Hiking in Finland

Cool stuff–I like the Hut-shelter system on the trails. How is the bug situation in Finland in the summer?

Nice blog Hendrik.Kath and I met a couple of Finnish guys climbing down in el Chorro last year. We enjoyed their tales and they ours. They are hoping to come over to the UK too for a backpacking trip. The more the merrier.

Jay, mosquitos can be a problem, though it depends usually on how harsh the winter was. The further up north, direction Lapland, you go, the more problematic they can get. Ticks, midges and the like are no problem.

Rog, I too am planning to come over to the UK, Scotland to be specific, at some time to enjoy your mountains and views. Surely a great area to go walking! And also a stop at a whiskey distillery is planned =)

Hendrik, Scotland is fantastic, especially the west coast highlands. My advice is go in early May for good weather and to avoid the bugs. The scottish midge is a lot smaller than a mosquito, but is a sociable creature who likes to dine with 10,000 friends.

I'm enjoying your blog. We were able to visit your country (Helsinki and Savonlinna) for a few days in 2005. No camping on that trip, looks like there should have been.

Most of your photos remind me of places I've been over here … confirming our impression that Finland is just like northeastern Minnesota (including the mosquitoes). It's no wonder why so many people here are of Finnish ancestry.

Rog, I was planning to come over to Scotland this autumn though I think I will postpone it to next year, there's just too much to do this year. Avoiding the insects is a good side effect, as well.

Jim, thank you for the kind words. Savonlinna is a beautiful city, especially in the summer. Great hiking around that city as well, maybe you need to come back sometime.

I also met a lot of US Americans from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan who have Finnish ancestors, great people. I also need to get over to the USA some day, to see that great country, hike and get a trailname!