Hitchhiking through Lapland

Hello peeps!

Yesterday morning I arrived in Helsinki on my first ever hitchhiking trip and I want to share my experiences with you. Long story short: it was an awesome adventure! But I want to write a long story, because plenty of things worth mentioning happened on the way...

I spent the whole summer on a beautiful Senja island in Northern Norway in a fishing camp. Autumn was approaching and locals started to ask me how was I going to get back to Helsinki. Even though Senja is pretty much on the edge of the map it is well connected to the rest of the world by air-traffic. But how much of an adventure is it to travel by plane? Not much, rigt? Well, unless you are flying on an old Cessna with a bunch of Columbian smugglers. I did not have such an opportunity, so I started to ponder about my options. And then I thought about hitchhiking. The more I thought about it the more it seemed like a great idea. It literally took over me! 

I spent coupla days gazing at the map of Norway trying to work out the best route: for a short while I considered hitchhiking through the whole Norway all the way to Oslo, but quickly dismissed that idea because it was a very long route for the first trip. Then I thought about crossing a border with Finland around Kilpisjarvi. Spending four winters in Finnish Lapland gave me extra confidence points and I chose that option. So next time I was asked about my travel arrangements conversation went something like this:

-Man, how are you going to get to Helsinki?

-Just give me a ride to the border and I will hitchike from there.

-Are you sure?

-Yeah! Lapland is my hood. I know people. I'll be just fine.

One morning my local friend was driving to Tromso airport and offered me a ride to the border on his way back to Senja. It was a bit of a detour for him, so I really appreciate the gesture. My ETA to Kilpisjarvi was around 6 p.m. which gave me coupla hours before the dark, so I could try my luck catching a ride from there right away. Schedules and plans are good to have, but very often things don't go as we expect and there are surprises on the way. On our way to the border we realized that car's headlights died. Both at the same time. What were the chances, right? We had to make a stop to fix that and lost about 1,5 hours.

Back in my hoods.

We ended up arriving in Kilpisjarvi a bit after 9 p.m. It was pitch dark and quite nippy. Anyways, I was at my destination and it was time to say goodbye to my friend who left back to Norway right away. There I was on a campsite deciding where to pitch a tent. Reception was still open, so I went to ask a few questions.

There were two local girls taking care of the place. First thing that hit me was the Lappish dialect. After being away from Finland for almost half a year it sounded like music to my ears:) Anyways, it was then that I realized that we confused Kilpisjarvi holiday center with Kilpsijarvi village and stopped 5 km sooner than it was needed. The girls told me that I could pitch my tent there, but I had to pay. I found that idea very silly, considering how much of an open space there is in Lapland. I took a moment to consider what my options were. I came back to the reception to ask where was the nearest open hut with firewood I could use. A hut was few kilometers down the road, so I asked them if they could give me a lift there. They were my closest friends in Kilpisjarvi after all. One of them said that she could do that after she closed the shop.

I put my backpack in her car and off we went to search for a hut. That was one brave girl, letting a complete stranger in her car and driving through Lapland shrubs in complete darkness searching for a hut... We did not find a hut, so she took me to a parking spot by the Kilpisjarvi lake, where caravans stopped over night. At some point I felt like she was not sure if I was going to leave a warm car and stay there, so I had to tell her that there was nothing for her to worry about. But I can tell you that it is very difficult psychologically to step out of a car into the dark and stay there:) I asked her to wait a little bit, so I could pitch a tent using her car lights for illumination. In the morning I saw that it was inside-out anyway. Before leaving she offered me an apple. Thank you Tanja for your help!

It was only in the morning that I realized that my tent was inside out. Happens.

The temperature was 1 or 2 degrees on the plus side, which was a borderline of my sleeping bag comfort-zone, so I had to put my thermo on. On top of it I put a shirt and a woolen sweater that my mom knitted for me. It felt pretty snug in the end. I used my backpack as a pillow and also to keep my head above the ground where the coldest air was. Believe it or not I had a good night sleep and even saw some dreams. About adventures, of course.

My morning view

#nomakeup

I woke up around 6.30 a.m. with a great view over the Kilpisjarvi lake. I had a can of beans for breakfast and started to pack. I wanted to hit the road as soon as possible to increase my chances of getting a ride. I also hoped that some of those caravans were going South and I could get a ride with them, but all them were on their way to Norway. There were not so many cars at that hour, so I decided to hike a little bit and try to stop a car on the way. Most of the cars in that area were hickers coming back from their trips and were full with their own gear, so there was no space for me. Before the trip I read on the Internet that getting a ride from Kilpisjarvi is difficult. It was true. I had to find it out the hard way.

Saana tunturi on the horizon.

If I had to choose what mountain I'd like to be I know that I would not choose Saana. A lonely orphan left behind by its Norwegian sisters and shaved by a glacier. Forgotten by people going to Norway once they cross the border, not noticed by those coming from Norway. I find it charming though.

After hiking for a few kilometers I stopped to rest a little. I was very frustrated with the whole hitchiking idea. To lift my spirit I ate a couple of handfulls of lingonberries that grew in abundance along the road. Then I decided to double check on the Internet whether those were lingonberries at all. They were. I waited for another hour, munching on lingonberries, but still no luck with getting a lift. Standing on one spot is very frustrating and sort of puts you in a position where you have no control over it, so I decided to continue my hike. I accepted the situation and was very determined to hike as far as I could. I knew that eventually someone will stop. Out of the pity at least.

