Happiness Is

Campsite: Guldstrom and Co, Ädelfors, Sweden

My back is poked, the right shoulder and elbow are complaining, Timm is groaning every time he moves but we've had an absolute blast the last 2 days.

After our great gold-panning attempts in Tankavaraa, Finland and a few dismal, disappointing attempts at panning on the way through Sweden, we finally arrived at Guldstrom and Co.

Guldstrom is a family owned business led by Son Rolf and their passion is gold mining - be it by panning like we do right through to more complicated dredging machinery. In fact, the way I understand it, they owned the first commercial gold mine in Sweden.

They already blew us away prior to our arrival - in theory they were already closed for the season but when phoned up by our campsite Rolf said "Sure send them this way, they can camp here as well"

And so we arrived and have enjoyed every minute of it. Joran, the archetypal gold prospector (see below) was designated as our mentor and he showed us how to find gold, improved our panning technique, showed us how to "sluice" and find the microgold. And we literally panned from morning until darkness fell....

Were we successfull? Absolutely, but more than that, it has been one of the most relaxing days in a long time. I love to stay longer but A we need to keep moving and B my body is screaming at me!

So here are just a few pics of what we have been up to

Jöran, the man when it comes to sniffing out Gold