What if there's no snow...?!

I like to look in on the TripAdvisor Äkäslompolo forum occasionally.  It's a good place to see the sort of questions that people are asking about our area and to try to help if I can. 

TripAdvisor Äkäslompolo Forum

Every so often, someone asks a question that makes you think a bit. 
Today was one of those days. 

"We were hoping for lots of snow so the children could do ski-ing, sledging, husky rides etc but looking at the webcams there seems to be only a slight smattering of snow at the moment. I am hoping this improves (will it?)

But what suggestions are there for things to do if the snow doesn't improve?"

First off it's pretty unlikely that we will still be snow free in three weeks, and I'm pretty sure there has never been a "Black Winter" here, i.e. no snow, ever. 

But, it's a good chance to review and highlight some of the things to see and do here that don't need snow.

So, forgetting about downhill and cross-country skiing, snowmobiles, husky sled rides, Santa trips , snow-showing and tobogganing - what is there to see and do in and around Äkäslompolo?

First of all, I think it's fair to say I didn't answer the original question very well! 

Given a bit of thinking time, and the chance to do what any man should do when faced with a tricky question, i.e. ask his wife... we came up with the following list... (Suggestions for additions most welcome!)

Outdoor Activities 

Not having snow around is no excuse for not getting out and getting active!
It's strange starting out in the cold sometimes, but when your body gets used to the cold, it's a great feeling when you get to the point where you are generating enough of your own warmth to keep things balanced. 

Ice Skating

If there is no snow, by the time it gets really cold, the lake in Äkäslompolo is one fantastic, huge ice rink for skating!  
When it does get covered in deep snow, there are cross country ski tracks cut on the lake and it becomes a handy shortcut between the two sides of the village.

There are quite a few lakes around and most of them are great for skating on. 
Of course it's good to check with a local, or see some locals skating on a lake to be sure it is safe. 

This was my effort at skating last year.  

Walking

Äkäslompolo has one of the best networks of cross-country ski tracks around, something approaching 400 km of tracks.  If there is no snow, these are fantastic walking routes taking you in and around the hills or deep in the forest of the Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park without fear of getting lost but seeing some of the most fantastic scenery.

Lots of the trails have cafes on the way, like Velhon Kota where you can top up on fresh Finnish baking, donuts and hot chocolate, coffee or berry juice to fire you up for the next leg. 

Running

It's quite a dry cold here so it can  really be quite cold before it starts getting advisable not to stay out too long.  Even at -20C it's quite nice going out for a run. (Ok, I once went out at -20C and that was pretty parky, but down to -15C really is ok).

The peace and stillness out running here is well worth experiencing.

Ice Fishing 

The frozen lake also provides a perfect opportunity for ice fishing.  It's easy to hire the equipment at the sports shops and get out on the lake, drill, and wait. 
I'm not much of a fisherman, but it's a popular activity here and, even if you don't get lucky, you have a great view of the skaters.

Cycling

Cycling is also a growing activity here with a new cycle route from Äkäslompolo to Levi having opened this summer and all sorts of bikes, including "Fat bikes" for serious off-roading, available to hire.  There is even a mountain bike track that starts at the top of the mountain, for the brave, which you can tackle over and over taking bikes up on the cable car after each descent.


See my Hullun Polkasu blog for details of how big cycling is getting in summer here too.  After 40 of us completed the route last year, there were over 120 this year.  It's not too early to book to join us next year :)

Wildlife Galore

You can go horse riding here for a different way of seeing the national park and nature, and, if your interests are in more varied wildlife the Äkäslompolo petting zoo is worth a visit too.  

Of course Äkäslompolo is a fabulous place to watch all the arctic wildlife and you are bound to see lots of reindeer wandering around, normally much more slowly than the squirrels that keep eating the nuts we put out for birds and Arctic hares, and you might even see an elusive Arctic fox. 

Oh, and there is a fantastic array of birds here, including the Kukkeli or Siberian Jay that will quite happily perch on your hand to eat any offered food.  


If you can't immediately find a Kukkeli, get yourself to one of the ski huts on the cross-country ski trails and cook some sausages on an open fire and you'll soon have a "Band" of Jays, no, not the O'Jays (Sorry, showing my age!), around you.

