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You are putting nicely together Finnish lakeland nature and Finnish culture and history.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thank you, much appreciated. I'm glad you think so. Really enjoying the trip so far!

I drive Route 62 every summer. Simply magnificent!

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Couldn't agree more! I'm still amazed by how few people there were around.

18:50 absolutely beautiful church

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

It's huuuuuge!!

Thank you for doing this video series in Finland.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

It's been a pleasure!! Thanks for watching.

Thank you for visiting Mikkeli and welcome again ❤

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thank you very much, wonderful city! Wished I had a few more hours to explore.

Thank you for your kind presentation of FInland!

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

You're very welcome, thank you for watching.

There is something so healing about being in Finland.

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

There certainly is! 👊

Logs were gathered as flotillas in the lake, and then men rode on those and steered the logs in those flotillas, and tug boat took the flotilla into its destination.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Thank you for the information, very interesting. I've seen a photo of it now and it looks incredible.

@mhh7544

16 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope Thank you mate for the nice videos .

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

You're welcome, amazing place!

Thank you for another very nice video and the oportunity that to give to us to see beautifull places

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thanks for watching, glad you're enjoying the road trip!

Hello. We lived in Mkkeli few years ago. Have a good day. Matti

Somehow you're channel is the only one i keep waiting to update new video every week. Videos are so relaxing and well spoken with history and landscapes videos and nice and smooth editing and while wathcing this video i was thinking that you should get own TV-show to tour all around the earth and show this awesome planet to people with you're style. because even i have hard times to attend to some videos but these i can easily to lock on. Thank you for the video and have a nice trip in Finland

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

Thank you very much for your comment, makes my day when I read stuff like that. Really enjoying the adventure so far, thanks for watching!

Kummakivi is literally "Strangerock". Oh, and the little structure you referred to as a place for a mailman to leave parcels is actually a milk platform. Farmers would leave full canisters there every morning and they'd be distributed from there. These days, it's a truck with a refrigerated tank that goes to the dairy processing facility.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thank you for the info, very interesting to read! I love the idea of those milk platforms, it's great that they've been repurposed and maintained to this day.

I drive that road always when I have the change. Its Beautiful.

@MattWhitingsEurope

5 күн бұрын

It's wonderful for sure!

Great Travel log, Finland certainly looks like a nice place to Travel through.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Amazing place for sure! Thanks for watching.

@robertwilkinson8421

17 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope Subscribed now, looking forward to more of Northern Travels.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

@@robertwilkinson8421 More to come so stay tuned! Thanks again.

Hi Matt, I have driven that road many, many times and it takes my breath every sigle time. Also, I cycled that same road when I was 16 or 17 y old. I'll never ever forget that.

@MattWhitingsEurope

10 күн бұрын

Wow cycling it sounds like even more of an adventure. How many days did it take?

Good afternoon Matt. How are you? Mikkeli has now been saved to my “favourite” places on Maps. Loved when you referred to it as the “Lake district”. Don’t get me wrong. I was in the Lake District in England in the mid 1990’s and it is beautiful but this Lake District looks so remote and way I almost want to call this trip of yours an “epic” journey. Now here is a tricky question…how expensive do you perceive it to be (like your snacks/ drinks en route). I know it’s not easy simply comparing UK prices with those in Scandinavian countries and Finland. Your accommodation prices so far all seemed reasonable Thanks again for the vicarious travel. I’m def hooked on Finland now. Cheers Zoltán

@henriikkak2091

17 күн бұрын

Before he answers... The cost of living and traveling in Finland is about the same as in Sweden, Austria, or Ireland. Not cheap. Not the most expensive either. Far from the likes of Norway or Switzerland which are eye wateringly expensive, even from the Finnish perspective. Traveling by bus is affordable and longer term accommodation reasonably priced even when compared to countries on par. In addition to hotels and Airbnb, we have an abundance of traditional log cabin rentals. A sauna, a lake, a fridge, and a bed. That's it.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Hello Zoltán, hope you're well. Yes it really does feel like an epic adventure, I covered a lot of ground and saw some wonderful places. I know what you mean about Lake District, every time I say it I think of the UK but this particular Lake District is something else. Great question about the costs! I found food and drink to be a bit more expensive than the UK, especially the supermarkets. Car rental was a decent price and I got some real bargain with my accommodation, although I pretty much always opted for the cheapest place I could find. Overall though I'd say prices are comparable to the UK.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

I'd agree with all of that, there's definitely some bargains to be had - especially with accommodation.

