 During summer 2023, I made a long-time dream come true when I rode my bicycle the length of Sweden. I've been fortunate to have ridden my bike all over the world, but Sweden holds a very special place in my heart. 25 years ago, I spent a very influential year of my young life as an exchange student in a small village called Svädala, and that's where I'm going. But it'll take a while, it's 1300 miles from where I'm starting this adventure. I created an in-depth series of videos about this journey, and I'll link them below. This video is a compilation of all the best moments, and includes only natural sounds. My goal is to bring you on this adventure so that you feel like you're with me, except you have the luxury of not dealing with the mosquitoes. My bike is the 600X, a low-maintenance adventure rig that I designed with my friends at priority bicycles. And here's my route, but just like any good adventure, it didn't turn out as planned. Okay, Ryan, let's do this. There's my bike, there's all my stuff. Here's me, here's Sweden, sun all day all night. Look at him, so cool, my first time ever seeing reindeer in real life, except in Christmas movies. Woo-hoo-hoo! I'm having quite a nice evening, all out here by my lonesome and the mosquitoes and the reindeer. So there's this really cool thing in Sweden called Allemandsrätten, and it pretty much means you can camp anywhere you want. Maybe not in somebody's garden, but anywhere, which is really cool, and I've never taken advantage of it. I remember learning about it when I was an exchange student, and I thought that's fascinating because there aren't many places in the world like that where just all the land is open for people to recreate on, which is pretty cool. Okay, I've got a little protection now, and I put on bug juice. These mosquitoes in Sweden are hungry. I slept hard. Okay, all dressed up, ready to go. Let's hit the road. And the mosquitoes are already on my case. Slow going, I think. Holy moly. I really hope this doesn't last too long. I almost can't open my mouth without mosquitoes getting inside my mouth. So I'm riding along here. I think I'm in the middle of nowhere, and I see these little beautiful red houses. And I walk in, and I ask for some vatten, and they're like, yes, of course you can have some vatten. So they just filled up my water. They are so nice. The trees are blocking a bit of the rain, which is nice. I'm singing in the rain, just riding my bike in the rain at the top of the world. I'm crawling up a steep hill, and the mosquitoes are all over me. Oh, man. This is not fun. I don't even care about the rain anymore. It's the mosquitoes. Huh. What am I doing? Where am I going? I don't know why, but there's no mosquitoes here. This mud is so wet. It feels like my tires are flat, and I'm just sinking in. I am going to treat myself to my favorite chocolate. I love this stuff. Here I am, day two. I think I went like 87 miles, and I was on my bike for 12 hours. I got on my bike at 9, and I finished just before 9 p.m. And I don't stop much. I'm not hanging out, because it's miserable to stop, because the mosquitoes just get you real fast. I'm scared to go out of the tent in the morning. They're going to be waiting for me. Good morning, mosquitoes. I've missed you. You know what will make this situation a little bit better? Peanut butter and Nutella, for sure. Summer in Sweden. So lovely. Midnight sun. I love it. Oh, God. Oh, God. Here we go. Here we go. No crashes. No flaties. No whammies. No mud. No rain. No mosquitoes. This is not fun. This is not fun anymore, but it will be fun at some point. Just not right now. That's a moose up there running across the road. No. This is not what I wanted to deal with today. Come on, buddy. Come on, buddy. OK, now I'm getting cold. Everything is soaked through. Yeah, that's when things get worrisome. You don't want to get too cold out here. So I'm trying to pedal as fast as I can just to keep my body temperature up, my core. This rain does not seem to be going anywhere. So here I am riding by my favorite red and white summer stugas, summer houses. And I knock on the door at this place. And I said, hey, is there any place to rent around here? And he says, yes. You can have this one. You are my hero. Thank you very much. You are very, very kind. Is it a normal weather right now? No, I've had very good weather all summer. Is it true? Yes, it is. It started raining yesterday. And now I've had 28 and 29 degrees. Which one do you think I have? And here I am in my very own little Swedish summer stuga. And they're just so generous and kind. He kept bringing towels and stuff. And he's like, come get lunch here pretty soon. And I am so happy to be out of that rain. Oh, man. This morning when I got on my bike and I was like, why am I doing this? Why am I continuing into this mess? This is why. For moments like this, this makes everything worth it. It makes everything so just so beautiful when you connect with awesome humans who are just willing to help immediately and knocked on the door. They're like, yeah, man, you can stay here. Didn't think twice about it. These are the moments when the pinion gearbox and the gate belt drive shine. All that mud and gunk and sand didn't stop me. You see all those? Those are mosquitoes