Not the Arctic Circle

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We had a madcap idea, drive nine hours north to cross the Arctic Circle, however the sales assistant advised us that there’d just been 20cm of snow in the area, and we were one month too early.

Of course we were in an outdoor gear shop at the time. With the northern parts of Finland now out of the question, we perused the maps on display. The helpful assistant pointed us to the map for Nuuksio National Park, it being not far from Helsinki. So two days later we found ourselves parked, map in hand, ready to stride out into the woods.

Our chosen trail was marked with yellow diamonds. Wearing gloves and beanies we headed off.

I’d pondered how the trees clung on with the granite exposed or barely covered, there is little soil for tree roots to grow down into. The fallen trees provided the answers, the roots grew along the rock surface, just beneath the thin layer of soils and moss.

The lakes were still partly frozen while snow and ice lay on sections of the trail. We reached the picnic shelter and took out our lunch. Harry has always told me how quiet the Finns are, how they don’t make small talk like the Irish. Yet the Finnish man who also came to the shelter sure did prove him wrong! This bloke sat down, started to chat, and hardly drew breath. Harry occasionally nodded or concurred in agreement while yer man rabbited on. All in Finnish of course, I kept my head down while enjoying lunch with a view.

We came upon this dude on the track. He’s a Common Toad, the only toad found in this country. Toads unlike frogs do not hop, they walk. This dude had an ungainly gait as he continued his amble along the track.

Our hike finished with a skirt along a golf course, a play with the ice on the lake’s surface, a sighting of a woodpecker and the return to our car.

Out in the Woods

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Our intention is to walk together daily. The locality here is great, it’s easy to get into the woods and wander along the tracks. Some tracks seem random to me, though they must go Somewhere. Others are trails, easy to follow with signage painted on the trees and rocks. Actually, perhaps that’s a winter skiing trail.

This water tower is visible from the kitchen window so to come across it as we rambled was interesting.

Being in Helsinki

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Helsinki is cold outside, fresh winds chill the face. There are a few patches of hardened snow lying around. Snow flurries have scooted through this afternoon, though the snow is not sticking. The daylight hours are long. I didn’t quite get to figure out sunset and sunrise times after our first night here, too jet-lagged, too confused with Sydney time on my watch.

We’re staying with Harry’s mother and she lives on the outskirts of Helsinki. This morning we went for a walk in the local area.

Granite boulders lie all round, along with the pine and birch trees they create this quintessential Finnish landscape. The birch trees are still bare, though are beginning to show the first signs of spring. Frisbee Golf is a game played through these woods. It’s interesting to see how much more development there is since I was last here four years ago. There’s quite a lot of clearing of forest, yet green corridors have been left so it doesn’t feel as barren as new development at home.

We visited the family summerhouse this afternoon. It sits above the lake surrounded by tall trees. With the snow melted and the road accessible, it’s time for some early spring gardening.

shed
outdoor wash station

After a little pruning and other garden work we simply enjoyed the flowers.

capturing snow

Wandering the World

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We’ve made it, flown from Sydney to Helsinki via Singapore. Well-masked all the way, hopefully avoiding the SARS2 virus, I guess we’ll know for sure in a few days. At Sydney International terminal, the busy departure area was well-organised with plenty of staff at hand to direct travellers to the correct check-in desk. The chaos of travel at Easter not in evidence.

she’s leaving home
all set to enter Sydney International Airport

The journeys went well. Only seven hours for the first flight. A few hours in Singapore felt surreal. We did step outside the terminal, though not for long with 30’C and high humidity. The second flight was about thirteen hours, many of them spent in twilight as the plane was kept dim and the passengers mostly slept.

We arrived at Helsinki, the nicest of the three airports. Its calm and quiet, especially the toilets (no noisy hand dryers), was just what I needed being in that zone of sleep deprivation and travel fatigue. A lot of the public furniture was soft and inviting to lounge on, unlike the hard and make-you-sit-straight offerings of many airports. A final wave of paperwork and we were outdoors and finally unmasked.

Our rental car is a hybrid Toyota Yaris. With cries of “Keep right!” and the onboard sat-nav set, Harry took off.

East coast low

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After a few days when the sounds of the surf was hardly noticeable, it seemed last night as if there was a freight train down the hill.

With an easterly swell of 4 metre waves, maxing to 7 metres, and the wave period generally close to 9 seconds, and occasionally extending to 14 seconds (ref: MHL data from Batemans Bay waverider buoy) we knew a visit to the local beach would be interesting.

at high tide the back of the beach was underwater

It was not long after high tide. The waves pounded in right across the bay. The lagoon was open with the creek flowing out with more momentum than I’ve ever seen. Waves washed over the sand spit.

watch a while as the water flows in, and out

I was wearing my gum boots so my feet stayed dry when the water came right up to my standing spot.

Notice the sign, near the end of the video, bottom left corner? It used to be on the sand spit. I retrieved it and stuck it into a safer place.

part of the sand spit stayed dry, hope any nest was high enough to survive

It’s not often that rubbish gets thrown onto this beach. My two finds were interesting. Was the toothpaste from far overseas? Or from a passing boat? It was amongst the seaweed thrown up onto the grassy bank during last night’s high tide.

What’s the story behind this sole shoe? Where is its partner now?