@Hongaars1969

13 күн бұрын

@@henriikkak2091 thank you. Very helpful to obtain a general overview and comparisons to countries that I’ve happened to have visited previously. Finland is definitely on my list of places to travel to (way beyond the capital Helsinki)

Smart to get your snacks to hold you over on the roadtrip. But it looks like the bear is coming for your Frosties bar. Quite the deal on the rental car. Absolutely beautiful video!

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

I will fight it bare knuckle style - nobody gets my Frostie bar. 😤 Yes that was a decent deal on the car, glad you enjoyed the video! 😃

@WITYTRAVELS

16 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope 🐻🐻

OMG! You missed the most epic places in Easter Finland...sigh! Savonlinna with it`s Olavinlinna castle where now going on world famous Opera Festivals in that castle...Kerimäki world largest wooden church..etc. Nice that you still did find this route 62, it`s amazing! Greetings from Savonlinna! Bon voyage!

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

Or did I? 😉 Thank you for watching and I'm glad you're enjoying the trip!

@are3287

12 күн бұрын

It's literally in the intro its probably coming

@leolopponen9010

11 күн бұрын

@@are3287 Yep! Hopefully so! I did see those pictures.

My favourite! The scenary is always so impressive.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Totally agree. Incredible place!

I think that a remote place by the lake, with chairs, tables and a firepit, was a place where local young people have had wild beach parties.🍺🍺🍺🍺🍾🍾🍾🍷🥂🍗🍔🌭😃

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Ha I think you could be right! They were probably all out hunting for dinner 😆

That main church of Mikkeli is a Cathedral, as Mikkeli is the seat of one of Finland's Bishops (protestant),

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thanks for the info, very interesting.

@mikrokupu

17 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope More Finnish trivia: Finns are mostly (2/3) Lutheran Protestant. Finland is the least Catholic country in Europe, there are more muslims than catholics.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Incredible! Thanks for the info!

I'm a Finn so the sights aren't at all exotic to me but they do look nice seen from a tourist's perspective. I was on a day trip in Mikkeli (St. Michel) around about the same time as you were, it seems!

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

That's cool, if you happened to see a strange man walking around and talking into a camera THAT WAS ME!!! 😆😆

The animal tracks in sand seemed to be just dog tracks. The pictures didn't give very good idea of scale so they also might have been fox tracks although dog is more probable. Bears are pretty shy actually and tend to avoid humans so you usually don't see them even if they live in the area.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thank you!! Interesting to read. I did have a conversation with a Finnish guy who was a keen hiker, he said in 30 years of being outdoors he had only seen one bear and had just stumbled upon it. He told me as soon as it saw him it ran away.

Enjoyed the beautiful places along with you. Great share

@MattWhitingsEurope

10 күн бұрын

Thank you so much 🙂

Not gonna pretend to be an expert on our road network, as I don't even own a car, but based on the little experience I have I'd give the title of the most scenic road to the one numbered 970.

@MattWhitingsEurope

10 күн бұрын

Interesting. Thanks for the suggestion however I can't seem to locate it. Where does it start and end?

@Anshelm77

10 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope From Karigasniemi to Nuorgam WAY north on the Norwegian border. I noticed after my comment that even the Finnish Wikipedia article mentions that it has been called the most beautiful road in Finland. This is of course subjective, and from a Finnish point of view: it's mountainous out there, and we don't have much of that in Finland, so it undoubtedly gets even more impressive on the other side of the border.

@MattWhitingsEurope

9 күн бұрын

Thank you, I’ll look it up! 👍

Love these

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

I love that you love these! 😁

Just found your channel and I plan on watching all of your videos! Keep up the great work!

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Welcome aboard! Hope you enjoy them!

10:16 Someone must have been walking their pet moose on the beach.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

A pet moose? 😬

@WeightlessBallast

17 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope The first one, triangular, looked a little like a wolverine's or an otter's footprint.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Interesting. Thanks for the info!

Some of those "tracks and trails" that branches off the main road are made for forest industry use. So basically tracks for forest machinery and their trailers, log trucks ets. Called "metsäautotie" in Finnish.

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

That makes sense, thanks for the information. It's remarkable just how many of them there are.

