Finland and Russia–April 2014

Traditional reindeer farm in northern Finland.

Diving with beluga whales has been a dream of mine, and the only place in the world to do it is in the White Sea of Russia, so we planned a bit of a crazy trip there to do so. On the way we spent a few days in Finland, traveling around and visiting a reindeer farm where we learned a little about Finnish reindeer husbandry, which will hopefully help us with our farm setup in the future.  Finland was a beautiful place, it’s one of the few places I’ve traveled I could see myself living. The vast forests, the incredible landscapes felt so much like here at home in Minnesota. I can see why so many people from Scandinavia settled here. The Arctic Circle and northern Russia had breathtaking views and vast panoramic landscapes I will not forget. I hope to visit again and spend more time in both places! 

Feeding a beluga whale in the White Sea of Russia.	Sunset on the frozen White Sea.	Ice does incredible things when a sheet of ocean ice is moved with a 12 ft tide.

 

Ice Diving with beluga whales in the White Sea

White Sea Ice Diving

Rock church in Helsinki.	Me feeding the reindeer at Poro-Panumaan.	A guide to the local reindeer ear-marks.	Downtown Helsinki railway station.

Oulu, Finland.	Fluffiest most luscious lichen I’ve ever seen.	Ice diving camp, White Sea, Russia.	The maina, or ice hole where we dove.

Roman chilling out on the ice. He jumped into that hole twice.	Little town near the Ice Diving Center.	Russian truck.	Little bird at the lodge.

Feeding beluga whales.	Yeah, fish!	Beluga taking a fish.

Arctic Circle Dive Center, Russia: http://pkrug.ru/index/en.htm