Swedish Lapland: Day 3

The 7 am morning sky appeared to "want to" clear. The sun was almost visible through the patchy cloud layer... then gone. Flurries took it place.

I was sleep deprived. An accumulative thing. Every day for the last 5 days, I have not met my sleep quota. One night was spent in economy class as we transited Canadian airspace, the next 3 have been in hotels - with late nights and early mornings.
It is getting increasing difficult to wake, rally and organize myself and it's definitely not good news for my appetite. And yet... I WILL find a way to eat pickled herring for breakfast again this morning!

Today's adventure is all about visiting with the Sami people of northern Sweden and spending time with their reindeer.  :-)  I waddled out to the shuttle bus, wearing almost everything I own, underneath the coveralls that Lights Over Lapland provides.

We had heard that the day would be cold and our adventure was mostly outdoors. Our driver laughed. He was wearing a cotton looking sweatshirt, cargo pants and sneakers. Half way through the 45 minute trip, he cracked a window. Clearly his bare hands on the steering wheel were getting too hot!

Snow was swirling across the road in front of us. Harsh and unforgiving, while magical at the same time.

Reindeer. A few of them were corralled in anticipation of our visit. A bit timid, but with doe eyes and cow-like noses, they are adorably cute quickly became friends. Mostly likely we had just "bought" their friendship with our handfuls of lichen! Whatever works.

And check out their amazing, snowshoe-like feet! Reminded me of a camel actually.

After catching one, harnessing it and convincing it to follow me, we were off on a walk through the woods together.  Our Sami guide had make a point to tell us that the reindeer is not taking us for a walk, we are taking it. Therefore, it should stay behind, not lead the way. Mine needed a bit of convincing who was in charge, then he fell into line.

At the end of the trail, we had what can only be described as the adventure of a lifetime. First of all, I found myself at the reins of a "one horse open sleigh" that was being pulled by a reindeer named Ferrari. So... Ferrari is a bit competitive and despite the couple in front of me getting a healthy head start, Ferrari bolted to catch up and tried to overtake them as we rounded a steep corner. The snowy trail is really only wide enough for one reindeer sleigh and I found myself using ALL of the precautionary tactics we had just learned. IE I was leaning over the side of the sleigh trying to keep it from throwing me out, much like you see during a yacht race!!! 45 degrees bank... Yeah, thats a steep turn!

Needless to say, my fellow tourists were somewhat afraid of being in the sleigh pulled by Ferrari after that and the Sami host/guide had to accompany a few of them. Pretty funny all in all. I enjoyed it immensely and would do it again. Ferrari was aptly named and I admired his passion for sleigh-pulling. When he was done, his tongue was hanging out and he was panting. Now THAT is 100% effort!

We also learned to lasso today. I made it to the "finals" in the impromptu lasso competition but was beaten by a German guy, who's prize was a sleigh ride back from this trail head to the teepee, where lunch was served.

Ok, I'm almost embarrassed to say this, but I confess we were served reindeer for lunch and I didn't give it a second thought. The Sami are wonderfully gentle folks. They eat reindeer that are old and limited in use. When their teeth wear down, a reindeer will starve so the Sami slaughter them first. It's practical and humane and the meat is not tough like you'd expect an older animal to be.

The Sami customs are ancient. They 'borrow' the land, rather than own it. They are grateful for a less complicated way of life and don't appear to be too bitter by the treatment that their people have received in years gone by, by the Swedish government. Like many native peoples, they have over time, suffered by being treated as lesser citizens; not able to go to public schools, trade freely etc. Today they are successfully blending the old life with new technology like GPS trackers on animals. They are free to marry outside the Sami people and also to work in whatever vocations suits them... Not everyone is meant to be a reindeer hearder and the Sami elders understand that.

Life as Sami is not easy and not getting any easier. This winter has been harsh. Snow came in September and has remained. That means the reindeer struggle to find food and the Sami have to care for them more than normal to make sure they survive the season. Wolverines and other predators (incl. eagles) are constantly killing reindeer and it is against the law to hunt the predators. In fact it's even against the law to carry your gun with you so even if you come upon a predator attacking your reindeer, there is little that can be done in the moment,

Our guide was a philosophical young man with a keen sense of humor and in his stories, there was evidence of trauma born out of this life or his inherited memories. I was really grateful for the chance to hear him speak, to learn about Sami culture and ways of life and to frolick with his reindeer.

