Saturday, June 18, 2005
Nurmes to Suomussalmi in 130+ hilly miles. This ride was pretty long and had more ups and downs than others...so it would have been brutal if we'd not been smart about pace and start time. As it was, it turned out perfectly.
First things first though...today is Tapio's "name day" which is a celebration that's more important than a birthday over here. I guess it's a church type of tradition, where each saint has a day on the calendar...so that's your name day. I guess there is a party of some sort...but Tapio is stuck with us.
We're officially in the land of the midnight sun...so as you look at the photo of Steve at the cabin at Nurmes, notice how high the sun is at 7am! It's very disorienting for sure.
As we headed north, we were on a road for many miles without a single thing on it but the road itself...Even Jari said "Now you're *really* in the middle of nowhere." Quite something coming from someone from Finland! And that is a good description for sure.
Today's ride was a lot like climbing a mountain in slow motion as far as scenery is concerned. The trees are getting progressively shorter and soon we'll be above the "tree line"! Pretty funny concept for those of us "southerners."
Today was also a special day because we saw a boat on one of the lakes!!! Incredible...the ratio of lakes to boats is about 10,000 to 1.
As we got closer to Suomussalmi things were much busier...we saw an occasional car going both directions. Very strange. For the cars heading north...the only question would be why?
We passed a WWII monument today that was really remarkable. Finland was invaded by Russia in 1939 in a battle that lasted 105 days and ended with the Russians being repelled in a costly battle for both sides. I don't really know my history well enough to know why Finland and whether Hitler started moving on Moscow which changed Stalin's focus and things like that. However, the Finns were outnumbered by many multiples and were very stubborn...there's even a word for it, but it's not something I can remember. Now why invade in the winter and what's up here that Russia wanted...access to the Baltic, maybe? Anyway, the monument is a field of stones which represent the fallen soldiers on both sides and there is a sculpture with 105 bells which softly ring in the wind...one for each of the 105 days of the battle. It's very touching and impressive.
Farms now look like farms...fields, barns, houses, tractors. A short growing season, though.
Our hotel is beautiful...with a fast internet connection, so I can post a bunch of photos. Tomorrow is 100...sounds easy as we head to Lappland whose primary claim to fame seems to be mosquitos and midnight sun. It should be great!
The cabin with early morning sun overhead...the lake in Nurmes, trees getting shorter, farms, another lake...very beautiful, if not remote, for sure.
Friday, June 17, 2005
Off to Nurmes in 100 miles. Now, consensus has it, this had to be one of the most pleasant 100 mile we’ve ever ridden. Somehow the 100 miles just clicked off…and we finished in under 5 hours of riding time without hard work. Amazing, really. And beautiful? With the temperature now in the 70’s and the sky blue…we were all feeling great. Lakes were deep blue (and not a single boat to be seen), birch were bright white, spruce very green. Beyond that, the scenery changed a lot as well. The road opened up a lot…we were now in more open country with clearly working farms all around, and there was even a beautiful birch-lined stream for a change of pace.
At the 50 mile mark, we took a 10k detour to the top of a mountain to look out over the truly gorgeous lakes in this part of Finland. You’ll see a team photo, but Alx is down below watching the bikes or something like that. Sorry he’s not in the photo as he’s a big part of the group and very fun.
Heli joined us today and Tapio’s work has definitely gotten easier. It’s great to have her along…that woman has some kind of energy.
The photos are of the team, the ever present Moose crossing signs, a beautiful stream, and farm country.
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Rest Day…We all needed a little time to regroup and get organized and the weather was simply beautiful as well. We “bought” money…kind of a hassle if your bank uses a 6 digit pin and international machines take 4…oh well, I’m sure it gets back to bank fees somehow. Love those guys. Anyway, we hit the pasta buffet to reload, the ice cream store, bought more simm card time and a few odds and ends at the bike store…cleaned up the bikes after some gritty days on the road and headed over to the lake.
Joensuu is a university town that is very alive. You can see a part of the downtown in the photos below…by our standards there aren’t many cars, there are a lot of bikes…and it’s very pleasant indeed.
The summer cottage at the lake was spectacular as you can see from the photos. The water is perfectly clear and beautiful. We continued to endlessly throw a ball for Hanna and just relaxed until it was time for a sauna. (She can find it if you throw it over the house, remarkably enough.) Now they heat the sauna (wood stove inside) up to a toasty warm 105 degrees (yes, that would be Celsius!) and the deal is you go in and sit to relax. Now I’m not a great relaxer, by and large, and somehow sitting in a room hot enough to boil water didn’t seem like the way to do it…but what do I know. The first cycle was getting used to it…the pulse goes up as your body starts saying “hot” and the nose burns like crazy if you breathe through your nose…and things just open up for a bit. Any sweat glands not working will find a way to turn back on. A little water on the stones…and the wave of heat washes over you…very nice actually. Then time to jog to the lake and take a quick swim…and back for another round. (That part of process is simply amazing.) Second round is somehow easier and things start to relax as they open up…and then a wash with special soap (ok for the lake) and back in the water. I think the Finns compete to see who can stand the hottest sauna for the longest time while drinking the most beer, but we were novices and enjoyed even the beginner version very much.
