Finally a free weekend—and time for a quick one-nighter in Nuuksio National Park. I usually avoid national parks since they tend to be pretty popular here in Finland, and I prefer the solitude of the fjells. But I know a few secret spots in Nuuksio I head to when I really need to escape the city.

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Snow forms these perfect, pillowy shapes on the forest floor—so soft and inviting it looks like you could just fall into it and rest. It makes everything feel gentle and safe. But the truth is, if you actually jumped in like it was a bed, you’d freeze to death within an hour. Nature’s beauty can be incredibly deceiving.

I’ve been super busy with work lately, so I haven’t had much energy to go through my photos—but I’m hoping that changes soon.

#sonyalpha #tamron #nature #mountains #forest #hiking #landscape #lapland #outdoors #adventure #wilderness #photography #backpacking #mastodon #landscapephotography #pixelfed #photo #naturephotography #nordic #arctic #winter

Nice shot!

Luckily they do not and we don't need any more biting insects in Lapland :D It can get crazy in the summer

One of the most peculiar insects found in Lapland is the Tipulidae, known as "Hankihyttynen" or "Vaaksiainen" in Finnish. You can find these mosquito-resembling insects in the spring, flying around and crawling in the snow. Their larvae can survive temperatures as low as -30°C in their hideouts under the topsoil, although, to my understanding, the adults only come out when the weather gets warmer.

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Imprints of a wolverine in the Käsivarsi Wilderness Area, Finland, in 2023. These sightings are very rare, as there are only an estimated 160–180 of these fantastic animals in all of Finnish Lapland. In my 13-14 years of hiking, I have only seen one wolverine, and that was from afar many years ago.

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Great rhythm!

so pretty cookie!

Yeah, I make mistakes. Sometimes stupid :D

Some of you might remember that I pull two pulkas: a large one and a small one. This is a picture story of when I lost the smaller one due to equipment failure during my six-week-long solo ski tour through the Käsivarsi Wilderness Area, Finland.

1. After skiing for a while, I realized that the smaller pulka was no longer attached to the larger one.
2. The part it was attached to with a rope had broken off.
3. Frantic and panic-induced skiing followed as I retraced my own tracks, hoping the pulka wasn't too far away or hadn't slid down a dangerous slope.
4. After skiing for about 15 minutes, I spotted the pulka and relief washed over me, as it held all of my gasoline, my stove with kettles, and some of my food.
5. Lessons learned (luckily not the hard way): always secure the smaller pulka with an additional rope, and pack some backup gasoline in the larger pulka along with a backup stove.

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Sure! It’s my pleasure! But also just my opinion on things. Well I’ve been hiking like crazy for the past 13-15 years so I guess I’ve gained some experience along the way 🤣 I’d do it full time if someone would just pay me to do it 😅 and yes, north is my love as well!

@LyndaDelph@mastodon.social oh yeah! The bar called Rastigaisa!? I’ve been there many times. Though it’s not the only bar anymore as there’s now at least two hotel bars open. They also say that the arctic areas are warming the fastest so it’s not a miracle in that sense if it was the warmest 🤔

@elperronegro@shmg.online absolutely true! Though those trips might not be fun at the time 🤣

@micmol@photog.social dog sledding would require training and make things complicated as I’d need to take care of them, plan their food, prepare for injuries etc. also I would have to rent the dogs so it’s also a cost issue. Sure it would ease a lot of things too but by pulling my own gear I things are still a lot simpler. Pulling pulka is only heavy if there’s deep snow or going up hill otherwise the weight is not super important, of course there’s limit too how heavy an enjoyable it is.

@jonlord@mastodon.world I’ve thought about this too but it would only work in above tree level and most fjells in Finland you will find birches. This system would mean that i would have to avoid those areas and potentially make a lot of detours. So I think better way is to try to pack things lower on the pulka, it’s just difficult sometimes on longer hikes. But if I start to hike more in Norway or Sweden this might be option 🤔

The most demanding ski tour I’ve ever done was in April 2019 at Paistunturi Wilderness Area, Finland. Everything started well, but the weather took a quick turn, with temperatures rising well above freezing, causing the snow to melt rapidly. Our initial plan was to hike through the area and end up in Utsjoki, a small village just 100 km north of our starting location. However, we had to turn back midway through the tour as it seemed we would not have enough snow to ski on. We rushed back to our starting location in a frenzy, wading through melting snow and icy streams of water. It was the toughest hike, but at the same time, one of the best!

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All of those are good reasons! Skiing in deep snow also usually makes the pulka ride on the sidewall of the track and if you manage to pack the pulka top heavy it's very prone to falling over. I think on the occasion on the pic this is just what happened, though I'm following my old track here.

I hate when my pulkas fall over, especially when I’m hiking alone. I have to take off my backpack, unstrap my harness, remove my camera (which I usually carry ready to use), and ski to the pulkas to turn them over. It takes time, is annoying, and can be frustrating. Luckily, this time it happened on level ground, but it has occurred on slopes, making it not only more annoying but also potentially dangerous, with a risk of losing gear.

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Blue hues of Varangerhalvøya National Park during our two-week ski tour in 2024 to this isolated area in Norway.

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Resistance / La Resistenza

Today in Italy is "La Festa della Liberazione" / "Liberation Day". It commemorates the victory of the Italian Resistance Movement over Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy.
Let us remember and honour them and more importantly - continue their great work. As there is still *a lot* of work to do. Nobody is free until we're all free!
Buona 25 aprile! ✊🎉✨

#photography #amateurphotography #flowerfriday #camellia #blooms #spring #flowers #bloomscrolling #nature #urbangarden #25aprile #giornodellaliberazione #liberationday #red #dark #moody #artistic #graphic #natura #italia #italy #bologna #fiori #experiment #garden #dark #moody #art #fucknazis