Stitch together this year's Glacier Blanket.

Every summer, we cover part of the Björlings Glacier with the Glacier Blanket.
The Glacier Blanket consists of several individual rolls that need to be unrolled and stitched together. It’s a lot of work and quite a journey just to reach the location on Kebnekaise that we want to protect.

Choosing the train to Kiruna is an obvious choice. The night train is environmentally friendly, convenient, and allows for a decent night's sleep before starting the hike up to the Kebnekaise mountain station. You also meet interesting people on the train. This year, several travelers from around Europe were on what’s called a "cool-cation"—hiking in Kebnekaise and Abisko to escape the heat in their home countries.

Part of the hike to the mountain station can be replaced by a boat ride. We had an unusually large amount of gear this time since two participants were filmmakers with heavy photo equipment, so we gladly took the boat ride. The water comes from the glaciers and has a beautiful green-blue color.

After about six hours of hiking, we arrive at the station. We spend the night there and continue early the next morning.

Foto: Otto Blücker

At 6:30, we start hiking under a sun that never set. It begins gently, but gets tougher the higher we climb.

The snow cover still remains in Jökelbäcken, hiding the stream we must cross to continue. It's hard to tell where the snow bridge is strongest, but we secure ourselves with ropes and hope for the best. Falling into a crevasse and getting swept away under the snow cover is not something anyone wants to experience...

Foto: Otto Blücker

Blisters must be taken care of immediately, or continuing the hike becomes impossible.

Once at the Björlings Glacier, we dug out the wool rolls that had been hidden under rocks since spring, when a group brought them up on skis using an electric winch.

Foto: Otto Blücker

Before stepping out onto the glacier, we secured ourselves again and put on crampons. The remaining winter snow hides deep crevasses and glacier wells. We pulled all the rolls out to the area we aim to preserve.

Foto: Otto Blücker

Once at the site, we unrolled all the blankets side by side.

Foto: Otto Blücker

Then it was time to sew them together by hand. Meanwhile, some of us hiked about a kilometer to fetch heavy stones using a sled, to secure the blanket.

The weather shifted from sun to snow, to rain, and back to sun again. Ice blocks and rocks crashed down from the surrounding mountains, echoing through the valley. We really felt nature’s overwhelming power.

Once the blanket was sewn together, we secured it with straps and burlap sacks filled with heavy stones so it would stay in place through all kinds of weather.

Foto: Otto Blücker

When everything was done, we left the blanket to rest peacefully over the summer, preserving a part of the great glacier.

Soon, everything else will be gone—except for our glacier sculpture. It looks so small amidst the vastness, despite its 200 square meters.

Goodbye, Glacier Blanket—we’ll see you again in September!