Visiting a wilderness area such as Arctic Finland, one is impressed by a feeling of timelessness. These forests, these rivers and lakes, these rocks — especially, these rocks, have been where they are found now, just as they appear now, since time immemorial.
Lakes and rivers lace the Finnish Arctic terrain, much as in the New York Adirondacks. Massive boulders rest unexpectedly in random spots like dropped bowling balls. Fish, game and birds still co-habit with the humans, who herd reindeer as their main food source.
One of the most vicious predators who also feed off this land are the far ranging wolverines. Wolverines have crampons for claws, enabling them to clamber over ice and snow covered, even steep cliffs, with relative ease. Their razor like teeth and powerful jaws allow them to consume bone, flesh and hooves of their prey, which combined with a fierce personality, make them a indomitable foe. A wolverine will not back down when confronted, and will fight to the death.
The Finns and Sami who inhabit this terrain and are inured to the harsh winters regard wolverines with enmity. Wolverines kill reindeer by jumping on the reindeer’s back, and biting through the neck and spine to paralyze them; the wolverine may eat the deer alive, or leave it to suffer and die for later consumption. Unfortunately for the herders, the wolverine is a protected species in Finland, and the penalty for killing one is over $20,000.
Thus, when our guide spotted wolverine tracks in the snow, he dropped us off and returned to warn the herders about the predator in the forest, headed towards the village. There were three of us, two of whom spoke mainly Spanish, and my vocabulary was limited to “bear.” We were not in any danger, as wolverines are not known to attack humans, but we were really glad when our guide returned.
More than wolverines, wolves or bears, the Finns greatest fear is Russians. Finland and Russia have warred over territory, especially since the Russian revolution. It was this history that caused the Finnish government to side with the Nazis during WWII when given the Reich’s plan to invade Russia and capture Leningrad. War makes strange bedfellows, and when the invasion failed, they found themselves occupied by the German army, including the village where I stayed.
Remnants of the Nazi occupation still exist in Arctic Finland, and at the end of the war, not only was Finland forced to relinquish the sizable territory of Kerala to Russia, but the Germans burned their occupied region to the ground as they retreated. The village of Inari was not spared, being the site of a German army hospital, and every village structure today was constructed since the war’s end.
The Finns still regard Russians with enmity, and is given as the reason for their compulsory service. Local inhabitants regard their harsh environment and knowledge of the terrain as a major defense against Russia.
Another “natural” defense is mounted in spring and summer — mosquitoes and other insects which abound once the snow has melted. So fierce are all the biting insects that the herders remove their reindeer to higher, windier ground, inhospitable to insect predators. Our guide informed us that the Finnish Air Force is composed mainly by the mosquito hordes.