The Oldest building in Mikkeli was built in the 1400s

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Very interesting, thank you!

4:28 It is actually likely that they were not loaded onto a boat. Huge amounts of logs used to, and still are today bound together and floated down stream, or pulled by boats!

@MattWhitingsEurope

14 күн бұрын

Hello, thanks for the info. Someone else mentioned the same thing and pointed me towards a video of the logs being floated down the lake - it was quite an impressive sight.

I was born in the Lake District, a great place to grow I think, the nature started from your backyard. Finland has the so-called "everyman's right", the nature can be freely enjoyed, even if the land is privately owned. Naturally, you should respect people's privacy and not to harm the trees setc.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Sounds like a good set of rules so that everyone can enjoy the wonderful scenery. I would imagine it being a very peaceful and tranquil place to grow up, nice to hear about it.

Always so educational and well made videos with so good background knowledge; great to watch your videos (and still you always look like a normal finnish dude who just "finds places to go" but please consider this as a compliment). Excellent videos and storytelling !!!!! You should buy a new cap, though ;-)

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

Thank you! I certainly will take that as a compliment, I've had a few others mention the same thing. One confirmed that my Finnish name could be Matti 😆. I think I need a 'Finland' cap! Thanks for tuning in.

You ought to have smoked salmon, some barbeque ribs, mushroom salad, pickled cucumber, eggs, rye bread, season's potatoes, real butter, fresh tomatoes and spring onion, sour cream, a lots of beer, a bottle of vodka and some mixers my British friend.. :D

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

I knew I was going wrong somewhere!!

@WeightlessBallast

17 күн бұрын

Rye bread, absolutely, and fried muikku

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Sounds intriguing!

@StPaul76

14 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope xD

@danielrossi8083

13 күн бұрын

muikku and smoked salmon! with some nice beer!

You should most definitely check out the Päijänne scenic route too if you have time! From Vääksy, Asikkala to Korpilahti, Jyväskylä or otherway around. Very beautiful route too.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thank you, I hadn't heard of that one so will make a note of it. Looks incredible!!

As a Finn i am interested in your method of finding the interesting routes and sights to see in Finland. I have visited most of the towns and cities you visit but I do not have the tourists view of things so as such they just seem ordinary places for me. But I see there are many interesting and nice looking places we could visit with my family with a new open "touristy" mind set - which would surely be nice change for our normal summer holiday. But I find it a little difficult to map out those things in my own country. How or by what sources have you determined these routes or places would be interesting? And is there a route map you have followed during your journey? Thanks! But, what are those food items your are carrying? Nothing decent to eat? Throw that shit into garbage and go buy some proper food. Anything goes but not those low grade snacks and soda! This is like some Murican got into Europe and didn't realize proper food is sold in every store. And as a former Londonian I would say you do not sound like a Murican?! 😉

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Interesting question. It's a route that I developed myself over quite a few weeks, as you can imagine there was plenty of chopping and changing in the planning stages. I started by just plotting things I wanted to see onto Google Maps using the 'save' function. These were places I wanted to see, locations that were recommended to me during my previous Finland videos and areas I liked the look of whilst researching Finnish Lakeland. Once they were on the map I started working out a route based on the dates I was due to fly in and out of Helsinki Airport. I pretty much always book my accommodation before travelling for a few reasons: 1) it's usually cheaper and offers free cancellation, 2) it saves a load of time on the day, 3) it means I can better structure my days. The route I followed on this trip was a bit crazy but necessary to get as much in as possible, it weaves back and forth several times. Once I'd found accommodation (usually the cheapest available since I only need a place to sleep the night, arriving late and leaving early) I then spent a bit more time working out how I would fill each day. Quite a few times I had to cancel my accommodation due to my plans changing, or realising I wasn't going to make it as far as I thought. To do this I check things like drive times on Google Maps and whilst plotting in certain stops I also like to leave my options open. For example, on Route 62 I only stopped at about half the places I had on my list, this was mainly due to time constraints. There was also a few places later on in the trip I had to skip due to unforeseen circumstances - you'll find out a bit more in the next video! I've got to say that I love the planning stage and really enjoy putting these trips together, nothing better than an empty page to begin with. There's something very satisfying and rewarding on the plane ride home knowing that all the plans that were sometimes months in the making have paid off. In terms of the food, I take your point. 😆😆 However, I needed plenty of non-perishable food and drink as I knew there would be times on the trip where getting lunch or dinner would be an issue. I would have preferred a restaurant or cafe but due to my location there was nowhere available and I was hungry. I've experienced this many times before when travelling so having some 'junk food' in the car is essential to me. It's either that or nothing. Mind you, dinner wasn't much better - I ate at Burger King in Mikkeli and loved every second of it! Ooops!!