Dinner was another remarkable meal of smoked salmon, grilled sausage (exceptionally good), some sort of potato pancake, salad, dips and cheeses, and beer. Follow that by fantastic crepes cooked outside on a special pan lettu and filled with strawberry jam and sweet vanilla cream and that was a great meal.
From all of us, thank you, thank you, thank you Marja, Raimo, Raija, and Tapio for your hospitality.
Photos are of our Joensuu world headquarters (Jari and Heli’s house…very nice!), downtown Joensuu, Hanna, and two photos of the lake. Notice that there are no boats at all!
Tomorrow is 100 miles up to Nurmes…it will be great!
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
Dinner at the cottage! It is hard to imagine the hospitality extended to us…and it will be impossible to describe. The cottage is on a pristine lake where motorboats are not allowed. Your’s truly in front. It starts with Hanna bringing a tennis ball for you to throw…and throw…and throw. I’ll post a movie of her jumping through the swing ropes ! Very funny and he only drops the ball when you say irti (pronounced i.rrrrrrrrrr.ti) and you have to roll the r’s. Sheesh.
Dinner was soon ready…an amazing feast! It started with homemade mushroom soup (that means the mushrooms were picked by hand as well!), boiled eggs with shrimp filling, salad, lake trout, smoked salmon, beer, hand made cranberry juice, boiled potatoes, ice cream with strawberries and fresh raspberries, and last but not least, that famous recovery drink…scotch whisky! In addition to your intrepid travelers, we had Tapio, Jari, Pekka, Alx. Heli’s family included her mom, Marja, her grandmother Raija, and her stepdad Raimo.
After dinner, Raimo played the harmonica while Jari and Heli danced with Jere (son) and Oona (daughter)…and they gave us chocolates as gifts! Well, we will reciprocate, naturally, but it was a standard of hospitality that is hard to match.
Photos include the cottage (sorry, it was the best of the cottage and lake); a shot of the table with Jari, Alx, Tapio, Pekka (friend of Jari); three generations; and cartwheel
Day 4…an easy 100 to Joensuu, home of our host! The day started out with what seems to be a typical Finnish weather forecast. Sunny and overcast with 97% chance of rain, then cooler. In general, the legs were reminding us that yesterday was a long day but the miracle is that things just keep on working. Very reassuring.
Early on we saw a beautiful wooden church…the largest wooden church in the world (probably for a reason, but it’s beautiful.) As are all the churches…it’s Lutheran as well, and as is the Finnish way, the bell tower is a separate structure. The photo below is of the bell tower with the church in the background.
In the morning rain, we’re soon in the typical forest landscape…100 yards of clearing for the road stretching on ahead with an occasional meadow and a few towns. The woods are interesting for their birch trees (national tree) mixed in with the spruce. The trees are occasionally thinned out and stacks ready for pick-up. We’re riding in a huge glacier system of lakes…thousands that are all connected so that you can boat for hundreds of miles. And, remarkably enough, we didn’t see a single pleasure boat anywhere on the water…just one tug for a string of log floats. You can hardly imagine how beautiful and pristine that makes the lakes!
In general, this part of Finland is thinly populated. 2/3’s of the 5.5 million live in the south (Helsinki and around there), so there’s a lot of land for the remaining few. In this “forestry” part of Finland, we stopped in a convenience store/bar. The locals started their day of drinking and smoking early…which is apparently the way back here. Such a contrast to our hosts who are incredibly connected and aware and friendly and bright. As stark a contrast as were the small towns in the Mojave desert, New Mexico, Kansas when we rode across the states, but definitely a different look.
Joensuu is a university town and it’s simply beautiful. Open spaces, beautiful buildings, a lot of activity. Our host’s home is beautiful with lilacs and a beautiful yard. Below is a photo of our welcoming committee, Jari's children. After cleaning up, we went to the summer cottage on the lake…that dinner and the family warrants it’s own blog entry…it was heartwarming beyond description…but I’ll try.
Photos are of the wooden church, the typical road, a lake of thousands, logs barge, and our welcoming committee.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Day 3 Starts in Hamina and ends 146 very hard, wet, and cold miles later. Now Hamina was, at one time, a very nice camping site in Finland…right on the Baltic. It’s very rustic, as the photos from yesterday show, and kind of lost in time. Not very popular today as it’s been ignored for a long time.
Anyway, we started out and rode along the Baltic for about 20 miles. The road reminded me of riding to Bourne (MA) through the bogs but with more woods on either side. We soon were got back on the major highway from Helsinki to Russia…and there were Russian caravans that were pretty crazy fast. Although unreadable, some signs were in Russian and Finnish…interesting, but in a novelty sort of way.
