Yet another Med boating report - NOT!

[MapisM]

Ok folks, as some of you already know, I just spent a few days cruising Finland.
Its countless islands Gulf, the 8 locks Saimaa Canal, and the huge Saimaa lake.
And the best way I can think of to summarise the cruise is that it was BY FAR the single boating holiday with most new and interesting experiences that I ever had the opportunity to make - bar none.
Many, many thanks again Scubaman for your great hospitality and for sharing with us your experience, without which we could have never enjoyed these days as much as we did!

Now, where are the piccies, I hear you saying?
Hang on folks, I'm still at the airport as I'm writing, and I just wanted to throw in a small appetizer, for the moment.
Besides, I could never match the quality of Scubaman pics and clips anyway, so don't expect anything special.
But I thought it might be interesting to share the impressions regardless of pics, because I suppose that anyone who never cruised these waters could be as amazed as I was.

So, time being, the appetizer is just a small poll.
Forget life jackets and the usual stuff, and let me know what items among the following are the most essential for cruising Finland style - possibly explaining also the reason behind your choices. I'm looking forward to reading your thought.
And needless to say, I will eventually give you my own view.
...Yeah, together with some piccies, to follow ASAP.

 

[blueglass]

Looking forward to the report Mapism.
Im thinking (from my experience of outrageous Scandinavian booze prices) a truckload of beer would be a useful addition to the larder!

 

[Pinnacle]

Tease!!!

We want pics!

 

[scubaman]

Lol, thank you M, let me assure you, the pleasure was all mine! I'm so glad that you guys enjoyed your stay.

I know the right answers so will refrain from commenting for now

 

[AndieMac]

Well, I reckon you would at least need a chainsaw to cut wood to fuel the numerous remote area saunas during a Finnish cruise

Keen to hear the cruise report though, would have to agree (without ever having been to the area) it would be really fascinating, just from pics, footage and stories from SM over the years.

 

[rafiki_]

Zanzari repellant would be the most important thing for me MM

 

[BartW]

the only thing from your list that I can think of that you would not need over there is the Italian flag,
if not, I can't imagine why you would need that in Finland

desparately waiting for the piccies Kivi

 

[CLII]

Beer is obvious. But if you like me, want something more than plain lager you need to take it with you or search hard.
Finland is almost better than Sweden when it comes to archipelago. But nothing beats the Åland Isles, even though it's part of Finland it's also not.

 

[rbcoomer]

A Camera!

 

[AndieMac]

A Camera!

Yeah, you would think with a couple of skilful camera operators, between them would have managed to organise some snaps

 

[Trundlebug]

Ok folks, as some of you already know, I just spent a few days cruising Finland.
Its countless islands Gulf, the 8 locks Saimaa Canal, and the huge Saimaa lake.
And the best way I can think of to summarise the cruise is that it was BY FAR the single boating holiday with most new and interesting experiences that I ever had the opportunity to make - bar none.
Many, many thanks again Scubaman for your great hospitality and for sharing with us your experience, without which we could have never enjoyed these days as much as we did!

Now, where are the piccies, I hear you saying?
Hang on folks, I'm still at the airport as I'm writing, and I just wanted to throw in a small appetizer, for the moment.
Besides, I could never match the quality of Scubaman pics and clips anyway, so don't expect anything special.
But I thought it might be interesting to share the impressions regardless of pics, because I suppose that anyone who never cruised these waters could be as amazed as I was.

So, time being, the appetizer is just a small poll.
Forget life jackets and the usual stuff, and let me know what items among the following are the most essential for cruising Finland style - possibly explaining also the reason behind your choices. I'm looking forward to reading your thought.
And needless to say, I will eventually give you my own view.
...Yeah, together with some piccies, to follow ASAP.

It comes as no surprise to me that you've had an amazing time.
When I flew back from Helsinki to the UK in 2006 (returning from watching the WRC in August) I was astounded at the thousands of islands off Finland's SW coast. My one thought was "WOW! There's a whole lifetime's boat cruising and exploration just in that area alone!"
It's a truly stunning area. Can't wait to see the pics.

 

[vas]

and where are the pics then?
how many weeks do you need to sort them out MM???

cheers

V.

