Aaron and Saras Wedding

I'm writing now from a backpackers hostel deep inside the Arctic circle. We flew into Kiruna today swerving between the sparse fluffy grey clouds that failed to obscure the beautiful chain of mountain peaks including Swedens highest, Kebnekaise. Kiruna is a mining town and this is immediately clear as the giant piles of tailings dominate the eastern aspect. The iron ore is mined from 500 metres underground and taken by giant trains across the mountains to the Norwegian Port of Narvik. A direction we are heading off into tomorrow morning. Although our plan is to get off the train halfway at the mountain resort of Abisko and spend 5 days hiking through the birch, tundra and fiords to Narvik.

This morning we awoke in the Stockholm Archipelago, in a great little flat camp spot on a sheltered island with woods of wood on the rounded hill behind it. We spent a couple of nights in the archipelago with some sea kayaking in between. Myriads of low, rocky, rounded islands, the occasional swan and summer house complex of house, jetty, and sauna. Some of my favourite spots had arched wooden bridges linking the small channels between islands, more for picturesque value I suspect than any utilitarian purpose. We were an armada of six double kayaks; Matt and La, Gordon and Lance, Jackie and Aaron, Russel and Viv, Chris and Em, as well as Penny and myself. Great times!!

But to get to the big story, Aaron and Sara are now married! The big day went smoothly despite a bit of rain and the beautiful couple, looked well, I'll let you decide when I manage to chuck some photos up.

The best man managed to not lose the ring, crack a few jokes and toast the brides maid, and avoid mentioning ex boyfriends and girlfriends. So he's stoked to survive without stuffing anything up too bad.Here he is pictured with the cutest one year old in the world