Monthly Archives: October 2010

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Snow, snow and more snow…

On Thursday morning it was snowing very heavily and had been snowing most of the night.

15cms of snow fell before the snow finally stopped.  Not sure what this is called in English but it’s what I and many people here use  to clear the snow

Emma was also helping me, using a shovel

We push the snow up around the house to help insulate it.

With so much snow, I have had to remove the summer wheels on the cars and replace them with winter wheels.

They are forecasting at least another 20cms of snow tonight.

While I was in England I was interviewed by a local newspaper and you can read the article here.

 

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Dry cold

This morning at 8am the temperature was -15 degrees.  At this temperature there is no moisture in the air, which means it actually feels warmer than at lets say -8 degrees.

The meeting went very well today and we will be running two courses in the middle of January and February teaching about traditional clothing and materials

known as “Mjukslojd” and making a  traditional Saami leather coffee bag with our instructor Lise.

In March/April there will be the opportunity for people to spend some time learning about the Saami traditions and way of life, and to do some work with Reindeer.

More information and costs will be available soon.

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Another cabin

We now have another cabin

about ten minutes walk from our house

Here are Emma and Sebastian following me (I am pulling Emma behind me in my pulka)

, situated in the forest, next to a small river

and it is here now where our guests will stay.  The cabin can hold 5 – 6 people

and has a wood burning stove for heat and a bottled gas hob for cooking on.

Upstairs there is one large room

From the room there is a veranda which looks north and offers nice views of the northern lights.

Work on our naturallore.com website is underway now and when I have resolved some issues with my html coding, it should be working.

Tomorrow I have a meeting with a local Saami family about running courses together.  Guests will be able to learn how Saami clothing is made and will make their own traditional leather coffee bag.  There will also be the opportunity to be with them when they are working with the Reindeer.

In May 2011 I will be working with Thomas Öberg a renowned naturalist, with his own weekly radio program here in Sweden.  We will be offering 5 day birdwatching and nature tours based just outside Lulea, looking at some of Laplands specialist species.

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Back from the UK

Well we are back from our visit to the UK and although it was good to see family and friends (unfortunately there was not enough time to see everyone), I do not regret having made the move here.

For those of you who are not familiar with the area I grew up and lived in, here is a characteristic image

My grandmother once visited Wales and when asked if she enjoyed it she said; “it was ok but you couldn’t see anything for because of the mountains”!

Teres really enjoyed herself  shopping…shopping and more shopping!!  Here are my mum, dad and aunt helping to carry her bags in Kings Lynn

A lot has changed since we left Nattavaara on the 12th…

WINTER IS HERE!!!

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A cabin and wildlife

Today we have had a cabin delivered which I purchased from Gallivare Camping

It can hold 4 (possibly even 5) people and bunk beds were included

We will insulate the cabin and install a small wood burning stove and then we will be ready for guests to come and stay with us

I have also purchased a 10 person Swedish military tent from my friend Ekhardt

Which has a very good wood burning stove inside

Staying close to home;

The Siberian Nutcracker is still around and coming to the bird feeder most days

and from time  to time the Moose visits

In addition I have now found Beaver on the opposite side of the road to our house

He is very friendly but comes out late in the evening when it is too dark to photograph him.  Here is a path he uses to go in and out of the water

and here I assume he is gathering mud to his lodge

People will soon be able to book to visit us via my new website (when it is finished)

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Canoeing

Emma has been out with me birdwatching and looking for animals

and the other evening we found a Beaver (Castor fiber) so I decided the following day to take my canoe out on the river to get a closer look.

It was a calm day, but there was a strong water current making it difficult travelling up river,

however being carried back by the current was much more enjoyable.

I found a beavers lodge on a small island in the river

and a female Goosander and 3 Whooper Swans

Where the river widened I sat and listened too two Brown Bears fighting and chasing around in the trees

but I never managed to see them.

There was a beautiful sunset as I paddled along the river

and as my journey ended the moon came up over the trees