Hi,
Once again, thank you for your comments and encouragement. Really nice to read them when the link is available!
As I left Sallatunturi from the outskirts of Onkamo towards the north, I wondered about the separation fences that appeared on the maps for the reindeer. Would it be possible to get through them and whether the marked gates would still be in the places marked on the map, or would it be necessary to take a long loop around to the gate. Had no choice but to head to the gate, although I would’ve had the Leatherman rubbing on the hips.
In fine weather, I was able to move towards Lake Onkamo and the east side of Sallatunturi towards Naruska. I took a risk and after going through the gate of the reindeer fence, I thought about taking a short cut through the hills ahead and headed for the adjacent swamps, which ran parallel to the hills. I was hoping for load-bearing snow. Error.
There really wasn’t any bearing at all, just soft powder snow, where you had to pull a fully loaded toboggan with all your might, eyes popping out of the head.
At the border, I came across a patrol Jussila-Vilkman. They were interested in my trip and it was nice to answer their questions. I made them lift the toboggan, as they were wondering about the weight of it, and asked to do the lift with straight backs. The same astonishment as Saku and myself had when we lifted a supercharged toboggan into the back of the car. They agreed on 80 kilos. I received an invitation to have coffee and eat at the Salla border guard station, and at the request of the official, I had to follow it. The meatloaf, bread rolls and cinnamon buns tasted good and I had good company to talk with. Thank you for this and for the valuable work you are doing in our border regions!
From there, back to the woods and looking for a route. Back on the skis to think about how to cross the Kuola- and Tenniö Rivers. The former went following tracks left by a snowmobile, and the second through an alleged backwater tested with the builder’s axe.
Salla’s patrol came across at the border with snowmobiles and said they had driven a route down a steep hillside before the Tenniö River. Just awesome! And moreover, after expressing my orphaned feeling after losing my own compass, the frontiersman Vilkman dug out his own from his backpack and asked to be returned when I got there. This is how the patrols of our Border Guard operate in the terrain, assisting and serving citizens. Great!
After crossing the river, we were faced with a slope of a hill, where we had to survive through thick snow. It was so tough that I almost ran out of tricks. The climb of the slope sucked all the juices out of me, so the word ”trekking hostel” that caught my eye on the map didn’t have to persuade me at all, I just had to check the phone to see if the place existed. When I got to the yard of the hut, Ukka, the host, welcomed the entrant from the stairs. The warm sauna and other house practices were inspected.
After setting up the tent, when inspecting the skis, I noticed that the articulated steel part of the binding had snapped. This was certainly due to user error, as I like to bang the articulated part and the heel headband attached to it against the ski heel tag to make the forests rattle. Not for fun, but to remove the ice. When the fault occurred, it took me a while to turn my despair and wonderment into action. I took the ski to the hostess of the inn for a photo shoot, and while I was in the sauna, the messages were circulating in the dark village of Salla’s Naruska to see if anyone would have the binding in question for spare parts. After being in the sauna for long enough, I learned that there would be a nearby neighbour five kilometers away. Ukka drove me to pick up Tuomo’s forest skis and after an hour I had replaced the part of my own skis and removed any other loose and useful parts as spare parts to go with me. Yes, at the supper table, I thanked the hosts for their help in handling the matter. In Naruska, Ukka and Pirjo, thank you. Stop by at the hut if you move around there. I have not yet met any staff so serving and willing to listen to the wishes of the hiker anywhere before.
After ordering new ski bindings for Tuomo and enjoying breakfast at the trekker hostel, the journey continued towards Tulppio. Then, in Tulppio, I shouted at a potential coffee maker at the counter of a camping accommodation company, but I couldn’t reach anyone. After all, I was a couple of hours ahead of the opening time. With wistfulness, however, I glanced at the ice creams in the freezer and took off back into the yard. You always have to try. After emptying the rubbish into the rubbish bin, the journey continued to Kemihaara, and from there to Urho Kaleva Kekkonen National Park. The first reindeer came across only at the level of Tulppio, although there had been traces of them a long time already.
It snowed in the morning, it was quiet and calm. It was quiet to ski and I noticed a moose 30-40 meters away sniffing the signals of fellow species. However, couldn’t get a hint of me and I was able to take a few pictures, albeit grainy at full zoom. Since then, I’ve been following the same trace as the reindeer, they ahead of me and me after it.
In Kemihaara, I met the first hikers on this trip. Three friends and all with toboggans. Proper equipment. There were four of us tired pullers gathered together for a while.
I moved on and the next day, after skiing a decent amount during the day, I got to a deserted hut, where I decided to accommodate myself during the heavy snowfall. A really atmospheric hut, which I filled in no time with damp rigs and equipment. I even got the toboggan and skis lubricated quickly. It felt great to continue from there with dry equipment towards the park and the maze of its rugged hills and fells.
You feel small and lonely, when you see the tops of the hills for tens of kilometers and you have to go down a slope of a forested hill, at the bottom of which you can find crossings of streams, rivers and sturgeons, soft snow, and the search of a suitable route to ascend with the load. The fear factor is on point. When you’re trying to solve the matter on your own and spinning it around inside your head, there’s no room for anything else left at that moment.
Then, a few days later, when I wriggled knackered on the road to Raja-Jooseppi on the northern border of the UKK National Park, I was again amazed at the resources hidden in determination and will. From Raja-Jooseppi, the journey headed towards Nellim. There would be a moment of rest that would really come in handy.
This part was also stressful, but you get through it when you think of cinnamon buns, pies, fresh orange juice, pizza and lollies. Most importantly, the possibility of washing after two weeks of continuous sweating.
The severe frost made the deserted hut in Ahvenlampi, marked on the map, feel like a safe haven, where I was able to get to when the sun set. I met a Polish solo skier in the hut an hour after my own arrival, and the man had persevered to escape the frost at the cottage, so much so was his beard and sweater in the hoarfrost! There were interesting topics to cover when two long-range hikers meet in the middle of nowhere. The topics included experiences of hiking, hiking alone and its different styles. He had already spent 40 days touring Norway and Finland, touring the deserted huts. Tomazs really knew the cottages and excursion destinations of Lapland. An incredible guy to meet in the farthest cottage near the eastern border. We both wondered about the encounter together. In the evening there were some great northern lights and I got a few pictures of them.
With the rigs dry, I continued my journey towards Nellim, from where the last leg to Nuorgam would begin about 200 kilometers.
-Jukka
