2019-10-01 Wanderlust

wanderlust.co.ukOctober 2019 25

FINNISH LAPLAND EXPLORE

Takingagreatshotofthenorthernlightsishighonany

traveller’sto-dolist.Buthowdoyougetit?Escapethe

lightpollutionofthecities,equipyourselfwithacamera

andtripodandheadnorthtomountainousSaaris

elkäorLakeInari,whereyou’llindgreatvantage

pointsandopportunitiestosnapthecolourful

relectionoftheshiftinglightsonthewater.

HuntthemdownbysigninguptotheFinnish

MeteorologicalInstitute’saurorasNow!website

(aurorasnow.fmi.i)fore-mailsonwhenthemagnetic

conditionsoftheFinnishskiesareattheirbest.Butif

you’restillnotsureaboutheadingoutsolo,bookyourself

ontoaphotoexpeditionwithprofessionalaurorahunters

andlearntheirsecretstocapturingthegreenlights–and

hopefullygettheshotsofalifetime.

Getthere

Finnairliesfrom

LondonHeathrowto

RovaniemiviaHelsinki

fromaround£216

return;theshortest

journeystake

approximately

ive hours.

200,000

Thenumberofreindeer

inLapland–they

vastlyoutnumberthe

humanpopulation

(180,000).Perhapsit’s

notsurprisingthenthat

reindeerdominates

theFinnishmenu.

500,000

Roughlytheamount

ofletterssentto

Rovaniemi’spostoice

(locatedneartoalog

cabinwhose irstguest

wasformerFirstLady

EleanorRoosevelt)for

theattentionofSanta.

Elvesworkaroundthe

clocktosorttheseout.

1945

TheyearFinnish

architectAlvarAalto

startedtoreconstruct

Rovaniemiafterit

wasdestroyedduring

theSecondWorldWar.

Lookatastreetgridand

seehowareindeer’s

headstartstotakeform!

8

SECRET^5

6

ORANKI ART PARK

Originally designed as a secret
outdoor exhibition, Oranki Art park
is full of sculptures and faces
carved into trees. They may evoke
a Game of Thrones episode, but
with the art at the mercy of the wilds,
you never know what you’ll see.

7

WILDLIFEWONDERLAND

Get acquaintedwithallsortsof

Arctic animalsatRanuaWildlife

Park. Arcticfoxes,wolverinesand

lynx all roamhere–andtheonly

polar bearslivinginFinland,too.

Bring a torch–theparkstaysdark

for the wellbeingofthewildlife.

THE NUMBERS

Shine a little lightonthebestsecretsnaturehastooer

IF YOUONLYDOTHREETHINGS

BERRY GOOD

Until October, keen foragers can

…ind juicy berries and mushrooms

studding golden Lappish forest

…loors. Join a guided walk to

make sure you’re picking the

right ones, then eat or cook

them. Get your basket ready!

WHOLENEWWORLD

PICTURE PERFECT