There was a gentle wisdom in him, for instance when someone asked how many reindeer he owned this was his reply:
"Asking how many reindeer one Sami family owns is akin to asking how much money a person makes, in your culture. It's not considered polite conversation. What I can tell you is that there are 15 families in this area and between them all, they own about 8,000 reindeer."
I thought he beautifully handled the question and while he didn't answer it, he did give us an idea of how many reindeer are running around there as well as remind us that every culture has social conventions and etiquette... we are not so different.

Night 3 of Aurora hunting.
:-(  It didn't go the way that my undying optimism had convinced me it would. The sky wasn't immediately cloudy, but the openings were not big and judging by the fuzziness of the stars, there was a lot of humidity in the air. (Turns out about 76%)

We set up cameras in a wooded area and waited. The moon rose. The stars twinkled. Oliver took crazy portraits of us in the dark to pass the time. A good time was had by all, but for 4 of the 6 in our group, tonight was the final chance to view an Aurora before leaving from Kiruna tomorrow. There was some disappointment in Mother Nature, for sure.

Swedish Lapland: Day 2

I had this plan. Well, the optimistic, zealous Dallice, had the plan. She was going to set an alarm and wake up in the night to see if the sky had cleared and Miss Aurora was present.

Tired, (exhausted) Dallice had another plan though. From lights out to alarm ringing, she was dead to the world. If Aurora showed up, she never knew.

After a delightful breakfast that involved pickled herring and mixing and mingling with other international guests, it was time to get ready and go. Today, we hit Norway. The little port city of Narvik was our destination and there were just 5 people in the group/van. We stopped along the way to scare a few stray reindeer - I mean take their pictures. Also at the "border" between Sweden and Norway ... which is a non-event, in case you are interested.

In Narvik we had a wonderful lunch then hit the War (Peace) Museum.OMG, Im learning a lot about WWII in this area!!!

Norway had declared itself neutral at the start of the war. They were a country who had downsized their military for economic reasons and whether or not they morally took sides, they declared they would not physically aid either side.

Then the Germans attacked Norway and the English (without invitation) stepped in to "help" by planting mines in the water leading up the fjord to the harbor at Navrik.

War was on. The Allies came to the side of Norway and Norway defended itself too with its now ramped up military. There were apparently battles won and lost but then they were occupied by the Germans and capitulated.  If Im not mistaken, Finland, the Italians and Japan now fought alongside the Germans, who really actually wanted to not hurt Norway  - but definitely had their eyes on the Norwegians genes as key to enhancing their Aryan Race project and also wanted control of the iron ore, for steel making purposes. The plan being to "make room" further east of Germany for the master race to spread out and occupy. Of course, they felt the need to get rid of the people currently occupying that land first.

The Soviet Union got involved at some point to and had their own issues defending themselves and their land from the invading 1.5 million German soldiers! POW camps (about 300) littered the landscape of northern Norway and many POW Slavic people died in the area at the hands of torture and conditions of their containment.

The War Museum was really interesting from my point of view. Norway is still REALLY open minded. Trying to view and to teach their people that there are always two sides to the story and war is something that happens when opposing values collide. It's decidedly refreshing even if I can't help but pick sides. And let's face it, none of us are blameless in perceived conflict. One area of the museum features articles and interviews from people who have been captured and tortured during times of war. I left feeling sad and disillusioned but grateful for the chance to view the world from someone elses perspective. Is everyone torturing someone in their own way, for their own reasons, to this day?!! I thought we were better than this?! I thought we had learned from history and from each other.  We are not. We have not.   :-(

More Narvik photos:

On the way back from Narvik, we stopped on the pebbly beach of the fjord. Just enough time to crunch around on some snow, rocks and seaweed... to take in a more peaceful view of Norway.

I must have fallen asleep after that because before I knew it, we were back in Sweden and back at Abisko Tourist Station.

I blogged my thoughts and learned to manage my frustration at not getting my own way, instantly. Yes, I miss the high speed internet we have at home, every time I travel! One of these days I will stop taking it for granted.

And finally... What about that Aurora, eh? Did night #2 reveal anything more than night #1 in the Arctic Circle?

Sadly it did not. Although, I can say we had the best time getting a snowmobile-pulled sleigh ride about 15 mins into the wilderness to set up tripod on a frozen marsh. The sky cleared for about an hour and the full moon remained hidden behind a thick cloud. Conditions did seem perfect... but alas, no aurora to be seen. Instead I have to focus on the fact we had Martina with us tonight. Martina pulled our sleigh, made a fire in the warming tent and served us cinnamon rolls and hot lingonberry juice. Not too shabby!

