Heya there. I am knackered. Today’s been one hell of a ride and I’m enjoying every second of rest.
The first night alone in the tent I have to say that one sleeps considerably better if not crammed together to the point where the edge of the tent touches my nose. Even with the good night of sleep the day started off on a bit of a low note due to the weather report. When I went to bed it told me that the next couple of days I’m going to have good (be it way too warm) weather. When I checked it again after waking up it said I was going to be in an intense thunderstorm from noon until almost midnight. Not necessarily exciting news when you just woke up – especially when you’re still not quite sure on how to get the tent up dry when it’s pouring buckets. A bit hurried and worried I broke down camp, ate breakfast and headed towards a camping site in Säräisniemi, halfway to Oulu. I knew it would be a rough ride as I was expecting long stretches of unpaved road. Well and that’s exactly what I got. Out of the 116km I did today around 80 were on very tough terrain combined with non stop climbs and descents. Together with the heat I started to feel my limits, especially as water was getting dangerously low and hard to come by. It is definitely slowly becoming more tangible that I’m heading north enough for civilization to become really scarce. Luckily Vuolijoki came to the rescue just in time marking the end of unpaved roads as well as being the oasis I needed so very much. A nice and comfy lunch break later and stocked up in water I went on to tackle the remaining 40km. That’s a good place to talk about the scenery. I almost feel blasphemous saying this but I really was quite bored with it today. Don’t get me wrong, the sheer endless forests – that sheer wilderness and the little opening revealing a hint of lake are gorgeous. But it’s been a lot of the same now lately and especially this last stretch dragged on forever. The road just a straight line, the scenery never changing, the kilometers seemed to just not go past.
All of the sweat and effort were well worth it in the end though. I arrived on a huge camp ground, basically a whole forest where you could park your camper or set up your tent with a beach nearside. And it was exactly that beach I went to after showering and setting up tent. There, rewarded with a breathtaking view I relaxed my aching legs and just enjoyed life and the moment. Eventually I went for a dip in the lake as well but the water was this freezing I couldn’t get to dip past my waist line. Non the less the refreshment and escape from the blazing heat were very welcome.
This already leaves me at the moment of writing. There isn’t much to say – time is flying by and I’m very surprised and excited by how fast the milestones are coming at me. Oulu is already the next goal for tomorrow.
Thanks for reading – I’ll see you tomorrow.
- Route: Iisalmi – Vuolijoki – Säräisniemi
- Distance covered: 116.06km
- Total Distance covered: 1440.96
Raphael's Travel Blog 