 

[Pinnacle]

and where are the pics then?
how many weeks do you need to sort them out MM???

cheers

V.

I agree....I think it's a very poor show.

 

[MapisM]

Apologies folks, guilty as charged.
Actually, I thought to have mentioned that I've been rather busy after months away from home, but I now realise that it was in this other thread...
http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthrea...ve-short-stay-in-Solent&p=4909944#post4909944
On top of that, today I'm flying back to Sardinia (25 degrees and glorious sunshine ATM ), where I'll be onboard till the end of Oct/beginning of Nov.
How's that as an excuse?
Anyway, I'll find some time tomorrow, promise.

In the meantime, here's my take on the poll: actually all of the above items (albeit to different extents) are useful for cruising in Finland.
Ok, make the IT flag the flag of whatever your nationality is, but scubaman has been kind enough to fly a courtesy flag for his guests - an elegant touch which was indeed appreciated!
And the dog also ain't a must I must admit (in fact we didn't have one), but I noticed that bringing dogs onboard is a very popular habit, up there.
It must have to see with having some spare food for when it's really cold...

But the virtual cigar goes to AndieMac for good.
I could hardly believe it when I saw scubaman pulling out of the lazarette a proper chainsaw, to prepare the wood for the sauna stove.
A sauna alongside the lake in a small island right in the middle of nowhere (Satamosaari, if I'm not mistaken), which was one of the highlights among our new experiences.
Btw, it's funny to see that towels and swimsuit got only one vote, which was mine.
You obviously missed the fact that, after the sauna, jumping in the freezing cold lake is a must.

 

[MapisM]

All right folks, thanks for your patience, as the airlines say when they make some mess...

I’ll start with a few pics which were actually taken during a week I spent in Helsinki, before joining scubaman in the cruise back to his winter home port.
In fact, Helsinki and its surroundings fit very nicely in a boating-related report, for very obvious reasons.
Besides, we were lucky enough to be there during a street art event, whose peak was the “art night”.
Unfortunately, I just carried the mobile, so taking decent piccies in very low light was not an option.
Otoh I found interesting the “construction site” which started in daylight – here’s what it was about:

Don’t worry though, just in case anyone around here is interested in boats, here’s a starter...

And while we were there, we couldn’t pass the opportunity to make a couple of other cruises, could we?
The first was actually just a 15 minutes ferry transfer to Suomenlinna, a very nice historical island, with great natural landscapes and small traditional boat yards.
Perfect to spend some hours in the nature, just round the corner from the city center.
Or to spend years and start a career as a Navy officer, if that’s your thing – though I guess being a Finnish citizen is a must.
No prize for guessing which are the Naval Academy vessels and buildings, among the following pics!

Btw, did I mention that moving around Helsinki by bicycle is a real pleasure, with reserved lanes almost everywhere?
Well, it’s a pleasure for the very few months when it isn’t freezing cold, and for those moments between one shower and another, that is!
...Though in fairness neither of these problems seemed to be as important for the locals as they would be for us, I reckon...

 

[MapisM]

Back to boating, the second of our cruises was much longer, even if made reasonably fast (95 mins or so) by a 33 knots catamaran: Tallin, Estonia.
The docks upon arrival weren’t exactly welcoming (third pic below) but the historical city center is really nice, and well worth investing one of our days in Helsinki.
Btw, we understood that it’s a very popular day cruise also for the locals, who travel with as many bags as they can handle, to bring them back full of all sort of spirits, which are indeed much cheaper in Estonia.
Which I suppose you might find of some interest, considering that so far beer was the more popular choice in my opening poll!
Mind, not that I disagree with the choice: in fact, as I understood, it’s even the recommended drink after (and actually also during!) the sauna.

Oh, and for those not just interested in drinks but also in food, in the last pic above swmbo is purchasing some sweet almonds with cinnamon, which are supposed to be a Tallin typical recipe and can be found anywhere in the city center.
We read on some guides that trying them was de rigueur, so we complied.
But TBH, well, how can I put it? Let’s say that if you go there and forget to try some, it’s not worth returning for that reason alone...