that is so gross. They must have gotten in there when I was packing up my tent this morning. But that gives you an idea of how many mosquitoes want to come in my tent and suck my blood every night. Good morning. Guess what? It's not raining. Yes. Have a nice trip. And today I'm going to get off the European divide, ride some pavement. And the reason is because I don't want to get stuck in mud. I think it's still probably really wet. And my new friend, who I haven't met yet in real life, bike touring Mike is going to come meet me. Going to Avid's Yahr. That way, 60 miles. This might not last long, but I have sunshine on my arms and it feels so good. Check this out. I am at Sivila. It's a hamburger chain all over Sweden. And I usually don't come here because they don't have vegetarian options. But now they have a soy burger. And I'm so excited to be eating this. It's been a great day. And I'm celebrating with a soy burger. I cannot tell you how glorious this evening sun feels on my skin. Look at that. A white reindeer. Watch out for traffic. Sweden holds a very special place in my heart. And I'd always wanted to get to know it from north to south. And here I am. Making dreams come true. There he is! It's Mike! How you doing buddy? Good to see you. So my friends, I've been talking about bike touring Mike. Here he is in the flesh. We're going to ride bikes together. We're going to have fun. Tell everybody about your channel and what you do. Yeah. I mainly focus on trips around the Scandinavian countries up here in Sweden, Norway and Finland. But I also go on trips in Europe like France, Spain and so on. He said he has something special in his bag for me. What do you have? I have a couple of gifts for Ryan. He found these beans. Oh wow, there's my black beans. I couldn't find them and you brought them to me. Thank you. I also brought some Swedish. Oh, that's my favorite chocolate. Oh, you're the man. And the next trick is going to be getting in there without letting in a ton of mosquitoes. Let's see if I can do it. So I'm going to open it up a little bit and just kind of dive in really quick. Can I close it up really quick? I'm enjoying sitting here watching them try to get in my tent. Ha ha, suckers. Good morning, good morning. Check this out. It is so sunny. It's like a Colorado morning. I'm so excited. Good morning, Mike. Good morning. Do you have a day? Yes, yes. Yes, yes. We were just talking. We both graduated from high school the same year in Sweden, 1998. Good morning, reindeer. I can't believe it. Today is one of those days where you just got to keep stopping because it's so beautiful. Here it is, my friends. My first black bean Swedish burrito. And check it out. We found this awesome shelter in the creek just in time for lunch. I have a random question I just thought of. Before I came here, people warned me about bears. Is that something to be scared of here? That's a typical question for me living in Sweden. And like I told Ryan, I have never seen a bear like out in nature during my whole life. And in Sweden, we have about 3,000 brown bears. If you compare that to Canada, I think they have over 300,000. So there are really not that many bears here in Sweden. And most hopefully are pretty friendly. Yeah, they're like super kind Swedish bears. They invite you in for some honey. This is a veggie burger and I'm so excited to eat it. And I got a bucket of fries, a milkshake. Mike's got a burger, fries, milkshake. We are happy. Cheers, buddy. Cheers. Skål! Skål is how you say cheers in Swedish. I love the sound of birds in the morning. And also that. Woo-hoo! It is time for a breakfast in bed. Peanut butter, nutella, tortilla. Mmm. Goodbye, Elixela. They're up my ass for it. This is so steep. Hi, I'm going to eat this yummy falafel wrap. So good. Mikke just told me that that is the Sami flag. And that one, of course, is the Swedish flag. Hey, yes, Feria. Yeah, it's pretty incredible. Don't go too far. You're going to crash into the flowers. Look at that. Små grådra, små grådra, elustiga et se. Did we find a cool shelter next to a river? Oh, yeah. This is a deluxe shelter. Look at that. Here's Mikke making his own YouTube videos. Good morning. All right, Mike. It's going to have a great day. What do you say? These tree-lined roads. Stunning. It's so green. Birds are singing this morning. Sometimes when you're riding your bike. You know, I do love the sound of tires crunching on gravel, but I also like to stop and listen. It's got to sit there in the field of lupins and just look beautiful. A colorful modern apartment complex. And only in Sweden would there be a ski jump right in the middle of town. Look at that. Look at that. You trying to get my fries? Get out of here. Look at that. All plant-based. It's a spicy avocado burger. Check it out. We are now on a bike path. The sea is right there. We're paralleling the E4. We're coming up on the high coast bridge, the second longest bridge in Sweden after the really cool bridge from Malmö to Copenhagen that they built. When I was an exchange student, this is pretty exciting. Oh, you see that little cafe restaurant? We're going to camp right here. We've gone a few kilometers past the bridge. And it's time to be done for the day. We went 100 miles, maybe even a little