.e. tap) water, etc.  This can make for a more convenient, comfortable, "easy" backpacking; but if you are looking for more peace, quiet, isolation, and raw wilderness, this is not really the hike for you from here on out going southbound.

From here you pass directly through the town of Kungälv, and it won't be very long until you go in and out of the big city of Göteborg's suburbs.  So regardless of when you are out hiking or camping, especially in the summer high season, there are much more people around than the northern and central section of the trail.  Be prepared to share shelter space and a seat around the campfire, and it's a very good idea to have your own shelter in case shelters are full, or maybe you want privacy, or another backpacker snores (good idea to ask about this if you are a light sleeper!), etc.