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As a Signy Fid I was lucky to be one of the few to enjoy a sledging and camping trip on Coronation Island. But despite the 3-week man-hauling expedition 4 of us shared, I felt I'd missed out on the doggy-experience that Fids at Halley or Peninsula bases enjoyed — something I was determined to put right.
Then by chance in 2015 I watched an episode of 'The Dog Rescuers' on BBC1 and saw how a husky called 'Tala', who had roamed free in Sweden for weeks, was taken in by a husky farm in Finland. Their love and care for their dogs shone out of their website, and that clinched it: I was going to go dog sledging for 5 days in Arctic Finland.
- 5-day wilderness husky safari, 197km across the Arctic
- Teams of 5 dogs per sledge; a snowmobile and pulk follow for safety and supplies
- Routes through the Tarvantovaara Wilderness Area near the Norwegian border
- Daily distances ranged from a 30km warm-up to a 52km, 9-hour day
- Detailed daily mileage spreadsheet used to select and rest the dogs
Arrival in Enontekio
So 50 years on from first going South with BAS, I got off the bus at 3.20pm on Saturday 25th Feb at Enontekio, whose slogan 'remote but reachable' rang true — I'd left Birmingham 36 hours earlier. We were ushered straight into the veterinary store, where, surrounded by 4 recuperating huskies, we were given a hot drink and cake. Our gear was checked and we were issued any arctic clothing we needed, then we helped give the 170 dogs their evening meal and water before a salmon pasta supper in the cosy traditional Kota.
Learning the ropes
Sunday dawned sunny and crisp, around -30C. We learned to collect the chosen dogs, harness them and clip them onto their traces. The farm keeps a detailed mileage spreadsheet, updated daily, so dogs that need a rest and those that need more action can be picked out easily. Our first day was a straightforward 30km circuit out to a cabin at the edge of the large frozen lake south of Enontekio. Some sledges had the crucial instruction 'Don't Let Go' written on the handlebars — and, embarrassingly, that first day I was the only one who failed to heed it.
Sledge Scouser and 'The Fids'
We set off at noon in lovely weather with temperatures around -13C and headed out into the uninhabited far north. My sledge was 4th in line, but I gave it an unofficial BAS-style name. So it was that 'Sledge Scouser' was pulled 197km across the Arctic whiteness by 'The Fids' — a team of 5 dogs that I got to know and love over the next few days: lead dogs Nomad and Buddah, swing dogs Samson and Shadow (2-year-old Eurohound brothers), and Aknil, a Nenet Laika in the wheel position whom I came to appreciate as a really valuable team member, especially on the uphills.
Across the high tundra
Over the following days we climbed seven hills onto the treeless tundra near the border with Norway, passed through large herds of reindeer being tended by the Sami, and reached state-owned cabins by lake Syvajarvi in the Tarvantovaara Wilderness Area, around 40km from the nearest road. Our longest day, St David's Day, was a 52km, 9-hour run to the huts at Nakkala, beginning with a dawn chorus of howling and an early team fight, and ending with guides Charlotte and Josh stapling Buddah's wounded ear in the hut. Our final day was a lovely 40km run south through birch into pine and across the frozen lake back to the Hetta Huskies farm.
Postscript: about Hetta Huskies
Hetta Huskies is run by Pasi Ikonen, a ski wilderness guide and ex-Commando Border Guard, and Anna McCormack from the UK, a BSES and Raleigh International leader, who met on the start line of the 827km Raid Gauloises 2000 in Tibet. They married in 2003, moved to Hetta two years later, and started the dog farm and safari business in 2008. On Christmas Day 2008 Pasi became one of the first Finns to complete an unsupported expedition to the South Pole.
The farm is run on very 'green' principles, partners the 'Leave No Trace' Centre for Outdoor Ethics, and has been graded 'Certification-plus' — the highest possible grading in the sleddog industry — by the 'Mush with Pride' kennel inspectors. It won 'Gold' for Animal Welfare at the 2015 World Responsible Tourism Awards. It takes in local rescue dogs, never euthanises a healthy dog, lets guests walk the retired dogs, and runs sponsorship and adoption programmes. We deeply appreciate any support towards the whole-life care of our dogs.