Anyway, at the end of the week, we were quite happy to have taken some days off the overcrowded Med August to explore this area.
But the best was still to come, and eventually we met our Captain, who kindly arranged this scenario to welcome us onboard:

But by now we knew that the clouds were not going to last long, and in fact after a while the boat which was going to be our home for a few days was again under the sun:

And by coincidence, as the boat spotters must have already noticed, right in front of her there was the bigger sister of my former lake boat, a triple engine Fountain 47, no less.
I was rather surprised to see a boat like that in those waters, but as I understood from our Captain, there are poker run fans also up there!
Otoh, in spite of my soft spot for fast boats, knowing that our vessel was the meticulously maintained (congratulations again, scubaman!) and Eberspächer equipped Phantom, rather than the narrow bullet, was indeed reassuring!
...Though I must say that also the classic boat right in the center of the pic was very nice. Not sure of what she was – spot the boat, anyone?

The morning after, we loaded some diesel – not a lot, because much cheaper fuel will be available at a Russian fuel station along the way (more about that later), and eventually we waved goodbye to Helsinki.
First stop Kaunissaari, a very nice and traditional fishermen island, well known by the locals, hence pretty crowded at times.
But end of Aug is not high season anymore at these latitudes, therefore the place was actually very quiet, as the pics show.
I was told that the local restaurant makes the best Salmon soup you can get anywhere, so we obviously couldn’t miss it.
Well, in fairness, I was also told that in Finland all restaurants pretend that their salmon soup is the best...
A debate which I don’t dare trying to contribute to of course, but the soup we had was delicious, which is what really matters!

Salmon soup aside, while walking around the island we met a very proud boatbuilder who invited us to visit his pride and joy.
You can see him above, on the dock in front of his timber boat, together with the best part of our crew (Captain and Cook).
The guy didn’t speak a word of English, but having seen his boat also inside, I wouldn’t mind having him to work also on my boat, rather than some other yards I came across during the years...

 

[MapisM]

For overnighting, our Captain had in mind a very well sheltered jetty in Ulko-Tammio, a small island with a weird shape and some old military installations – we were approaching the Russian border, after all.
But the spot was indeed beautiful, and the sunset fantastic. Unreal, almost - pics can't do justice to the real scenario

Now, apropos of Russian border, I didn’t mention so far that our route – aside from the beautiful spots along the way – was a bit peculiar.
In fact, we were moving the boat from Helsinki to Lappeenranta, an inland city along the Saimaa lake, near to where scubaman will eventually store his boat for the winter.
The lake is reachable from the open sea through an 8 locks canal, the first part of which is entirely within the Russian border.
But there is an agreement between Finland and Russia, according to which is possible to enter Russia temporarily without any visa, as long the whole crew is just in transit, and returning in Finland through the canal.
The following pic was taken in Santio, which is the last island in Finland before entering Russia.

Here is where the papers must be given to custom officers for approval, to be checked again only when leaving Russia and re-entering Finland.
Yes, weird as it might seem, the Russians don’t make any controls on transit boats upon entrance in their waters, just at the end of the trip, before leaving Russia.
BUT, this being the procedure, don’t think that they don’t care about foreign flagged boats pootling around in their courtyard!
In fact, right after dealing with the bureaucracy, we headed towards Russian waters, just to hear after a short while a VHF call on 16 “to the white boat approaching the Russian border”, asking what we were doing before they started to shoot...
Luckily, the Captain must have given them the right answers, because they eventually wished us a nice trip, in a not so easily understandable English.
Besides, afterwards, while approaching Vyborg (the first and only Russian town along the route, which actually used to belong to Finland before WW2), we spotted a big boat approaching us with a huge rooster tail.
My first thought was that some Russian was going out for a spin with his Arnesons driven Pershing (in fact, I saw one of those, Russian flagged, in Helsinki), but we soon realized that it was actually a helluva Coast Guard patrol boat.
They slowed down to have a closer look at the potentially offending vessel with a binocular, and eventually decided, yet again, that we were not worth shooting at. Phew!
In the following pics you can see the first Russian building we saw, which was not the only one in such a sorry state, followed by some CG boats for which they obviously found a way to allocate a decent budget instead.
Btw, in the second CG boats pic there’s a sistership of the surface props boat which “welcomed” us while approaching Vyborg.