There is something magic about Lapland

As I walked I entertained myself with singing and making up funny nicknames to the drivers who did not stop to pick me up. Vivid Lappish scenery was breathtaking. I heard leaves falling of the trees. Those are mostly small things that can make your day after all. Every now and then I was turning around to look whether there was a car coming, because in the wind it was hard to hear them approaching, even trucks. Can you imagine a 60 tonn truck sneak up on you and hasten by with a loud roar "Hazaaaaaarghhhfrrrrrr"? Not much fun. I saw a loaded cyclist catching up with me. He was also going to Helsinki. We wished each other safe travels. Road brotherhood.

Then I saw a couple of trucks coming. They just whirled by, without even looking at me, but I had a strong feeling that I knew one of the drivers from my Lapland times. I texted him to check if I was right. Shortly after that as I was climbing uphill along the road one car stopped!!! I told the driver that I was going South. He told me that he could take me to Karesuvaanto which was about 100 kilometers down the road. I was not in a position to be picky, so I hopped on.

There I was taking my first ride! About 10 km down the road we passed that cyclist guy. I waved at him with a dumbest grin possible:) Driver's name was Esa. He was going to his cabin to empty a water tank for the winter, so it didn't explode because of cold. To get there he needed to go 13 km up the river, that's why he had a motorboat with him.We had a nice conversation about Lapland's beautiful scenery. When he found out that I was originally from Ukraine he asked about my opinion about Putin. I dodged the question and we continued talking about Lapland.

Eventually we caught up with the trucks that passed me earlier. I was right! My friend was driving it! I texted him again and he replied that he was on his way to Kittila. Esa suggested me asking for a ride from the guy, bacause a truck going to Kittila had to go through Muonio, which was even more South and closer to Helsinki. Esa dropped me on a gas station, where I waited for my friend to pick me up. There was another hitchhiker standing 50 meters down the road. You should have seen his face when he saw me hop on a truck after waiting for only five minutes!

Me in a truck with a friend. Pictured is blured as requested.

I was so happy to see my friend! Just think how slim were the chances to bump into each other like that! It was my first ride on a truck ever. Truck is one impressive piece of machinery! Many people think that driving a truck is an easy job. It's not. The truck drivers have to stay alert all the time, driving those monster machines that can weigh as heavy as 120 tonn. Now think when was the last time you were texting while driving, because those guys don't have such luxury. As a matter of fact, neither do you, but that's a different story.

Finally my trip started to feel smooth and I was moving towards Helsinki pretty fast. Faster than walking anyway. And faster than that cyclist guy:) My friend dropped me on a gas station in Muonio. There I had to wait for 20 minutes tops until I got another ride. It was a school teacher bringing her student home. They took me to Kolari, from where I could take a train to Helsinki...the next morning. Staying there over night was out of question, so I decided to move on. Besides, hitchhiking became a lot easier once I got further South.

I waited for half an hour until a mini-van stopped to pick me up. It was Timo driving to Oulu, which was great news for me. Timo was driving from Levi, where he did some repairs in his cabin. I spent four winters in Levi, so needless to say we had a common ground right away. I told him about my fishing adventures in Norway. We talked a lot about football and what not. Timo works in an investment company, so we shared some stories about getting gray hair after buying shares at wrong time. He also runs a small brewery as a hobby/side project. Timo told me where in Helsinki I can taste their ber. I promised him to take a picture of it for my Instagram. We were approaching Kemi as I asked him:

-Hey, Timo, do you use snuss?

-Yeah, sometimes. Why?

-Wanna make a small detour in Kemi and go to Sweden to get some?

-Sure! Let's do it!

So we went across the bridge from Kemi to Haparanda to buy snuss. It's pretty amazing to see two cities from different countries to be so close to each other.

It started to rain, so Timo suggested me checking the trains going from Oulu. It seemed like a great idea considering the weather and the fact that I've already crossed half of the country and the most difficult part of the trip was done already anyway. I decided to push my luck no further and bought a train ticket to Helsinki. Timo dropped me in front of the railway station and we parted our ways. Great guy!

It felt great to get on a train, knowing that the next morning I'd be in Helsinki. I already had a key for a friend's place waiting at another friend's place. Right upon arrival I went to pick it up. By a funny coincidence (or is there such a thing as coincidence at all??) it was the flat I started my five months trip from. Everything ends where it began....

Back in Helsinki. It's been a while.

I had an amazing trip and it was a fantastic adventure and a great learning experience. My love to Lapland and its people only grew stronger. While walking along the road I had a few ideas open to me. Here's what I learned:

• It's good to have some sort of plan. But don't plan too much, because there so many unknowns in this equation that forseeing everything is impossible. Things will go their own way, so the less you plan the less is frustration. Be ready to go with a flow.
• People don't have to pick you up. They owe you nothing. The sooner you accept this idea the better.
• Hiking along the road is a better option than just standing on one spot. First of all slowly but surely you are getting closer to your destination. It also keeps you warm and distracts you from sad thoughts. 
• Enjoy the moment. Enjoy the nature around. Listen to leaves fall and wind blow. Eat lingonberry, because it is tasty. First make sure you know how it looks though.
• Talk to people. Ask for help. Be ready to help.
• Travelling doesn't have to be expensive. You can cross half of the country for a cup of coffe and have a great company on the way.
• World is not as big as it seems. But it is big enough for you to find your place.

Thank you for reading! Like this story, share it. It just might inspire someone to go on their wildest adventure!