Tunturiaapa Bogland – Finland Part: 1 of 4
n Winter the Tunturiaapa bogland (or swamp) in Northern Finland undergoes a magical transformation. The ground which would usually threaten to absorb one’s legs into the landscape freezes solid, and in the coming months snow masses on top concealing all below. It creates a magical world for photography, isolating trees and creating a moody atmosphere.
Mieke and I decided to venture to Finland from Norway by car in February for about about a week. We were in search of crown-loaded trees (rime ice, or ‘tykky’ to the local Finnish people) and potentially some minimalist winter landscapes.
Already acclimatised and having driven on the ice and snow for weeks already we found the roads in Finland to be well maintained. There were only a few hairy moments, particularly some bends at the border with Norway that had claimed other drivers and pushed them off the winding road. I was surprised in my research to learn that the amount of snow, on paper at least, isn’t particularly extreme – a modest 49cm. The local ski resorts estimate a base of 50-100cm of snow during their peak seasons. When snowshoeing in these conditions it feels like a heck of a lot more! It’s easy to step in the wrong spot and end up waist deep unless you are careful.
I must give a shout out to photographer George Wheelhouse who blogged about his journey into this area in 2017. Seeing his beautiful photographs gave us the confidence that even if that tykky did not manifest (it requires specific conditions for the ice to form on the trees) that we would still find plenty to capture.
We stayed in the Ski Village at Pyhä, at Ski-Inn Kultakero due to its ease of access to food, snow-shoe hire, and a ski-lift so we could snow shoe at the top of Pyhätunturi (the trails anyhow). The walk through Tunturiaapa begins at the Visitor Centre Naava which is at the base of the hill on the way to the ski resort.
They say there’s no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing, and this is largely true. Rugged up with good gloves and shoes, we were quite warm despite the temperatures of around -20c. In fact with this kind of walking, it’s important to be able to remove layers or open up your clothing to prevent sweat which can freeze to you.
The walk begins in thicker forest but opens up into the swampland area. There are photographs to be seen in every direction, showing the grander landscape as well as minimal intimate scenes. From a photographic perspective I am making these blogs to show a bit more of what I see in these places that won’t make it into any folios, projects or into our selection for the gallery – but images that I still enjoy.
Here are some of the images from Tunturiaapa, and the writing will continue below.
I’d love to make more available as prints, but the gallery already has about 700 artworks on offer! I also feel that Tunturiaapa would be amazing as a project documenting the area in each of the seasons, but that isn’t my story to tell (I also can’t afford to!).
As this is the first of 4 parts showcasing some of Finland’s beautiful Northern landscapes, below are some images taken from near the accommodation itself in the Ski area. As a former Queenslander I have little talent for skiing but it would be an amazing place to combine both winter sports and photography. As there was so much to photograph in the area, we didn’t really explore the top of the ski area except at night. There is an arts trail and other interesting things to see up there!
Overall I thought it was an excellent place to stay and the local swamp and its wintery landscape was a highlight of our brief time in Finland. Next up I’ll write about Ukko-Luosto and the stunning winter walk to its scenic hut in Part 2.