 

[MapisM]

The following pics were all taken after leaving Vyborg and heading North along the Saimaa Canal: refueling at 33 Roubles/liter (0.55 Quids) first, then going through the locks.

The last pics above with the sequence give only a rough idea of the close crossings we had at times.
In this specific case, the lock operator warned us in advance that a commercial vessel was on his way on the other side of the lock, and asked us to move out quickly as soon as the gate was open.
These folks obviously don’t like slowing down, in fact: the pics in the sequence were all recorded in the same minute, go figure...!
Makes me wonder what could happen if one of these vessels, which are just as big as allowed by the locks width and length, couldn’t reverse and stop, hence crushing the door locks – which are up to 12m high...!

But all went well, and the trip was actually very smooth and pleasant.
The tight speed limit and a couple of locks where we had to wait for the incoming ships meant that it took us a bit longer than expected, but the beautiful surrounding scenario made the whole cruise very enjoyable.
So, eventually we reached Saimaa lake at dusk, with another dozen or so of miles in front of us before reaching Satamosaari, one of the countless islands of Saimaa lake, which has a very well sheltered bay with a couple of mooring docks, equipped with buoys.
But what made this short leg interesting is the fact that, in order to have some light upon arrival for mooring, we kept 20+ knots solid, inside pretty narrow passages between the islands.
And even if the navigational marks were among the best I’ve ever seen, almost all of them were only aimed at daylight cruising, so we had to rely upon (in order of priority):
1) the great skipper experience of those waters;
2) a triple set of charts: boat plotter, iPad Navionics App, notebook Garmin charts;
3) mk1 eyeball, to spot as in advance as possible the cardinal marks.
But we did make it safely, on the face of some rocks which we passed at no more than 30m or so!
Which ain’t a scary distance per se, but while going relatively fast and in low visibility, well, that definitely wasn’t business as usual.
Anyway, in hindsight it was a very good idea to rush a bit, because not only there was just one free berth left, but it was also very tight, requiring a “steer-while-reversing” maneuver, to avoid hitting the bow buoy first, and eventually grab it to secure the bow line.
Not a piece of cake in low light, but we couldn’t have even tried in complete darkness.
But after a perfect maneuver, we eventually had yet another very quiet sleep, before waking up for our last day, only to realize in which sort of natural paradise we were: a completely uninhabitated island, whose only facilities are a couple of wooden docks for visiting boats, and a few cabins for barbecue and – you guessed it – a sauna. Actually not just one, but two of them!
In the pics below, you can see one of these saunas, where scubaman is marking one slot on the booking list, before going to grab his chainsaw onboard and prepare some wood for splitting.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that there’s something else on the island, on top of saunas and barbecues: a black waters discharge dock and tank (on the left of the last pic above).
Talk about civilization... That’s something not so easy to find in the Med, even in very expensive and big marinas!
And again, apropos of civilization: after cutting enough wood for our sauna, our Captain explained us that it’s customary to cut some more, and leave it there for the next users. Without forgetting also to refill the bucket with fresh water afterwards...!
A cultural attitude which I’ve rarely seen anywhere in the world – not to mention in my own Country, I must sadly admit.

 

[MapisM]

The very last leg of our trip was towards Lappeenranta, after a couple of sauna rounds followed by lake swims, which swmbo surprisingly (since she normally considers acceptable only water temperatures just about DOUBLE of what it was) didn’t decline.
Again, a beautiful cruise between small and wild islands, partially through the same route of the evening before.
And with yet another rainbow welcoming us upon arrival, though this one wasn’t natural as the one we had in Helsinki upon departure.

Unfortunately, we had to be at the airport by 8pm, so we actually missed the event which was being held in the city center that night.
In fact, the night pics above (as well as some of the previous ones) are published courtesy of scubaman.

Many, many thanks again for everything K, it has been indeed a great pleasure for us to enjoy your hospitality and experience a boating lifestyle which was totally new to us.
And don’t forget that from our part, it’s not a matter of IF you will come to see a bit of Sardinia, but only of when!

 

[Pinnacle]

FAB report P! So sorry we could make it......

I was amazed to read that S went (willingly) into the water when it was less then 25deg C!!!!!! We will see her swimming in the Solent yet! NOT