CAMPING TRIP TO MALMA ISLAND
The weeks are flying by and lately I've been feeling frustrated that I'm not doing anything meaningful at this time of the year. At the weekends, at best, I will take a bike ride, shopping groceries, cooking dinner and then a movie before going to bed. Eat, sleep, repeat. But when I saw the forecast calling for sunshine this weekend, I decided it was time to break the routine and take a trip to Malma Island.
I had a few new pieces of gear I was eager to test out: a pair of down pants I received for Christmas, a camera mount for my backpack, and I was also curious to see what it would be like to camp in winter with my two-person tent, something I had never tried before.
To extend the trip a bit, I parked at the Malma Kvarn boat club and started my hike from there. Along the way to Malmaön, I discovered some beautiful trails that looped around a couple of lakes, making for a truly enjoyable walk.
Once I reached Malma Island, I headed south along Korshamnsviken. There was supposed to be a path here, but it was impossible to follow, so I improvised my route south. My plan was to reach the southern tip and then follow the eastern coastline up north. The terrain was quite hilly along the water, but the effort was absolutely worth it.
After about an hour, I reached the northern part of the island. There, I discovered a small peninsula with some beautiful rocks and a perfect camping spot by the water. However, it was already occupied, so I decided to keep going. A little farther north, I came across the Korshamn nature reserve, where I found a couple of impressive potholes, some up to six meters in diameter. A pretty cool sight. After that, I turned back toward the peninsula I had passed earlier and finally found a great camp site at the top of a hill.
The mountain sloped a bit where I pitched the tent, but the view was great! It was great to have a self-supporting tent, as this campsite wouldn’t have worked otherwise.
The last time I went winter camping, I tested my new tent, a Six moon design lunar solo. That tent is a single-wall tent, which means that the air does not circulate as well as in a tent with an inner tent. The advantage is, of course, that it weighs less and is quicker to set up, but that time I got a lot of condensation. It was probably due to several reasons. Partly because it was quite cold, about -5 degrees celsius, I camped near the water and there was almost no wind. So this time I thought I would find a place further from the water, and not quite as protected from the wind. This time I also took my Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 which has an inner tent, for better air circulation.
After a while, I realized the mountain was tilting just a bit too much, and I could feel myself slowly sliding down the sleeping mat. So, before it got dark, I decided to move the tent a few meters uphill to a flatter spot. It made a big difference, and I was even able to reposition the tent to get a view of Nämdöfjärden. Once that was sorted, I opened a beer and checked the women’s long sprint on my phone before settling in for dinner. I had a Real Chili stew with beans and a glass of canned wine. Honestly, it wasn’t bad at all.
The next morning, I woke up to a layer of white frost covering the entire tent. I slept surprisingly well. The cold wasn’t an issue this time (around -3°C), but my narrow sleeping mat was. At just 51 cm wide, it’s becoming a challenge for a stomach sleeper like me. That said, the sleeping bag performed well, even though it’s a bit on the narrow side for me too. Best of all, there was zero condensation in the tent—definitely a win!
The last time I went winter camping, my quilt got completely soaked from condensation on the surface, but this time it stayed dry and comfortable. Thanks to a slight draft that ran through the tent all night, most of the moisture was blown away. While it made things a bit colder, it was definitely worth it to avoid the condensation. And my new down pants were fantastic! At first, I wore them inside my sleeping bag, but it got too warm, so I had to take them off quickly. The camera mount on the shoulder strap was also super convenient, especially since I’ve been hiking with trekking poles more often lately.
It was a great trip to Malma Island, and I’d definitely love to return to this campsite on a warmer day. I can imagine how wonderful it must be to wake up here in the summer, with the morning sun streaming in from the sea. On the way back, I took a simpler route, which made the journey home much quicker.