Cycling to Korpoo

Turku Archipelago

"In Which we See a Hawk at Mossala"

This was always going to be one of the longest and hardest days of our time in Finland. With about 65 Km of cycling and no less than 6 ferry crossings to complete and coupled with the ever variable weather of the region we knew that we were in for a long day in and out of the saddle.

By 8 am we had finished breakfast, packed our panniers and were underway under a leaden sky and single digit temperature. If we have learnt anything in the short time we have been here it is that this really is a harsh place to survive. Our proprietor of our last hotel explained that the entire "summer tourist season" lasts only until the end of July. Then he has to close the hotel and prepare for the long, bleak winter. Of course he doesn't stay here over winter, in fact almost no one does. Apparently there is a mass exodus of Finns to countries much closer to the equator that occurs every year. Only the most stoic and foolhardy are left to sit out the winter months in freezing darkness.

We had not ridden very far before we realised that, although the wind was not actually in our faces, it was still no weather for brass monkeys. I stopped to add a few extra layers and make myself look even more like the proverbial Michelin man. Fortunately the threatening clouds held on to their load of rain and we were able to stay dry.

The thing that makes this region so unique is the huge number of islands that fill all the waterways. Everywhere you look you see islands of all sizes scattered as if some carless giant had scattered them across the sea. This led to a discussion of how big one has to be before it could really be classed as "an island". By consensus we decided that it must have at least tree and that the tree must be at least 1 metre tall.

By mid morning the early arctic chill was beginning to dissipate and a few patches of blue sky started to appear. Spirits started to soar as the temperature rose and soon we were riding in lovely sunshine.

Our third ferry journey was a long one of about 45 mins and took us to the small settlement of Mossala. When we emerged from the boat it was almost 2 pm and we were all hungry and looking for a place to have lunch. We soon found a lovely little café that supplied a delicious lunch of soup, chips, mashed potatoes and salad. While we were enjoying this food a group of women from the next table came up and politely asked where we were from. When we told them we were from Australia they became very excited and started to share stories of friends in Australia. One produced her mobile phone and showed that it had the symbol of the Hawthorn Football Club on it. Could you believe that a Hawthorn supporter would be found in this faraway part of the world ?

The afternoon became warmer and warmer as we island hopped our way through the archipelago. Sometimes we even had a tail wind to help us climb the frequent hills along the way.We had a substantial wait for the final ferry trip and had a delightful time enjoying the warm sunshine as we waited for it to arrive.

Our final island was Korppoo and this is our home for the night. Our "hotel" is another converted cow barn - very small but with an amazing character. I am now sitting in my very small room at 9.30 pm and looking out the window at the bright sun and a vast sea of verdant green grass. How lucky are we to have had such a wonderful experience.Baca lagi