Foraging food in Kungsleden/Kebnekaise/Sarek (SWE) region in summer

Question

This summer I will (once more) go for an extended trek in the very north of Sweden (and/or Norway). The region we'll likely end up in will be around the big trekking routes Kungsleden/Padjelantaleden/Nordkalottleden, also nearby is Swedens highest mountain, Kebnekaise, and the famous Sarek national park.

• The possible routes sometimes follow valleys, cross rivers and lakes but for big parts are also above the tree line (which, at this geographical latitude, is only around 700m above sea level).

• The time of the year will be high summer for northern Scandinavia (as high as it gets that is), i.e. July/August.

So far I only know of Blueberries and the delicious but rare Hjortron.

What (other) foods can we forage while on our trek?

Btw, we won't have permits needed for hunting/fishing (nor the required skills I might add ;)).

Answer 1

Not nearly enough - don't rely on it. You might find blueberries in the parts of the trail that is below approx. 200m above sea level and certainly you will come upon patches of ripe cloudberries as high as perhaps 600m hillsides facing south but that will not be enough to sustain you. There are some edible roots and shoots - also reindeer moss - but you really can't get enough nutrition out of any of it. Eating reindeer moss is a way to probably not die of starvation, but it will feel like it.

You absolutely need to either bring food or be willing and able to go while enduring light starvation.

But please bring food and go, it is a beautiful place.

Answer 2

Here is some food for thought:

Autumn is the time to come and enjoy the fruits of nature’s labour. During August and September, the forests burst to life with berries, edible wild mushrooms (chanterelles and porcini), and local plants and herbs that are just ripe for the picking. A Swedish law called Allemansrätten ("every man's right"), means that anyone is free to roam and forage this wild fare, on the conditions that only non-protected food is taken, and nature isn’t disturbed or destroyed. - GO FORAGING IN THE FORESTS

Furthermore it may be possible to forage some of the following wild edibles:

Bog Bilberries – “Odon”

Bog bilberries (Vaccinium uliginosum), called “Odon” in Swedish, belong to the same genus as the Swedish blueberry. They can be found in the same places as blåbär, but as indicated by the English name, more often on bogs. The flowers are white, the berry is blue, often somewhat bigger than a Swedish blueberry, and slightly oval in shape. Odon are edible but the taste is rather bland, why they seldom are picked deliberately. They can easily be discerned from blueberries by the darker color of the leaves, and by the fact that the inside of the berry is pink, not burgundy red. Unknowingly, blueberry jam (“blåbärssylt”) often contains a few odon, but you can’t tell the difference.

Arctic bramble – “Åkerbär”

The Swedish name “åkerbär” means “field berry”. As the English name suggests, this is a plant that prefers the arctic regions. Growing in moist grassland it can be found mostly in the northern half of Sweden, but it appears sparsely as far south as in the northern tip of Värmland. However, as far south as that, the berries often do not ripen.

Rose hips – “nypon”

In the old days, it was quite common to collect rose hips and turn them into nyponsoppa (rose hip soup), an orange to light brown sweet dessert soup, rich in vitamin C. Nyponsoppa is popular also today as a snack, dessert, or for breakfast, often served with cream, and sometimes with small almond cookies floating in the bowl. - Swedish Berries