Here's one that we spotted earlier.

Sauna

You probably already know that sauna is a major part of Finnish life, and you will probably have a sauna in your cabin or hotel.  The "Real" Finnish sauna experience can be had down at the lake, where the Lakeside Sauna can be hired.  



Dipping in a frozen lake between sessions in the sauna is crazy, but it really has health benefits, and you'll never feel better than you do on the walk home after that experience, even without stopping for a refreshment at the Selvä Pyy on the way past! 

Eagle Safari

For the last couple of years, two local entrepreneurs have been running an eagle hide out on the forest here.  See my earlier blog on this too.  If you have any interest in birds or bird photography, this is a fantastic experience to see the most majestic wildlife at close quarters. 
You can find out more about this here.

http://www.wildlifeyllas.com/en/

Warmer Activities

Once you've tackled outdoor activities to burn off your excess energy, you might be ready for some more relaxing pursuits before you think about dinner or a few drinks in one of the local establishments. 

The lovely Kellokas building hosts the tourist information centre, has a fantastic little interactive museum and exhibition area, explaining a lot about the history and life in the Arctic.  It also has a nice cafe and a cinema (Kino Kellokas) that is the perfect place to watch some of the latest releases. 

At the cinema, most films that aren't animations are in English!  The tickets are only 10 Euros and you might just find your local blogger working as the projectionist!

Retail Therapy

For the extra cash that you can't spend on skiing lessons, it's well worth a visit to the Jounin Kauppa shopping centre.

There, you might even bump into local superstar Sampo Kaulanen "The Crazy Shopkeeper" and if you "like" his facebook page, you could win some unbelievable prizes, like 10 000 Euros or a car for example.  

There are also local galleries and craft shops highlighting and selling some of the best locally designed and produced items, these two for example, both well worth a visit. 

Navettagalleria                       

Lumiperhonen 

As well as these locally produced crafts, you can also find the bigger Finnish brands in the Seita and Marimekko stores in the shopping centre and the two sports shops, Sportia Ylläs and the Äkäslompolo Sport Shop both have great ranges of winter equipment and clothes and will also rent you any equipment you need. 

Northern Lights

Of course, up here in Lapland, one of the most incredible spectacles on the planet is available freely, if not predictably.  

The Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis have already been in good form this year and, with only a few hours of full daylight in late November, you have a great chance to see this phenomenal spectacle of nature without falling into a deep snowdrift while you are walking and gazing upwards at the same time.  
  
If you want to see some great examples of the shows we have had here, take a look at Markus Kiili's site or find him on Twitter (@kiili).  He is a local photographer that also runs Aurora photography courses. 

Evening Entertainment

Of course there are lots of excellent restaurants and bars to visit, often with live music, but I think that needs a separate entry, and some more time for testing!

Finally, if you still have energy left after all that, you could go ten-pin bowling in Ylläsjarvi, or join in the karaoke at the Joikupub before walking back to your cabin or hotel through the cold night air and the sparkling ice crystals forming in the clean, pure night air. 

It's a wonder that anyone finds time to ski at all!

Juhannuspäivä - Midsummer in Lapland

Up here in the far north, Midsummer day isn't so different from the 30 or so days before or after; well, at least in terms of the length of the day.  

No "Longest day" concept for us as we are right in the middle of the "White Nights" period, where we have weeks and weeks when the sun doesn't set at all. 

This leaves us with views like this at midnight and potential confusion with concepts like "At the end of the day".

Holiday Time!

In Finland, Juhannuspäivä, Midsummer, is a special day, celebrated with a holiday, Midnight bonfires and sometimes a drink or two.  Everyone that can gets out of the towns and cities and makes for the villages and lakes.

Here in Äkäslompolo, the locals and holidaymakers gather at the side of the lake in time for the midnight lighting of the bonfire. 

Grilled sausages, beer and some local musicians make a great accompaniment to what is a really nice feature of summer in the Arctic.

It's nice to get a good view of the bonfire, and the guys in this picture surely have the right idea, while the rest of us are trying to get just the right photo, while still retaining some eyebrows! 