bit more. I'm doing the... I got some pizza and I'm camped next to a lake. Happy dance, happy dance. And I'm jumping in that lake later. You know it. Look at that chili. Oh, man. Did I say life is good? It's good. It's real good. My friend, you're going home tomorrow. Yeah, we'll come to the end. We'll come to the end. My point of view anyway. Well, I can't thank you enough for all your help. It's been great to learn from you, learn more about Sweden, learn about the northern lands. And I've had a blast. I've been riding for three days and it feels like we've been here for at least a week. I know. So many things happen along the way. I know. You really get to know somebody really intimately when you ride next to them all day and then you wake up next to them and you're getting food together and you're navigating together and you're making decisions and we didn't know each other before this all came together and it's amazing how bikes can unify people, right? Yeah. Good night, Sweden. I love you. See you later, buddy. There he goes. My new Swedish friend. It's always hard for me to say goodbye. Even if I've only known somebody for three days, I really develop a connection and Mike's a good guy and I know I'll see him down the road. That's how this works. Thank you, beautiful campsite. I have about 700 miles to go. What do you think about that? Almost halfway, too. No crashes. No flaties. No whammies. Good morning, lupin flowers. How are we doing today? Just a little morning stop just to listen to the birds. Check out the lupins. Good morning, cows. What I just found on the side of the road. Maybe I can get that onto my bike somehow. That'd be fun, huh? Riding next to this lake, I saw it on the map and I'm just scanning for like an open area to camp. There's even a dock here. Oh, I'm totally camping here, even though it's on the side of a road. I know what it's time for, my pre-dinner treat. Look at my cute little Marabu chocolate. Sunshine. I dig it. Thank you, beautiful lakeside camp spot. This one for some reason has a special place in my heart. I really like this one. Morning, cows. Good morning. This morning's goodies from the Ica supermarket. Bananas, a protein shake. I got some of these little French cheese ball things. Of course, my favorite protein bar. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Those clouds are starting to look like they're developing into something pretty mean. Oh boy. So it's gonna rain. This got rained now in about three seconds. And I just worked out a pretty sweet deal here at this campsite. There is my home for the night. I rented an RV. I slept so well. So well. Gosh, this is the best RV bed ever. It rained a lot last night. It's not raining now though. So this is what I'm looking at. Rain all day. And I'm looking forward. Rain till Tuesday. Good morning, Swedish cows. Oh, I'm feeling better. Mainly because it's dry and I'm dry. So I just made a boo boo. I tried to outsmart my route and I was like, oh, I can take this road. It'll be faster than the intended route. And then I looked on my phone and realized I was going the wrong way completely. Just goes to show you really have to pay attention to where you're going at times. Better watch out. Might be going to Finland. Oh, look what I just found. A little shelter. Ooh, with a very fancy piece of woodwork. I'm heading right for that darkness. Oh boy. The rain sounds really pretty in the forest. Sounds kind of like hitting all the leaves and the pine needles. There's a beauty in being out here alone on my bike in the rain. This tastes so good. I love all those protein bars and treats, but something special about warm food. Well, I found a roof. I was just riding by. Not many people are out. It's kind of late. And this guy was getting his mail and I just said, hey, is there anywhere around here I can sleep under just a roof or something? And we talked for a bit. And he's like, yeah, you can just sleep in our room here. The ute room. And so this is where I'm going to be for tonight. And I am very, very glad. Happy, happy, happy. We are from, from. Now I have friends in the valley. And we see each other again. You must greet me in Colorado sometime. It's going to be nice. Yes, it's going to be really nice. But have a good summer. It's not really a summer day today, but I'm going to come and something leave it. Skull. You can skull with a muffin, right? Oh boy. Look at that. Oh, it's a little bit of a dog. Hey, look at the cows. Hi cows. I've seen a lot of these guys smushed on the roads. And I don't want you to get hurt. Okay, I'm going to move you. I'm going to move you. Oh, what a cute little toad. Yeah, buddy, you need to go to the forest so you don't become a toad pancake like all your buddies. Okay. Have a good day, buddy. It's so fun to hear the birds sing. You never hear a bird complaining. All their songs are beautiful, right? They're not complaining about the rain. Let's get back on our bike. There you are. Oh God, what happened? It started raining like crazy. It was so nice five minutes ago. I just took a hot shower. I probably stood in there longer than I should have, but man, it felt good. And the sweet lady who rents out this cabin just brought me a plate of pasta and four desserts. Another chocolate ball. When