110 wanderlust.co.uk April 2020my lucky stars for the handiness
ofawell-stocked fridge.Holy smoke
Despite the weather I set off bound
for Helsinki via the coastal cycle route
around Espoo. Here the path winds
along the waterfront properties while
the cables on sailboats chimed in the
wind and the tree-lined islands
appeared like smoky mirages
somewhere in the distance.
That evening I wandered along
the waterfront to end the day in
a classically Finnish way – at Löyly –
a communal sauna. Housed in
wooden planks resembling
a giant shed and adjacent to the
ocean, its name comes from the
Finnish word for the steam that
plumes up off the rocks when you
douse them with hot water.
“In Finland there are just over
5 million people yet around
2-3 million saunas,” said local guide
Jaana. “They are very important for
us as a way to socialise and relax.”
Inside there was a choice of two –
the continuously heated one, with
bright lights and light pine benches
and the more traditional smoke
sauna, which Jaana advised me tocome into. Housed in a darkened
room it has no chimney so smoke is
trapped inside as the fire heats up
and then released immediately prior
to the sauna-goers entering. Its
distinct smell of earthy smoke
reminded me of the forest.
“Ready?” asked Jaana as we left the
humid room and she grabbed my
hand so that I would jump into the
chilling sea water for an instant cool
down. I felt adrenaline surge through
my entire body as though I’d been
awoken from my dream with a jolt.
“See – even in the city of Helsinki we
are wild,” she said and, although
I smiled, I knew that the following day,
things were about to get wilder still.Into bear country
A one and a half hour flight north to
Kajaani saw me headed to my next
destination – the Lakeland region
and, more specifically, the Bear
Centre. A little-known fact is that
Finland is home to a population of
Eurasian brown bears with figures
from 2019 confirming a population
just over 2,000. Despite bear hunting
still being permitted each year and
the vulnerability they face every
time they cross into neighbouring‘I’d read about Canada’s spirit
bears before but I’d never heard
of their European cousins’
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