A Touch of Tuntsa is a course for all who want to experience Finnish Lapland at its best and challenge themselves in Finland’s powerful nature while learning basic winter survival skills.
This course is for people who want to get more familiar with Lapland, improve their own skills on survival, communication and group dynamics. A Touch of Tuntsa is focused especially for people who want to experience the real Lapland for the first time. The course will take place in the wilderness of Tuntsa, Lapland.
Program
Day 1 – Arrive to Naruska, getting to know each other, accommodation.
Day 2 – Basic wilderness skills, learning how to ski, Finnish culture.
Day 3 – Skiing, getting ready for an overnight journey in the wilderness.
Day 4 – Skiing, using wilderness skills in practice, building snow caves, sleeping overnight out in the wild.
Day 5 – Conquering Sorsatunturi Fell, sleeping overnight out in the wild
Day 6 – Returning to Naruska, sharing experiences, festive supper.
Day 7 – Return home.
About Tuntsa
The wilderness of Tuntsa is said to be one of the finest wilderness areas in Europe. It is an open wilderness area with many fells, the highest being Sorsatunturi (628m above the sea level). A characteristic view for the area is spruce topped hills and treeless fells.
During the course we will stay in a small village called Naruska which is located in Lapland near the Russian border. In the Naruska village we will be staying at Naruska Hostel. The village is surrounded by many arctic and forested hills. Tuntsa is known to be one of the coldest places in Finland.
Be prepared that during the course the temperature will be from -1 to -30°C. Also the wind can make even a mild winter temperature feel freezing. For example, if there is -15°C and the wind blows 10m/s, the combined effect in temperature is -27°C. Snow covers the whole country during the wintertime and the snow layer can be up to 2 meters thick.
Equipment
Outward Bound Finland will provide all group equipment.
The equipment includes:
tents, skiing equipment, cooking sets and fuel, maps and compasses, first aid and safety equipment
Participants should have their own personal equipment:
personal warm clothes, sleeping bag, mat for winter conditions, backpack, personal equipment
Outward Bound Finland can also borrow equipment like sleeping bags. A detailed equipment list will be sent to the participants later.
Methods
The course follows the principles of experiential learning. The basic idea of experiential education is learning through experience. The group’s and individual participant’s development process comes through various activities and from dealing with these new experiences. The aim is to be able to apply and transfer learned skills from the experience into an individual’s everyday life. The differing backgrounds and experiences of the participants provide a solid foundation for learning.
Safety
Safety of the participants and the instructors is crucial on Outward Bound Finland’s courses. By safety, we mean comprehensive physical, mental and social safety all of which are worked on during the course so that no one is in danger of hurting or injuring oneself, compromising one’s mental stability or compromising one’s social status.
Safety is our number one priority and that is why we collect the health information from our participants. Please download the Health form and send it back to us filled when signing to the course.
Due to the nature of the expedition each participant must acknowledge the fact that we can’t guarantee full safety. With these kinds of expeditions there is always a certain amount of risk involved. We try to minimize the risks by planning the expedition well, preparing ourselves for possible problems and having a professional guide leading the expedition. However, everyone should bear in mind that all participants are responsible for their own safety as well as the safety of the group, and everyone should prepare carefully for the expedition and follow the instructions.
OBF has the liability insurance for the course, however OBF can’t provide insurances for the participants. Participants should have their own travelling insurance which covers skiing and other winter activities.
The course is organized by Outward Bound Finland (later also called OBF) in co-operation with Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences.
“Friend of mine told me if there is only one trip I will do while studying in Finland, than I should definitely do this one -and she was right! “
