2018-06-11 67 29

Location

Savukoski, Ainijärvi, on the outskirts of the Värriö national park. The point lies among pine saplings.

Participants

Pastori
The Wife

Expedition

Some company for the road.

Steam engine.

In the morning the temperature was only +9 degrees Celsius and it was drizzling rain. Wife had noticed a potential point in an unconquered graticule but Pastori was a little hesitant. The trip there and back would be over 500 km and that's a long way to go. It would've only been half that as the crow flies but roads are scarce hereabouts. But, to please Wife and thankfully his own excitement rearing its head as well, Pastori started the car at 7:47 am. And at least the car was a fine umbrella for a day they might not have gotten outside otherwise at all.

First they headed south about 130 km. At Sodankylä they stopped by at the market place to enjoy some freshly baked goodies before heading east through two graticules to reach the third which was half way in Russia. On the way there the sun popped out a few times and there were only a few other travellers. Thankfully, since the roads are quite narrow there. The paved roads ended and the dirt roads dirtied the car but their excitement started to rise. There was even a little rainstorm on the way. The last 10 km the GPS didn't even show them a road but thankfully Wife had some printed maps that showed the road right where it was supposed to be.

Near the border at this point is the [| Värriö national park] and [| research station]. They pulled up at the station to wait out the rain and change into more waterproof clothing. While they were getting ready the rain halted and they shot off to the point. From the road there was 262 m to the point in what at first looked to be pretty rough terrain but which turned out to be pretty easy to traverse, littered with pine saplings. Wife even noticed a nice brain mushroom (gyromitra esculenta) but since it was the only one, they had to forego a possible mushroom soup in the making. After making a little loop due to the GPS acting up Pastori finally found the right spot and reached the point with and accuracy of 0.169 m. Thankfully they were able to stay dry, thank you rain for keeping away.

After the point the rain left them largely alone with some drizzling here and there. On their way back they visited a local sight in the form an old steam engine in Tulppio. It was brought to the area in the early 1900s from the U.S. by Hugo Richard Sandberg to aid in the transport of logs. Two of these steam engines that actually ran on caterpillar tracks helped transport 245 656 logs between 1913 and 1916. One of the engines was restored in 1968 and is now located at Tulppio.

Worn out Pastori and Wife reached their lodgings at 17:25 (5:25 pm) after driving 585.1 km, outside temperature was only +5 degrees Celsius but thankfully the cottage was nice and warm and of course the sauna is even nicer and warmer.