Midsummer Relaxation

When I was a lad in Scotland, I remember people talking about being able to just about read a newspaper outside in Shetland at Midsummer. 

Here in Lapland, that would be considered practically dark.  At Midnight, you can cycle without lights, read the small print on documents, and practically see the plants and trees growing as they take advantage of the short Arctic summer. 

Strangely perhaps, it's also a very relaxing time.  

With no urgency to finish things before it gets dark, and endless daylight hours, it's almost necessary to have an alarm to issue bedtime reminders.

Otherwise, it's easy to find that it's reached 2am while you weren't looking.  

It doesn't make it any easier to head off to bed when there are all sorts of birds and animals around to be interested in, taking advantage of the daylight, like these reindeer taking a time-out in our garden. 

Not just for Christmas

Like many foreigners, before we first visited Lapland, we only really thought of it as being the home of Santa Claus and a place for winter fun and sports.  

Living in Lapland through summer you realise that it's just as appealing and just as fascinating throughout the year, with incredibly different seasons. 

And, if you really can't stop thinking of Lapland as a skiing destination, well they even do that here in summer too!

   

Snow Caves

During late winter each year, the Lapland scouts head up to Aakenus fell, between Äkäslompolo and Kittilä, for a few nights, to practice their outdoor skills. 

With temperatures often dropping to -20C and lower, it's important to have good shelter and to keep out of the wind.

In Southern Europe scouts would rig up tents and camp fires, but up here in the north, they have a slightly different approach, digging a series of caves in the deep snow on the side of the mountain.

Let's go Caving!

As the snow melts in springtime, the caves disappear, but in the few weeks before the thaw properly sets in, the caves remain usable. That was when our friends, the Karinen's, who make sure that we don't miss any exciting experiences in Lapland, suggested that we all head up there for the weekend...

So, with thoughts of frostbite, claustrophobia and hungry bears emerging from hibernation, we set about practising our snow shoeing technique and loading as many warm clothes as we could find on to our little sledge.

Get the gear up the mountain

Forty five minutes driving and we were at the start of the path, a quiet ski trail that formed the first 2 km of our route.

Once we got started, the snow shoeing was fairly easy and pulling a sledge behind is easier than we thought, even when it sniffs around your ankles like a small dog wanting to play every time you head slightly downhill.

With Timo leading, pulling what seemed more like a small boat in comparison with our tiny sledge, we were soon off the track and heading up the steeper section to the small gully where the caves had been dug.

House Inspection

The first surprise was that the entrances to the caves were about 5 metres above ground level. It would have been so easy to walk past them if we'd not known they were there.

Then the second was that they appeared to have bars over the entrances, caused by the slow defrosting of the snow forming icicles as it dripped down over the doors.

At night, the temperatures are still well below Zero, but the daytime sun, and by mid-April in Lapland there are around 18 hours of daylight, causes the top layer of snow to begin to defrost.

The icicles were easily swept away, and the next surprise was that immediately behind each entrance was a steep climb through a narrow gap to get into the actual cave. The daytime defrosting had made these sections pretty icy and the combination of enclosed space and slipperiness, with a steep drop outside, made for quite an exciting experience.

Once inside the actual caves, each had been built so you arrived up into an area that two people could stand not quite upright in, with a wider, but significantly lower sleeping area at the side.  The sleeping area was easily wide enough for two sleeping bags, but lower, a lot lower!

Actually, it was probably about three feet high, but while you are trying to convince yourself that you don't suffer from claustrophobia, and working out if the entrance is small enough to discourage a hungry bear, you don't take in all the detail.

Once we'd all selected our caves, we set about digging steps up to the entrances, then lugging our gear up to them.  

Squatters in Residence

While we were preparing sleeping gear, and getting our caves organised, Jonna climbed high above the cave entrances to raise the camp flag.

Apart from looking pretty good, the flag would warn any returning scouts or other potential new residents that there were other people around.

That seemed a pretty good idea, since a surprise encounter 15 feet or so above ground level could be dangerous for all involved. 

Ready for Bed?

