The weather

Despite a forecast predicting thunder and rain for most of the day, thirteen brave pirates ventured down the river Uman and claimed victory in this year's Jolldown! Surprisingly, it turned out to be a great success. Apart from a 15-minute monsoon-like downpour, the rest of the journey was so sunny that I ended up sunburned. Serves me right for trusting the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute.

In recent years, we've launched from the beach at Backenkyrkan, but since the West Link road is now complete and the water is clear of debris, we were able to start further upstream this year, at the beach at Baggböleören. Expecting rain, we decided to meet an hour earlier at 11:00 to pump up the boats (and ourselves). At noon, it was time to jump into the water, which was pleasantly warm and had a good current. No lost souls drifting in circles this year!

The route

As usual, the route is split into two stages. We start at the top of the navigable section of the Ume River (you can start even further up, at the Notvarp bridge) and glide downstream until we reach our first, shorter stop for snacks and mingling at scenic Bölesholmarna. After that, we take the so-called "Congo Trail" before entering downtown, cruising between bridge pillars until we arrive at our final destination: Öbacka beach. The whole journey is roughly 10 kilometers and takes about six hours, including the pit stop.

The goal

Reaching civilization always brings a wave of relief and pride. It is a joy to see people cheering us on and snapping photos as we float beneath the bridges. After landing and packing up our gear, we had about an hour of personal downtime before meeting up again at the boat restaurant Båten ("The Boat", true to the nautical theme). It was the perfect end to a perfect day. I hope to see all my friends, old and new, again next year.

The Movie

Here's a short video on PeerTube I cut together from this year's journey. Enjoy!