Sweden

Kayaking in Sweden

Sweden have a fairly long coastline, 2 400 km (1 500 miles) from the border to Norway in the west to the border to Finland in the Northeast. Every year there is a handful of kayakrs who starts The Seapaddler´s Blue Ribbon of Sweden and most of them fulfil the distance. I have devided the coastline of Sweden into six parts.

West Coast

From the boarder to Norway to Göteborg Archipelago. The West Coast is exposed to mild winds from the South West. The archipelago that covers the coast are not very deep but gives protection and possibilities to paddle in almost every weather all around the year. The sea freezes rarely during winter.

Göteborg

Swedens second biggest city and the biggest harbour in Scandinavia. The conditions in Göteborg is very similar to the rest of the West coast. The inlet to Göteborg harbour devide the archipelago into a south part and a north part. The archipelago is big enough to spend approx 5 days for a circumnavigation.

South coast and South East Coast

The south and south east coast is easiest reached by car. The coastline is more varied here and have long sand beaches as well as archipelagos in Blekinge and Småland. When you get into the baltic sea, the salt concentration in the sea decreases and the more protected locations makes the water easily freeze during winter. These locations are more remote than the West coast and Stockholm archipelago and you will often be alone at the sea. Especially during off season.

Stockholm

Stockholm is one of the most beautiful capitals in the world (I’m not subjective at all ;) . It is a really beautiful city. It is built on many islands and the waterways have historically been important for the city. Nowdays they offer excellent paddling in a very nice environment. Stockholm archipelago is also very beautiful and you could spend 12-14 days without any problem finding new locations to discover. Here the weather is warmer in the summer and colder in the winter compared to the west coast. There can be problems during winter to find access to open water. Otherwise, the Archipelago offers protection but you can also find big white water in outskirts of the Archipelago.

North Coast

Höga Kusten is a part of the north coast which is included in the world heritage by UN. It offers really good paddling. The coastline is very special and it can sometimes be problems to find easy landing and night camps. It is well protected. The winter season is quite long in this part of Sweden and there is no open water for a couple of months.

To & From

Both Stockholm and Göteborg archipelago offers really good kayaking. Stockholm offers even downtown kayaking. Within 90 min travelling by car from both city centers you will reach really good kayaking locations.

From Copenhagen you will have approx two – three hours driving to some really nice spots  in south and southeast of Sweden.

The public transport system in Sweden is good and safe but fairly expensive. There are several departures departures between Göteborg, Stockholm and Copenhagen by train. From there major cities there are many train and bussconnections to minor cities along the coasts.

SJ, Train

Climate & Weather

SMHI, Meterological Institute

Maps & Charts

Metria, Maps and Sea Chart online store

Tourism

Visit Sweden, Official travel and tourist information

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