I am happily at rest in Ruka, enjoying my luxurious accommodations. I'm sure more hardship lays ahead, but I'm not thinking about that for the next three days. I haven't done much in Ruka, though I did hike the first few miles of the Karkun Kierros (Bear Trail), a multi-day trek that passes through a number of national parks and terminates here. For the first time since I've been in Finland I felt I like I was in a real forest. The trees were gnarled and stunted, not the uniform clean and boring forests that I passed for days. Huckleberries abound. I saw squirrels, which have been rare, and startled a family of grouse.
Most of today I eat, watch television and take saunas. My favorite show is the weather report (saa in Finnish), which is at the end of the news - uutiset. I promised my butt there would be no biking on at least one day. And so the bike, which has its own room, sits quietly at ease. Tomorrow, if the weather holds I'll take a day trip to Jumma, some 18 miles northeast, which is reportedly the region of Finland and Europe's last wilderness area. But if the weather is bad you'll find my curled up on this couch. Monday, my planned departure day, is supposed to have perfect weather. If so, I will begin the two ride east to Rovaniemi, capital of Lapland. Here I'll rest, again, reprovision and prepare for the final leg of the trip, covering the 400 miles to the Arctic Ocean.
(A note on photos: It is getting more difficult to transmit photos due to equipment incompatibility and the amount of time it takes. Most of the pictures transmit with huge sections cropped out randomly.)
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2 comments:
A well-deserved rest. This place sounds amazing. Find a new banner pole yet? Maria
Don't forget to remind everyone the reindeer stand about 3 meters high! They are huge!!
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