SUP Adventures in Finland
Long Way Down
Hammerfest and Helsinki might be virtual neighbours in the great dictionary of place names, but they are a long, long way apart in the geographical world; three days apart.
It was a protracted drive back down through Norway and Finland to reach Helsinki. Three days to cover 1500 km. Wild camping in a small parking area beside the main road on the first night and by a railway line the next.
That’s why I was delighted to find this picturesque lake on Day 2, close to the city of Jyväskylä, for a short, unplanned and impromptu sunset SUP.
The unplanned paddles are often the best ones.
Generally, I enjoy driving, but three straight days was enough for me. I was delighted to reach Helsinki and to park up close to Toolo Bay. First of all, I needed to eat so I grabbed some snacks and climbed a small hill next to the park, hoping for a picturesque view over the Finnish capital. The view over Helsinki was OK, but I was disappointed by how much litter there was strewn over my viewpoint. I always had the impression that the Scandinavian countries would be impeccably clean.
I was further surprised to be visited by a young man with long hair, a straggly beard and a generally unkempt look. He was drinking from a can of super lager, and after I declined his kind offer of a sip, he asked me if I had any spare Euros. I didn’t.
I was surprised to find myself accosted by a drunk, but I know that most large cities worldwide have areas that are littered and frequented by alcoholics and tramps. I certainly won’t hold it against this otherwise beautiful country.
SUP Finland had kindly offered me their jetty to launch from, and I spent a lovely couple of hours paddling Toolo Bay, and then under a railway bridge and down through the harbour system. I stopped on a small island for a breather and then headed back to the city.
Stand-up Paddleboarding in Helsinki.
Once again, I was plagued by the thought that I was hurtling through all these wonderful places at a million miles an hour yet never taking the time to experience them properly or in any meaningful way. I knew there was so much more to Helsinki than an urban SUP and drunken beggar. I had time to spare before my evening ferry to Estonia. But where should I explore? When you are in a major city in Europe, with time for one attraction only, surely it’s got to be the cathedral. And that’s where I headed.
Helsinki Cathedral is a striking white building standing on a plaza slightly raised from the surrounding streets and well worth an hour of anyone’s time.
But then it was time. I could hear Estonia calling. Just one quick coffee and cake and then the ferry.
Finland is known as ‘The Land of a Thousand Lakes’, although it actually has more that 187,000 of them. I would love to return to explore this magical country further.
