2024-10-13 65 25

Location

In a forest in Isokangas nature reserve.

The point on a topographic map: [1]

Participants

Kripakko

Expedition

I went cycling on a pretty autumn Sunday. This hashpoint was in a nice location, and I would also be able to visit tomorrow's hashpoint on the way, which I would not be able to do on that day. I believe the temperature was around 5 °C during the day, which is quite comfortable for cycling, though I would prefer 10–15 °C.

I followed the obvious road route towards the hashpoint and visited a few geocaches and the reverse retrohash. I was not allowed to cycle on the trails in the nature reserve, so I had to leave the bicycle to the parking area and walk the last 900 metres or so. It had been raining on the previous days, which had made the forest and especially the swamps damp, and I could not avoid getting my shoes and feet wet. Thankfully it was not any colder, or my feet could have got cold, but this was still manageable.

On the way back I noticed a beautiful patch of sparse forest where a lot of lichen was growing on the ground, and I took a short detour to it and took some photographs. I also went to the lakeshore to take pictures, and there the soil was even more wet and my feet got properly soaked. Oh well. When I would soon continue cycling, the muscle work would keep me warm.

To make the return home more interesting, I chose an alternative route via small forest roads and a private road. I was on the mountain bike today, and it felt like I was not going any slower there than on the paved roads. Besides, there was way less car traffic to mind and avoid, and I could concentrate on enjoying the scenery which, admittedly, was mostly unvaried forest. I finally got back home after being out for about four hours.

According to the GPS receiver, I cycled 45.7 kilometres and walked 2.5 kilometres during the trip. I happened to cross the 65° parallel several times, which you can see in the tracklog.