As for the temp; It was darn well frigid! About -10 C, but with that wind, it felt like closer to -18. I wore about 4 layers, top and bottom each. My electric socks were ok, but I wish they could have been hotter as my tips of toes felt cold after the sleigh ride. The gloves were awesome. I had two neck gaiters on and was thankful and not sure what I would have done without the 3 hats!

Yep, I did good on the gear front! (And that might serve me well if I have to return to the Arctic Circle to give the Aurora Borealis a second chance to wow me.)

Swedish Lapland: Day 1

Let's start with some kudos for the journey north this morning.
Taxi -> Train -> Flight -> Shuttle van -> Dog sledding. All before 4 pm.

But eh.. the taxi driver was a dick this morning at 6am and I started the day all negative, bitter and sad. Even after a high speed train to the airport (and I do love trains) and a super friendly Swedish TSA agent, I had trouble putting a smile on my face.

Honestly, travelling during the Coronavirus, I expected cancellations, spare seats on planes and some fear/precautionary behavior. What I didn't think about was change to the interactive aspect of travel. Normally as a single person, I'm accosted by strangers almost immediately. This time around, it has been a bit lonely. One side effect of not wanting to be contaminated is that people are engaging in less spontaneous conversation. I'm a chatty person, so I'd be lying if I said this part has been fun for me.

Getting to Abisko National Park...

So at the airport today, I noticed I was one of about 3 women at my gate. The other 150? Men in their 30s and 40's. Naturally I was curious and because it's Monday morning, I had to assume they were going to work up there.

A quick Google search and I had the answer - I think.

Kiruna is home to the world's largest and most modern underground iron ore mine. The ore body is 4km long, 80m wide and up to 120km thick. It reaches depths of up to 2km.  I also discovered that in 2007 it was agreed the town had to be relocated 3km to the north because of mining related subsidence.  The relocation is taking place over the course of decades and will likely be finished around 2040... and will take with it, about 21 of the most significant buildings from the original Kiruna.

I am also finding during this trip that Sweden has a long history defending itself. During WWII both the Allies and the Third Reich were keen to control the mine district as it played an important economic role. German occupation of Denmark and Norway were to a large extent, motivated by the wish to deny their enemies the iron that was critical for wartime production of steel.

Kiruna. Landing here was an eye opener. Imagine "Ice Road Truckers" and you'll understand the nature of the geography. Rolling hills with trees - mainly birch, some pine, all snowy. 3000' mountains that provide opportunity for winter activities. White roads, white, flat, desolate expanses that were watery lakes in the summer. Lots of snow plowing, piling and transporting equipment lined up at the airport. A small town feel but with a hardy, industrious population.

My ride to Abisko National Park had been prearranged and it wasn't long before I was sharing a shuttle bus with 3 Scandinavian gals - falling asleep as they chattered.

I had time to check in, get oriented and have lunch before being picked up for dog sledding. My first Lapland adventure!

The dogs are amazing. They howl and whine with anticipation of pulling our sled. Occasionally biting at and jumping on each other, despite being firmly fixed to the "line" in front of the sled. I found the whole experience to be nothing short of delightful. The sled glided over fresh snow, quietly and smoothly. We stopped occasionally to let the dogs cool down (it was 32 degrees, which is at least 20 degrees warmer than is good for them) and during those moments, seized the chance to cuddle up with them, pet them, take selfies and generally lavish them with praise. They don't get treats, but our Danish guide assured us their "treats" are attention and kind words and that is how they stay motivated.

There was a little tea/coffee break in a teepee, complete with cinnamon roll and then we were off again!

I was beat. The last 3 days taking a toll on me.  But there was just going to be 2 hours until dinner with "the group" - 6 of us booked with Lights Over Lapland for the next 3 days. Then a short photography lesson and intro to the gear we would be issued, before heading out to spot the Aurora.

Patchy clouds! WTH?
Ok, so tonight was not the best Aurora spotting that ever existed. We didn't see nothing, but it was a bit of a lame turnout from the sky, if I do say so myself. In fact the very best Aurora sightings were from the van as we flew along the icy road at almost midnight... when the cameras were all stowed in the luggage department!

But for you... my best efforts (my first efforts) at photographing the Aurora Borealis:

What an amazing place Swedish Lapland is turning out to be. Im still in awe that today I accomplished so much... flying here, dog sledding, Aurora hunting and moose viewing, to name but a handful.

Can't wait til tomorrow!