Backcountry skiing and winter camping

A guided, self-supported ski tour with sledges for those who want to get off the trails. Join us and find your "inner survivor" during camping in the wintry wilderness!

This ski tour is for those who want to get off the trails! You will ski on unprepared trails through forests, swamps and lakes pulling your own sledge. During camping in wintry wilderness you will surely find your little "inner survivor"! Together with other group members and guide, you set up the tents, collect firewood and prepare meals around an open fire.

A dinner outdoors, under the stars, will surely taste almost as good as a dinner in a Michelin restaurant! In evenings you will spend time in Finnish style - chatting around the fire and gazing at the flames. But when the darkness falls don ´t forget to take a look at the sky, with good luck you may witness Northern Lights dance.

The tour takes place next to Urho Kekkonen National Park in eastern Lapland, about 100 km north from village of Savukoski.

Programme information

Season

Feb 1-Apr 5

Guaranteed departures 2023

19.-25.03. and 02.-08.04.

Departures available for groups of 4-6 persons on request.

Duration

7 days/6 nights

Persons

Guaranteed departure without minimum number of participants, max. 6 persons.

Place

Eastern Lapland

Joining point

Kuusamo airport, see "good to know"

Difficulty

Demanding

Price

1200 eur

Included in the price

*accommodation on days 1 and 6 in cabins for 2-4 persons, on days 2-5 in tents *6 x breakfast, 5 x lunch, 6 x dinner *services of the English speaking skiing guide *single-timed minibus transfers from/to Kuusamo airport *evening sauna on days 2 and 6 *ski equipment hire (inc. skis, poles, winter boots) *sledge for each participant *camping gear

Detailed program

Day 1: Arrival
Arrival at Kuusamo airport and transfer (3 hours) to Savukoski, where we will accommodate for the first night. Dinner and briefing about the upcoming programme.

Day 2: Preparations, off to wilderness
After breakfast an 1,5 hour transfer to Urho Kekkonen national park. On arrival we make the last preparations and pack the sledges. Food supplies and camping gear will be divided among participants. Once we are ready, the expedition begins!

Days 3-6: Expedition
Four full days of adventure in the wilderness. Everyone will pull an own sledge packed with all the equipment and food needed for the 5-day trip in the wilderness. We will sleep the nights in one or two large heated teepee-tents or in shelters by the fire. The firewood will be collected from the forest and water will be taken from rivers or it will be melted from the snow. Breakfasts and dinners will be taken together and everybody participates in preparations. Participants will also help the guide to collect firewood and set up the camps.

We will ski daily about 6 hours but daily skiing distances depend a lot on the snow and weather conditions and participants ´ abilities. The daily routines take plenty of time and skiing with a sledge is slow, so we won ´t cover a great amount of kilometres. The route is flexible so we can tailor our plans, eg. overnight stops, according to the group and weather conditions. Skis are 7 cm wide and 2 m-3 m long traditional Finnish skis for forest conditions.

On day 6 the skiing tour ends at Kemihaara from where we have an 1,5 hour transfer back to Savukoski. At the accommodation we can enjoy a steaming hot traditional Finnish sauna - a great experience after the days in the wilderness!

Day 7: Return
Breakfast and transfer to Kuusamo airport for the afternoon flight to Helsinki.