Description of the package Timber raft 5 days
Day 1: Meeting and information
Assembly at 5 pm in Gunnerud (assembly is the same as starting day, which is the date you have made your booking for). You will be issued with the equipment you have booked for your tour. Later, we will provide information about building the raft, the route on the river and the Swedish right of common use. If you arrive by car, this will be parked in Gunnerud (or Björkebo) during your timber raft tour. The first night you spend in your tent in our wilderness camp in Gunnerud.
Day 2: In the morning
Early in the morning (around 8 am) we drive you up to the raft building site in Stöllet, about 45 minutes north of Gunnerud, or to Branäsäng, about 1.5 hours north of Gunnerud. (If you arrive by car to Gunnerud and are going to build your raft in Branäs, you drive your car to Björkebo – your final destination of the timber raft tour – where you park your car. You go with our transport from Björkebo to the building site in Branäs).
Day 2: At the building site
At the building site, on the riverbank, there will be a good supply of 3-metre long logs and rope, which are all you need to build a stable timber raft. You either roll or carry the logs down to the river, since your raft – when finished weighing 1.5-2 tonnes – must be constructed in the water. An experienced instructor will be on hand at the building site. Since building and, later on, steering the raft requires some physical hard work, at least two adults per raft have to be present and helping out. Each raft carries up to 6 persons.
Day 2: Start of tour
Sometime in the afternoon, you will be ready to cast off. For the next few days, this 18 m² timber raft will be your home. (If you are planning on taking this trip as just two persons, you also have the possibility to build a smaller, half size, raft – 9 m². The canoe, which is included in the basic equipment, simplifies making land, looking for a campsite for the night or making a stop at one of the local convenience stores.
Day 2-5: Camping/Accommodation
You plan the daily distances for the trip on your own, depending on the circumstances at the time. During the timber raft tour, you spend the night under canvas on your well-moored raft or on land in a tent. The suitable spots for the night are your individual choice. Along the river, there are also some campsites, giving you the possibility to spend one or more nights for a fee at a well-equipped campsite – either in your own tent or in a small cabin. If you choose to stay at Klarälvens Camping, you get one night in your own tent free of charge.
Day 2-5: Adventures on the tour
The evenly repeating bends of the river Klarälven are unique. As you let your timber raft float downstream from one bend to the next, you are being part of an amazing nature experience. The river Klarälven, being full of sand, offers you a lot of good swimming opportunities, while at the same time challenging the rafters with tricky sandbanks, difficult to spot just below the water surface. To get stuck upon a sandbank is part of a rafter’s daily work, unless the water level is unusually high. Stones and eddies are other challenges you surely will face during your timber raft tour.
Day 2-5: The river and the wildlife
With the current as the engine of the timber raft, you will travel completely silently. This enables the sighting of wild animals, although you should not forget that the cultural surroundings in the valley have been populated for centuries. From a historical point of view, the agricultural exploitation of the soil has been very profitable over the years. When floating down the river, you will still experience cultivated land and pastures. The wild animal you are most likely to see is the beaver, mainly living in – and close to – the river. The riverside is also full of other small, interesting animals, such as an almost extinct bug, dependent on open sandy areas to survive.
Day 2-5: Fish for dinner?
For many people going down the river, it is a dream to catch your own supper with the fishing rod. You can purchase a fishing permit in Gunnerud and then feel free to try your luck at fishing – though, just to be on the safe side, you shouldn’t count on catching your supper out of the river every evening. Instead, you could use the opportunity to pay a visit to one of the small local convenience stores, supporting the local inhabitants of the valley.
Day 5: Finish
At your destination, in Björkebo or Gunnerud, you return your hired equipment and dismantle your raft by 5 pm.