I buy these things, I don't just buy one, I buy multiple. So peaceful. What a spot. They're really scored. This is a little piece of heaven on earth. Thank you, super cozy Swedish cabin for drying me out. Hey, look at these cuties. Hi guys. Back on dirt. Back in the school again. Forest. They, besides this beautiful little creek, a chocolate ball. It is chocolate ball time and chocolate balls make, they make everything better. See this cuteness? Lord, this is a score. So awesome. I can finally look at the map and say, hey, I'm getting there because for so long, it seemed impossibly far. Malmo was just so far away. But I'm getting there little by little and that's the beauty of a bicycle and just pedal, pedal, pedal, pedal. I just wanted to hug you. Thank you. You're so nice. It was really nice. Thank you Magnus. Yes, it was really nice. And we'll see you some other time in Sweden. I'll be back one day. You're welcome. Bye. Bye, bye. Glad Friday, July. Hey, hey. Bye. Bye. Once again, my heart is so happy. It really is. What wonderful people. So kind. So gentle. And I'm really glad they let me stay there because it was pretty cold and windy last night. I am really looking forward to today's ride because I get to ride along the edge of Lake Vätern which is one of Sweden's big famous beautiful lakes. And it should be pretty cool. Oh, it's so good to see you, Shadow. It's been a long time. At this point, I'm just kind of used to a little bit of rain every day. Or a lot bit. A bit about the history here. And it looks like this whole polka gris candy cane story was started in the mid-1800s from a woman named Amelia. Amelia Ericsson. And she started it up. And it's now a huge thing. People from all over Sweden know that this is the place to go to eat your polka gris. Mmm, it's kind of like a czar. Mmm. We're in short sleeves again today. You should never let a bike packer near a buffet breakfast. We will eat a lot. Swedish pancakes? Yes, please. Skål. You can see my nice long shadow. All right, let's have a great day. Let's do this. A little single track to start the day. That's nice. Ooh, fine. Branch just tried to take my helmet off. There's a nice one. Look at that. Look at that sunshine. Yes! You sweet-o! And Skål Sverige! Good, son. Love you. I think I can camp anywhere on this road. I am sitting in my tent. Happy as can be. Eating my nut mix and some other goodies. Just really happy. I'm so close. I'm going to finish this tomorrow. And it's incredible. I love this feeling. Okay, this is southern Sweden here. I am the blue dot. Finishing down in Malmö tomorrow. It's right across from Copenhagen, Denmark. Just to give you an idea. That's the bottom of Sweden. And the top of Sweden is way up there. I've come a long way. That's chilly. Thank you flat piece of ground. Moose crossing. It is so lush and green in here. I feel like I'm in a jungle. And these trees are protecting me from the rain. Thank you trees. Oh man. This might be my favorite part of the entire trip. Tunnel of green. Just taking it all in and enjoying every last bit of Sweden. Skål. You always got to start with the sweet stuff. Mmm. I'm going to wait here for my sister Sofia. She's on her way. Oh my god. That's a dog. We're going to cycle home today. Yes, we're going to cycle home. It's really happening. Hey summer time. Give me your dog. Give me your hand. Give me everything you want. And everything you can. Yeah. Go Sofia, go Sofia. Go, go. This might be the last one. First Malmo sign. I've seen on this entire trip. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I love you. Look at these cute kids waiting for me. At this. Oh man. I'm so excited. I've been waiting for this. Look at all these wonderful humans here. God damn you're good. It says. This celebration, this glorious fun filled evening is exactly what motivated me to pedal as hard as I could when I was lying in my tent on those cold rainy nights. I owe so much to this wonderful family for opening my eyes to the world outside of Boulder, for loving their crazy American son as one of their own, and for inspiring my curiosity for travel and adventure. It was indeed destiny that brought me to Sweden into this amazing family. Oh, yeah, I love you. I love you. I love you. Hello my friends and thank you so much for watching this video. I really appreciate it. And like I said at the beginning, I made a series of videos about this adventure where you will get a lot more in depth detail about every single day of the trip, and a lot more of the interactions I had with the wonderful Swedes I met all along the way. And I will link that down below. I make adventure videos all over the world, bikepacking and ultra running. If you like that, please subscribe and tell your friends about my channel. And if you want to help keep this channel alive, please consider joining my Patreon where you can support me financially for as little as $3 a month. And what you will get is early release videos with no ads and all sorts of other fun stuff like direct access to me if you ever want to ask questions about anything. So I will link that down below as well and put the address right here, my Patreon page. And other than that, I hope you have a wonderful day and don't forget to get off your couch and get out there.