delight, it began snowing again. Another wonderful day full of challenges and adventure was discussed as we enjoyed a cold glass of wine.
A reindeer farm experience began the next day where we rode in a sled pulled by a reindeer and explored an old house which once belonged to the early Finn immigrants who learned their survival skills from the original Sami people of the area. Then it was off to visit a local artist’ s home and gallery which he had built himself out of logs from the forest. It was an amazing mix of adjoining rooms with a huge open fireplace where he entertained us by singing accompanied by his zither, he was a very accomplished performer. Located on one level of the house was a heated swimming pool, another a fabulous dining room / gallery and up in the attic his art studio. His oil paintings of the surrounding countryside in all seasons and the self-portraits were just wonderful
With nervous excitement we began the next day with a 5 minute video of instructions on dog sledding followed by a basic hands on instruction from our guide Katerina. I wondered if I would remember everything!! When we stood on the rungs of the sled and held on grimly to the handles, our guide and dogs were ready to RUN!! We took off with Katerina in the lead then Joan and I each with our own dog team. Gradually we got the idea as we glided over swamps through forests and along snow covered roads, we began to relax and enjoy the experience. The dogs just love to run pulling effortlessly as we traversed the beautiful white countryside. Travelling uphill the dogs pulled at the same rate and to slow them down we had to use the brake to slow them down to negotiate through the forest. I felt very mean, trying to slow them down as I balanced with one leg on a rung of the sled and the other on the brake trying to negotiate a curve in the path through the forest. Quite challenging at first but we soon got the hang of it.
When we stopped for lunch we realised the tension we had had while holding on. Beside a tepee in the forest we lit a fire and cooked our lunch and we also fed the dogs their snack, soup and dog pellets, they had worked so hard.
Then we were off again and were much more relaxed this time remembering to lean and bend the knees and use the brake. The snow was deep and soft and sticky due to the late time in the season. It was really lovely gliding silently though the white wilderness, just magical.
Arriving at the wilderness hut the first chore was to unload the sleds then unharness the dogs and tether them for the night. They are lean dogs, just like a greyhound with fur, very