Despite the caves being a bit small and a little chilly, setting the gear out in them did make them feel a bit like wilderness hotel rooms.  

That said, we were quite glad to set out again for a while to climb the slope in front of the caves and take in the evening view.  

By mid-April the days in Lapland are long and bright, and the short night is preceded by a long slow sunset, which gave us the perfect opportunity to have some dinner and take in the view while reflecting on how much our lives have changed since we moved away from London 18 months ago. 

While we were taking in the spectacular view, eating, and thanking Jonna profusely for the rum that she'd brought along, and which spiced up the outdoor coffee perfectly, the younger members of the expedition team were off taking full advantage of the still-perfect winter conditions on the hillside.

In my younger days in Scotland, sledging meant pointing yourself and your sledge downhill, then running like the clappers and jumping on, hoping that you didn't hit anything too solid before the bottom of the slope.
   
For the younger Finns it's a much more sophisticated event with capabilities to steer around obstacles that would have seen me and my childhood friends spending the night in casualty.  

Retiring for the Night

As we sat on the hillside, the temperature slowly dropped to around -10C.  With no wind, it didn't feel that cold, but we finally decided it was time for bed.

We took one final precaution before heading for bed, setting up a couple of outdoor candles, left over from the winter season, at the entrance to the cave.   

They might not have been enough to discourage a seriously hungry bear, but they might give us time to beat a hasty retreat while it was blowing out its flaming tootsies. 

Though we were a bit apprehensive about getting any sleep at all, the reindeer skins that the Karinen's had brought to go under the sleeping bags actually made quite comfortable on top of the icy base layer.

The combination of fresh air, exercise and good food soon overcame the fear and we were sound asleep.

Morning has broken

Bright and early on Sunday morning, we found that we hadn't been buried alive or been attacked by the bears rumoured to live in the fell, but instead woke up feeling quite refreshed on a glorious morning.

Though we were all starving, we decided to take a walk up towards the top of the mountain, to take a look at the views first.  

When we got there we found that we could see Ylläs fell, the mountain which our village, Äkäslompolo, sits at the base of. It's just visible in the background here.

On a Sunday morning out in the wilderness, you sort of assume that there is no-one for miles around, but, just as we were approaching the top of the mountain, a couple of fit and enthusiastic cross-country skiers appeared over the mountain-top and stopped for a quick chat.   

As we turned to head back down to the caves, we saw something moving around some rocks, it was a bit far off to see clearly, but we finally guessed that it must be a snow grouse.  

It wasn't keen on us approaching, but we managed to get a quick picture just before it fluttered off to a quieter part of the fell. 

In northern Lapland, nature is never far away.  It's always interesting to see how the wildlife evolves to cope in the rugged terrain and often tough weather conditions. 

Relaxing at camp

When we arrived back at the cave site, the younger contingent were finally taking it easy.  

There also seemed to be significantly fewer biscuits than we remembered, but we couldn't be quite sure.  

Certainly it seems that the combination of late night sledging, fighting to escape from sleeping bags and living out in the freshest air in Europe builds a healthy appetite!

Talking of which, we (mostly Jonna) were soon busy in the cave kitchen making some fantastic outdoor pasta.

There really is something special about food that is prepared and eaten outdoors away from home and we took a leisurely lunch before emptying the caves, and packing up ready for the trip home. 

Time to go home

Once we had all the gear packed and ready to leave the caves for the last time and head for home, we stepped back into our trusty snow shoes and started off following our tracks back to the main path.  

We made the mistake of thinking that it would be easier heading back, since we had eaten and drunk most of our supplies.  

In fact the reverse is true. With all the food eaten there was not enough weight to keep the sledges stable, and, especially in the cross-hill sections, they insisted on rolling over at every possible opportunity, attempting to drag us downhill the quick way.

That did make the first half of the return trip a bit harder, but it was quite funny watching the gear spill out of the sledge every few steps until we managed to lash it better into place.

After an hour or so we were back in the car and heading home, just in time, for Timo had prepared a champagne reception for the brave explorers!  The perfect welcome home!

As with so many new experiences in Lapland, we're now planning to do it all  again next year. 

Maybe it's the cold that makes us crazy.