Snowmobiling

I was originally thinking of continuing the traffic theme when looking at Liperi, but a mention from a friend at the fire station about a snow mobile sunk in the ice had me scrambling for a more journalistic shot. Since the late 90s recreational snowmobiling has been gaining in popularity in Finland. All this despite the high prices of gas and the nuisance they are for the nature.

As with any mainly male past-time, snowmobiling is not without its risks – especially in the land of lakes. Because the ice on the lakes is the only place you can freely drive a snowmobile without obtaining prior permission from landowners (for example by using a pre-approved route), they are quite popular places to drive around on. There is also the added benefit that there aren’t any trees around to crash into.

However, the thickness of the ice is never certain. Winters like the current one, when temperatures have been uncommonly warm, don’t make the situation any better. Every winter a large amount of snowmobiles is lost to Ahti, the god sea. Lives are also lost.

In this case, the riders had tried to see if they could cross 20 metres of bare water with the snowmobile with little luck. This time the water was shallow enough that the snowmobile could be barely seen and they got it out. Not everyone is as lucky. After coming home from taking this picture, the news reported that one person had died yesterday in a snowmobile accident.

Editing: Uncharacteristically, this time I used some selective burning to enhance the incoming snowmobile track.