As we turned north, things really thinned out. Farms are somehow devoid of equipment or animals or even apparent crops. Check out the photo below…it’s sometimes hard to even figure where the Farmhouse is. The roads are cut through the woods…so there is maybe 100 yards of clear visibility left/right…and the road stretches out ahead. That’s it! No horizon or “big sky”…just this for a long time. Then…there are small towns every now and then and an occasional small city. We might have seen 3 or 4 towns and a “city” during this ride of 150 miles. One was pretty big and not unlike any other city. It had a huge lake (much of Finland) and then a dam for hydro power. I’ve picked out a photo of the dam and a photo of homes as we came into town. The “crop” of this part seems to be lumber…spruce trees that are cut for paper. Every now and then there will be a part that’s partially cleared and stacked…picked up by the trucks we saw cruising along. They also tow the lumber down the lake waterways too.
The rain…very much like Boston’s May was with us early for an hour…and then at mile 100 was with us for the duration. The geography is much hillier as we go north…but the scenery is much the same…until Punkaharju where it was simply spectacular. This was on the lake waterway and we stayed at a quaint B & B that was very Finnish. It was a VERY long time getting there, though…8:30 or riding time. And the signs were teasing us all the way…50 km…still 50 km…then as you arrive at the town…add another 6 to cross the lake…then another 3 on the (beautiful) road to the B & B…then 1.3 to... Anyway, you get the idea and we were really toasted for sure. (Jari's friend Alex was a huge help pulling the entire last 30. He's done a bunch of Iron Men races too!)
The Bed and Breakfast was simple but beautiful…dinner was simple and remarkably…enough food. Perhaps the beer is what made it good. We were so tired that the blog was not going to happen.
A typical “Farm”, Russian flea market, Lumber Truck, Suburban development in city, Hydro Dam, B&B
Monday, June 13, 2005
OK...at last we're off! A pretty flat 100 with a bit of a tail win and a little rain. Pleasant enough, though, as it was warm...about 60 when we started this morning. Getting out of Helsinki is not unlike getting out of LA with a lot of truck traffic and seemingly random construction all around. It only took about 10k before we were in places as "rural" as Harvard, MA. We were really just riding along the Baltic Sea for the day...though we didn't sight it until the Hamina Harbor near the end of the ride.
Now Finland...down here anyway, might as well have been New Hampshire or Vermont, though flatter, and Lara says it's very much like Minnesota. What that means is the grasses are really lush, the trees are pines and birch...somehow living in harmony though who knows how, and there are the familiar lilacs, buttercups, and that purple stuff that's taken over the wetlands and granite is pretty much everywhere. It's flat though. They do a ton of forestry type of work too...thinning out the woods all along the way. And, one of the mysteries of the world...all the barns in Finland are Barn Red. I mean...not kind of the same as Ohio...but the exact same color. Why is that?
By the way, we're heading towards the Russian border and best I can tell, there's an issue between the Russians and the Finns. We're not that far from St. Petersburg...close enough to have road signs pointing the way. We're told to watch our bikes at rest stops because the "Russians will take them."
We went through Porvoo which is the oldest town in Finland and right on the Baltic. The streets are cobblestones and very pretty at that. Very small stones...and for you bikers, it was like Paris-Roubaix. The best part, though, is the luxury cabin...sleeps four! The mosquitos are so big out here that they actually can't get in through the front door!
Tomorrow is a 140 miles...and getting out to some pretty country. Maybe a little more rain, but it will be great.
Below are photos of a Bell Tower (separate from the churches over here), cobblestones, the Harbor, and the cabin.
Sunday, June 12, 2005
We made it! The flight to NYC was a breeze...bikes made it to Finair without a hitch...the flight from Kennedy to Helsinki, though was pretty long. Ray and I managed to sleep OK, but Steve and Eric were less lucky. We picked up 7 hours worth of time zones, so it's a very different day/night. Great to see Jari and meet his buddy Alex who will ride with us, and Tappio, his father.
The language is completely unrecognizable...so we're lost without Jari. You can see the name of the school where Alex teaches in the photo...it's impossibly long. I'll their version of MCAS testing is to correctly spell the name of the school you attend. We went to downtown Helsinki on Helsinki Day...the 453 anniversary of the city. It's a pretty city though kind of nondescript, really, where we went anyway. And of course, most things are unreadable, papers, menu's, labels...except a few signs for places such as "The All American Bistro: Chico's" Hmmm...I guess that works.
I expected to see a really homogeneous looking population given the buildup on how Fins are their own race and all, but Helsinki looks to be very much a mixing pot for a variety of cultures. I guess I also expected Fins to be Swedish looking too...since Jari looks Swedish to me, but they're more square featured and not always blonde.
The adventure is beginning on a familiar note with Ray going missing getting back to the hotel with his assembled bike. Alex found him, though, in his car. We're not quite sure if he knew he was lost. Eric was precisely together...everything together, accounted for, and very much the engaged traveler...Steve took a quick nap on the bus proving he can fall asleep anywhere instantly, and I'm limping around taking photos and trying to remember things long enough to write a blog.
Tomorrow should be great. 100 miles is the plan, starting at a respectable 9:30...weather calling for a little rain overnight but it will be great!
Photos are of the school, our host...Jari, our group as tourists (Neal is hidden talking to Ray), me at Martin Luther's place, and the incredible pipe organ inside. More tomorrow.
