Travel days (Kiruna, Sweden to Oulu, Finnland) and Oulu, Finnland
When my bus arrived in Kiruna, Sweden on Monday (17 July) afternoon I was bummed to discover that both hostels were full. On the bus ride I met a student/guy from Portland who had just been up studying glaciers for a week at one of the other huts. He had hiked up to the summit of Kebnekaise the afternoon/evening of my rest day! That made my not summiting (or even attempting) even worse. Small world - he posts on cc.com and turns-all-year...... So me and the guy from Portland went to the Kiruna camp ground which luckily was very close to the last hostel. We camped amongst the RVs and mosquitoes. At least it wasn't raining there and the weather was clear and cold. I later learned it got down to 3 degrees C that evening. That is cold for July I think!
I knew next day, Tuesday (18 July), would be strictly a travel day but I was still looking forward to moving on. I woke up early to catch the 7:40 am train back to Abisko to pick up the stuff I left there. For some reason the train never came. Someone else waiting for the train called the train station (no one working there at the time) and they told her there had been a bus that came by instead that morning because no train was available. I had seen a bus pull up and a bunch of people get on, but no one came to the platform to tell me anything. So I had 3 hours to burn in Kiruna before the next train to Abisko. Finally I caught the train to Abisko, picked up my stuff, caught the next train 30 minutes later out of Abisko, back through Kiruna, and on to Luleå, Sweden. Then I had about 10 minutes in Luleå to find the bus station and catch my next bus, which I did.
The bus stopped at Haparanda, Sweden which is right on the border with Finland at the head of the Guld of Bothnia. Across the river-border is the town of Tornio, Finland. These two towns basically function as one. For some reason no buses or trains cross the border here so you have to make all these connections, a real pain in the ass. I wondered around the streets of Haparanda for several hours checking all the hostels - all full - and the campground - closed. Hmm. This was an interesting, and familiar, situation.
So I wandered around town with my heavy pack on until about 11 pm. I kept looking for a nice spot in the park along the river to discretely spend the night, but the mosquitoes were too bad to sleep without a tent (and I thought setting up my tent in a park wouldn't look so good). Not sure what to do, I walked across the border to Tornio and found the bus station where I needed to catch a bus the next morning. Unfortunately my bus into Hapranda arrived about 1 hour too late for me to catch the last bus out of Tornio. As I walked around the back of the Tornio bus station I saw a group of tired looking people with backpacks strewn about. Other travels waiting for the bus! That was a welcome site, as it meant I would have company for the night. They offered me the open bench next to theirs. There were 2 girls from Germany, Nina and Lucy, and 2 guys from Germany, Henrich and Jens (different groups). All 4 were 18 years old or younger! We had a good time passing the hours between talking about our trips and sleeping on the benches. Finally at 4:45 am we all boarded our bus.
The 25 km bus ride on Wednesday (19 July) morning took over an hour! We were dropped off at the train station in Kemi, Finnland. The two German guys were heading north, while the two German girls and myself were heading south to Oulu, Finnland. The guys caught their train soon after we arrived in Kemi, while we caught our train to Oulu a couple hours later. After an hour on the train we arrived very tired at the Oulu train station. We slept at the Kemi train station and on the train, being so tired from the previous night's lack of sleep. Then we had to walk 2 miles to the camp ground as Oulu doesn't have any hostels. After the sour experience I had at the Kiruna campground, I wasn't looking forward to this one, but I was pleasantly surprised. Although it was very crowded, the weather was fantastic and the campground was clean and nice. We set up our tents and had the entire day to relax in the sunshine. We passed the time between laying in the grass and walking around the campground and nearby beach. Later in the afternoon we decided it was warm enough for a swim in the Gulf of Bothnia. It really wasn't warm enough (we were the only ones on the beach) but we endured the cold anyhow. We were surprised to discover the water wasn't salty. Must be because of the river that drains near Oulu. It was a fine day and evening and I was happy to have some company after many days hiking alone. It started to rain that evening but we were so tired from the night before we had no problem going to sleep early.
Thursday (20 July) I planned to spend the day exploring Oulu. I woke up to clear skies, a welcomed surprise after rain all night. The German girls were headed to Helsinki on the night train that evening so we parted ways when I walked to town. It was a great day in Oulu. I first went to the library to use the internet, then to explore a little market and street festival. I stopped by the train station and then just wandered through the town. This city has a great vibe. Lots of people out and about walking and riding bikes and great weather. Craving a nice big, healthy meal after nearly a week eating dehydrated meals, I found just what I was looking for at the street market. It was the best meal I'd had in a while. More exploring and finally a stop at the grocery store for dinner before walking the 2 miles back to the campground. When I arrived back at the campground I was surprised to see the 2 German guys camped right near me on the other side of my tent from were the German girls had been camped the previous night! Great more company! So we chatted while I cooked and ate my dinner and they brought me a beer, a kind and friendly gesture.
Since the hostel in the next town I wanted to go to, Kuopio, Finnland, was full for Friday night, I decided to spend another day and night in Oulu. So today, Friday (21 July), I woke up and rented a bike. It rained again last night but once again it was clear when I woke up this morning. It was perfect weather for a bike ride. The German guys were staying another night too, so again I would have company, which is often a concern of mine when camping alone. Camping alone is not a good way to meet other travelers.
