Day One – Planes, Trains, Automobiles and Logging Trucks
This time two weeks ago our Finnish forestry trip was underway, a group of 21 foresters and hauliers from Scotland, England, Wales and Germany were heading from their local airports to rendezvous at Helsinki for a flight onwards to the North Savo town of Kuopio in the heart of Finnish Lakeland.
There was 11 of us leaving from Scotland, 5 from England, 4 from Wales and 1 from Germany so it was quite a mixed group that was heading out to Finland
We didn’t get off to a great start as there was a problem with one of our passenger’s paperwork and he was unable to board the plane. There are not that many flights to Helsinki so getting an alternative was proving difficult and as we were travelling from day one catching up with us there would have been near on impossible. As it turns out this was a blessing in disguise as two days later, he was in hospital and quite ill with an infection.
At Helsinki I got a call from Clemens, our German colleague, who had also missed his flight, luckily, he managed to organise another which would get him into Kuopio at 1am.
For the rest of the journey, I took up the rear just to make sure we didn’t lose anyone else lol.
Thankfully, we all made it, and the taxis were waiting for us when we arrived in Kuopio airport to take us the 5km to our Spa hotel. There was a good bit of snow on the ground, but Finland can function normally unlike back home where our country descends into chaos at the first sign of any winter weather.
Kari Palojärvi, the main organiser, and his colleague and timber haulage company owner Kari Lahivaara were at the hotel reception to welcome us all to Finland, once checked in we met at the reception area for a short walk to our large private cabin where a log fire, hot buffet and drinks had been prepared for us.
-
That’s a remarkable amount of work hours for a single machine, the Norcar 600 owned by Erkki Rinne is taken well care of, it even has the original Diesel engine.
-
Kieran Anders is a forestry contractor working in the lake district. His work involves hand cutting and extracting timber using a skidder and tractor-trailer forwarder.
-
It is not possible to eliminate chain shot, but there are simple steps that can be taken to reduce the risk.
-
Arwel takes great pride in the fact that the mill has no waste whatsoever, “the peelings are used for children’s playgrounds, gardens and for farm animals in barns in the winter and the sawdust has multiple uses in gardens and farms as well.
-
Timber hauliers need to encourage young blood in, and also look after the hauliers we have, we need make the sector a safe and positive place to work.
FIND US ON
Related Posts
This was a great ice breaker as a lot of the group knew of each other but hadn’t previously met and it was great to see everyone chatting easily together and getting to know each other.
I felt a lot more relaxed as it was great to see everyone mixing and enjoying themselves, you are never quite sure how the dynamics of events like this will work out. The two Kari’s were doing an amazing job of making everyone feel welcome and were making sure that everyone was well taken care of.
Once fed and watered (or alcohol-ed in this case) it was time for a Savusauna, a traditional Finnish smoke sauna. Savusauna is a traditional Finnish sauna that has been around for centuries. It is believed to have originated in the eastern parts of Finland, where the climate was colder and harsher. One of the main benefits of using a Savusauna smoke sauna is the cleansing and relaxation it provides. The heat and smoke from the burning wood help to open your pores, allowing your body to sweat out toxins and impurities. This process can leave you feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.
In addition to its cleansing properties, the Savusauna smoke sauna can also help you relax and reduce stress. The heat and smoke can help to soothe sore muscles and joints, and the experience of sitting in the sauna can be meditative and calming.
Our final tour guide arrived, Tero Nurmi from the Finnish logging magazine Metsätrans-Lehti Oy, after a long rail and taxi journey from the coastal town of Vaasa in the west of Finland and joined the group in the Savusaun.
After a plunge through the frozen lake to cool off the log fire and a few more drinks were very welcome. Once warmer we went outside again but this time to see Kari Lahivaara’s brand new 4 axle Volvo truck which he had just taken delivery of. The trucks in Finland have a much higher capacity than in the UK, they use 9 axle wagon and drags with a gross weight limit of 76 tonnes and maximum length of 25.25m.
They really go to town on their trucks and this one was beautiful example of that, it was stunning.
I succumbed to tiredness after a long, weary day and with a full program planned for the next day, headed to my bed. I did feel a bit envious of some of our younger members who had the stamina to party on.
Check out our second day in Finland tomorrow where we see some vintage trucks and cars, visit a John Deere 1270G harvester thinning a stand of pine, get a tour of John Deere Forestry’s production facility at Joensu and visit the heavy lifting equipment manufacturer Mantsinen.
Forest Machine Magazine is written and edited by a forest professional with over 40 years hands on experience. We are dedicated to keeping you informed with all the latest news, views and reviews from our industry.
#homeoflogging #writtenbyloggersforloggers #loggingallovertheworld
