Baltic sand, long evenings.

First to the Polish Baltic at Łeba, where the wandering dune of the Słowiński National Park lies. Then inland through the Masurian lakes into the north-east of Poland, before the route comes back to the coast: the Curonian Spit, Ventspils, Kabli, Tallinn. The way back is not the way out — it crosses the Baltic. The record shows the passage from Tallinn and picks up again in Sweden, in Värmland, and then runs down to the North Sea at St. Peter-Ording.

266 kilometres a day, the third-highest average of the five trips — not haste, but shape: this journey is a line, not a loop. You drive it because the things you came to see lie one after another. Three days in Tallinn is the longest stop; everything else is a night or two, and that is exactly how it feels.

August, and the record shows clear skies at seven of ten stops; 17 °C at the coolest, 25 at the warmest, 21 on average. More striking than the temperature is the light: in Estonia the sun stayed up a good fifteen and a half hours, on the Polish Baltic a good hour less. An hour sounds like nothing — it is the difference between one evening and two.

The three Baltic states are easier on travellers with a vehicle than their reputation suggests. Estonia’s state forest service, RMK, keeps a dense network of free forest sites — a fire ring, a covered table, a dry toilet, no booking. No power, no shower; in exchange you have the woods to yourself. Latvia and Lithuania take much the same line on sleeping out in nature, with limits in protected areas: on the Curonian Spit, a national park and a World Heritage site, camping outside the official sites is strictly forbidden. Poland has opened up designated forest areas for overnight stays under “Zanocuj w lesie”; in national parks such as the Słowiński it is not allowed. And Sweden is the misconception this trip corrects: the right of public access covers the tent, not the vehicle — taking a camper off-road is prohibited by the Terrängkörningslag, even with the landowner’s permission. What is legal is the lay-by, as a rule for up to 24 hours.