Yana Mangi

Last Tuesday evening I went fishing for a couple of hours.  I caught some small trout, which I decided to put back

but I also caught one trout that weighed 1 1/2 kgs and this 2kg trout

The following morning a lorry came with 00kgs of new fish to go in the lake

No one is allowed to fish in the lake now until after 1st July.

Last Saturday I was one of about 40 people who attended a concert by Yana Mangi, in Jokkmokk for the launch of her new CD “Free”.

Yana appeared in an episode of Ray Mears series “Bushcraft” in 2002, and both Yana and this particular programme were a big influence for me moving to Lapland.  I think her music is just fantastic!!

 

Jokkmokks Marknad 2015

Last week was Jokkmokks annual winter market.

The market was smaller this year the traditional craft stools continue to dwindle in number as the number of stools selling sweets incearses.

I spent some time out on a frozen lake watching the reindeer racing.

During one of the races, the reindeer ran into the perimeier fence and then took the fence with it around the whole course

It did not take long to repair the fence, so that races could continue.

Renskiljning in Nattavaara today

About 10kms outside Nattavaara today we had  the annual Renskiljning.

The Reindeer are herded into a handling facility and each Sami family removes their own animals from the herd to feed and care for during the winter.

Here are a few pictures from today;

renskiljning nattavaara

 

 

 

 

Yesterdays dinner guests

I was at work yesterday, but Teres was at home and took some pictures of some guests that arrived for dinner and spent most of the day at our house.

There was one almost completely white reindeer with them.  He had a bell around his neck which helps to locate the reindeer when they are in the forest.

This is a mother and calf that are digging in the snow to locate food

and this animal is fitted with a GPS collar as part of a project to study bear predation on reindeer.  When a bear comes within 100 metres of the reindeer, the collar activates and begins sending a signal to the researches.  They have found that 60% of reindeer calves are taken by bears!

Reindeer calf marking again

Fortunately, yesterday evening there was a reindeer calf marking at a location where we could drive with the car and I only had to walk a couple of hundred metres.

We took Sara and Mona with us who are two girls from Germany, spending their summer working here at our summer café here in Nattavaara.

Preparations started at 7pm, with each family making  a fire, cooking coffee and grilling reindeer meat or sausage over the flames and children playing.

After this it was time for the work to begin.  First the number of calves was counted

The animals were not at all stressed and many calves to the opportunity of a quick meal.

Unfortunately I could only stand outside and watch but Emma enjoyed being involved

People were busy identifying and catching their calves to mark the calves ear with the individual owners mark.

The work continued long into the night, but unfortunately we could not stay.  I really enjoyed being able to get out again!!

A new kåsa/guksi

I have just completed a new kåsa.   Guksi (pronounced gooksee) is the Sámi name for a wooden coffee cup.

I made it out of a 15 year old Birch bur given to me by my neighbour and it was bloody hard work to carve (especially the inside)!!

The dark lines are caused by a fungus that would have been growing in the tree

I have soaked the cup in rapeseed oil to bring out the patterning in the wood

In the next issue of “The Bushcraft Magazine” (coming out very soon) I write about how to make a kåsa

Jokkmokks Marknad 2012 part 2

I returned to the marknad on the Friday.  It was a very cold day with a temperature of -38 degrees c.  I had not been there long when I started noticing people with what I first thought was zinc oxide cream on their noses, but it was in fact people showing the early stages of frostbite.  Later in the day I met a German girl who’s nose and cheeks were completely white, but when I suggested she needed to go somewhere warm or seek medical treatment, she just laughed and walked away!!

I did not spend much time looking around the marknad because I had no money, but I did watch the reindeer racing

Just after I took this next picture,

the reindeer on the right ran into the reindeer on the left and then kicked the guy laying on the ackja in the face.

To stop the reindeer when they have raced around the circuit a rope is put across, and when the reindeer and ackja run into the rope, the Sámi grab the rope and hold on as they get dragged behind the reindeer, until they stop running.

On Friday evening I attended a Joik concert by Anja Storelv and her band.

It was a great evening with some really good music

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Jokkmokks Marknad 2012 part 1

Last week I spent two days at Jokkmokks Marknad as part of my job as a wilderness guide at Solberget Vildmarks Byn.

My first day at the marknad was on Tuesday at the old, traditional market where I was fortunate enough to spend quite a bit of time with John Stokke, a Sámi reindeer herder who has his own chapter in the Sámi book of fire “Eld, Flammor och Glod – samisk eldkonst”.  The chapter is about the “Nuorssjo” and it was this fire that he was demonstrating at the market (he is in the centre of this picture).

Photographs by Mike Lenzner

The Nuorssjo is a fire used for two people to sleep next and will burn for 14 hours with very little maintenance.  20cms of Spruce branches are put on the ground as insulation to lay on.

In addition to translating his life as a reindeer herder for our German guests, I also spent a lot of time discussing fire making with him. He even cooked coffee  for our guests to drink.

He wanted me to return the next day to talk more and show him how to make fire with the bow-drill but unfortunately this was just not possible, but I have promised to do it next year.

Fire making with flint and steel was also being demonstrated, and visitors were able to try for themselves.