What?
The hiking adventure that I have been dreaming of for years is finally coming true. Finally. After hundreds of days and thousands of kilometers in the wilderness. After all those unforgettable adventures that came before, I’m ready for the big one: to spend a year outdoors hiking and living in the wildernesses of northern Scandinavia.
The journey will take me through the most remote regions of Finland, Sweden and Norway. The total distance covered will be over 2500km. The journey will be divided in about a dozen parts or ”legs” that are 2-5 weeks in duration each. Depending on the season, I will be backpacking on foot or skiing with a sledge. The logistics will lean on small villages at the end of each leg.
Despite long distances and challenging conditions, the hike is not a performance-oriented run-through but a deep experience of nature. This will primarily be a solo hike although there will be also some company on the way.
The journey will go through the most remote areas beyond all routes and tracks, where one can still find primitive nature. Besides dry food in the backpack or sledge, nature will provide some extra nutrition in the form of fish, game and berries. Below the treeline traditional campfire is the primary source of heat whereas above it, modern stoves will do the trick. During the night, shelter is provided by a tent, a tarp, a big spruce or just a hole in the snow under the starry sky.
The departure is set to August 2019.
Why?
Why do it? Why leave all the people behind? Why expose oneself to hunger, cold, fatigue and other discomforts of such a long journey?
The most important reason for this hike is the endless longing for nature and the will to experience and feel it from the front row seat. In this particular journey I want to see how the seasons slowly follow each other in the wilderness. I’m sure the year will be full of unforgettable nature experiences! What I’m the most excited about, is to see and feel the dark and cold winter turn into summer full of light and life.
Another important reason for this trip is to get to live the simple healthy life in the wilderness. This includes constantly staying outdoors and rapid change of scenery, campfires under the night sky, fishing and hunting, physically demanding days and calm nights following them, to name a few. Above all stands of course the continuous presence of Nordic nature. For me, life in the wilderness provides the kind of peace and freedom that I cannot feel anywhere else.
Third reason is the urge for adventure and challenge to balance a boring life in the city. On every longer hike nature and coincidence produce more or less surprising difficulties, testing ones ability to adapt and solve problems. On this particular hike the passing of seasons produces interesting challenges. Furthermore, on such a long journey physical and mental challenges will be far greater than anything I’ve ever faced before. However, the bigger the challenges, the greater is my will to overcome them!
www.vuodenvaellus.fi. All rights reserved.
Contact: erno@vuodenvaellus.fi