Now that I'm finally up to date on my blog I can continue my bike ride! I think the 3 of us will go to Kuopio, Finnland tomorrow and then to Helsinki the following day.
I knew next day, Tuesday (18 July), would be strictly a travel day but I was still looking forward to moving on. I woke up early to catch the 7:40 am train back to Abisko to pick up the stuff I left there. For some reason the train never came. Someone else waiting for the train called the train station (no one working there at the time) and they told her there had been a bus that came by instead that morning because no train was available. I had seen a bus pull up and a bunch of people get on, but no one came to the platform to tell me anything. So I had 3 hours to burn in Kiruna before the next train to Abisko. Finally I caught the train to Abisko, picked up my stuff, caught the next train 30 minutes later out of Abisko, back through Kiruna, and on to Luleå, Sweden. Then I had about 10 minutes in Luleå to find the bus station and catch my next bus, which I did.
The bus stopped at Haparanda, Sweden which is right on the border with Finland at the head of the Guld of Bothnia. Across the river-border is the town of Tornio, Finland. These two towns basically function as one. For some reason no buses or trains cross the border here so you have to make all these connections, a real pain in the ass. I wondered around the streets of Haparanda for several hours checking all the hostels - all full - and the campground - closed. Hmm. This was an interesting, and familiar, situation.
So I wandered around town with my heavy pack on until about 11 pm. I kept looking for a nice spot in the park along the river to discretely spend the night, but the mosquitoes were too bad to sleep without a tent (and I thought setting up my tent in a park wouldn't look so good). Not sure what to do, I walked across the border to Tornio and found the bus station where I needed to catch a bus the next morning. Unfortunately my bus into Hapranda arrived about 1 hour too late for me to catch the last bus out of Tornio. As I walked around the back of the Tornio bus station I saw a group of tired looking people with backpacks strewn about. Other travels waiting for the bus! That was a welcome site, as it meant I would have company for the night. They offered me the open bench next to theirs. There were 2 girls from Germany, Nina and Lucy, and 2 guys from Germany, Henrich and Jens (different groups). All 4 were 18 years old or younger! We had a good time passing the hours between talking about our trips and sleeping on the benches. Finally at 4:45 am we all boarded our bus.
The 25 km bus ride on Wednesday (19 July) morning took over an hour! We were dropped off at the train station in Kemi, Finnland. The two German guys were heading north, while the two German girls and myself were heading south to Oulu, Finnland. The guys caught their train soon after we arrived in Kemi, while we caught our train to Oulu a couple hours later. After an hour on the train we arrived very tired at the Oulu train station. We slept at the Kemi train station and on the train, being so tired from the previous night's lack of sleep. Then we had to walk 2 miles to the camp ground as Oulu doesn't have any hostels. After the sour experience I had at the Kiruna campground, I wasn't looking forward to this one, but I was pleasantly surprised. Although it was very crowded, the weather was fantastic and the campground was clean and nice. We set up our tents and had the entire day to relax in the sunshine. We passed the time between laying in the grass and walking around the campground and nearby beach. Later in the afternoon we decided it was warm enough for a swim in the Gulf of Bothnia. It really wasn't warm enough (we were the only ones on the beach) but we endured the cold anyhow. We were surprised to discover the water wasn't salty. Must be because of the river that drains near Oulu. It was a fine day and evening and I was happy to have some company after many days hiking alone. It started to rain that evening but we were so tired from the night before we had no problem going to sleep early.
Thursday (20 July) I planned to spend the day exploring Oulu. I woke up to clear skies, a welcomed surprise after rain all night. The German girls were headed to Helsinki on the night train that evening so we parted ways when I walked to town. It was a great day in Oulu. I first went to the library to use the internet, then to explore a little market and street festival. I stopped by the train station and then just wandered through the town. This city has a great vibe. Lots of people out and about walking and riding bikes and great weather. Craving a nice big, healthy meal after nearly a week eating dehydrated meals, I found just what I was looking for at the street market. It was the best meal I'd had in a while. More exploring and finally a stop at the grocery store for dinner before walking the 2 miles back to the campground. When I arrived back at the campground I was surprised to see the 2 German guys camped right near me on the other side of my tent from were the German girls had been camped the previous night! Great more company! So we chatted while I cooked and ate my dinner and they brought me a beer, a kind and friendly gesture.
Since the hostel in the next town I wanted to go to, Kuopio, Finnland, was full for Friday night, I decided to spend another day and night in Oulu. So today, Friday (21 July), I woke up and rented a bike. It rained again last night but once again it was clear when I woke up this morning. It was perfect weather for a bike ride. The German guys were staying another night too, so again I would have company, which is often a concern of mine when camping alone. Camping alone is not a good way to meet other travelers.
Now that I'm finally up to date on my blog I can continue my bike ride! I think the 3 of us will go to Kuopio, Finnland tomorrow and then to Helsinki the following day.
posted by Dustin at 8:24 AM
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