@jattikuukunen

13 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope Cool to hear how you plan your trips. The planning stage sounds too stressful for me, whereas you seem to enjoy it the most. Luckily, there are many ways to go about a trip like this, so everyone can choose what they prefer. I would probably opt for a camper van of some sort so I wouldn't need to worry about booking the accomodation for each night. To get slightly philosophical, that would make the journey different even if the path was exactly the same.

Typo in title, the city is called Mikkeli, not Mikkele

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thank you! Corrected 👍

@WeightlessBallast

17 күн бұрын

Perkeli!

Not to forget Lake Saimaa is connected to Lake Päijänne, Lake Vesijärvi and Lake Kallavesi/iso-Kalla forming a large and far reaching waterway.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Incredible isn't it? So vast it's actually quite hard to comprehend.

@mikkorenvall428

17 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope Just a day in the office for some... kzread.info/dash/bejne/mqthpKuJgLKWhMo.html

@mikkorenvall428

17 күн бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/oqaVxcqpdNeWl6g.html

@jussahuttunen7784

16 күн бұрын

Lake Päijänne and Lake Vesijärvi is part of Kymijoki river watershed so they are not connected to Lake Saimaa. They were part of Lake Saimaa about 6000 years ago but now they are part of completely different watersheds 🤓.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

I wonder how far you can get without leaving the water?! Great videos, enjoyed watching them and good to see it happening with my own eyes.

Me Kelly.😅 when you get to a double consonant in Finnish, KK, PP, TT, SS, LL you don't pronounce it twice but you should hold that consonant just a bit longer at that point. Just enough that it can be noticed.

@MattWhitingsEurope

10 күн бұрын

Thanks for the guidance, very useful. Thanks.

Harjutie (Yhdystie 4792) is the most beautiful route in Finland, it was voted as the "Century Road"!

@MattWhitingsEurope

14 күн бұрын

Sounds interesting, where in Finland will I find it?

@mattir900

12 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope Harjutie is located at the Punkaharju, east of Savonlinna about 30km away.

Try to experience all the 7 wonders of savo

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

What are the 7 wonders of Savo?

@Azurall47

17 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope Kalakukko (regional food), Korkeakoski waterfall, Seinävuori gorge valley, Pisa nature reserve, Puijo tower, Savo dialect and Orinnoro gorge.

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Thank you, those places look amazing but I won't get a chance to see them on this trip. I have made a note of them on my map though so if I return I'll check them out. Thanks for the suggestions, always good to get some recommendations!

16:30 not abandoned, just minimal use :) There was houses near u know

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

I didn't realise, it felt very isolated.

Great video again! I am not 100% sure, but I think those footprints on the beach were left by a moose and a common raccoon dog. Nice drone shots at Pistohiekka!

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Thanks very much! Interesting, was wondering if I might have spotted a bear print.

[5:15] Kaima means namesake, might have been a pet name or a last name. ( I have never head Kaima being a last name, but why not. :D ) [10:10] Admittnly the first print is a bit tough, first I was thinking otter, but I think that also is a dog. Just washed a bit with the rain. Those animal tracks are all dogs, wolf tracks are way more longer, not so round as a dog's, and bear paws are the size of your hand fully opened and it is wide, not round like a dog paw, and the nail prints are more in line than how they are more a horseshoe shape in dogs paw. (Fox and raccoon dogs have tiny paw prints. Those prints that you showed looked about like german shepherd sized pawprint looking from the sand grain size. So a medium sized dog(s).) Finland has huge amount of pet dogs, and we have almost none homeless dogs. And you should not see dogs that are not in leash out and about. Some of us dog-people say it is a lottery win for a dog to have a home in Finland. ;D

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

That's interesting to read, thanks for the information. I probably should have used something as a size reference as it's hard to work out the size on the video. If I come back as a dog I now know to choose Finland!

4:00 the logs wouldn't have been put on boats. They do float by themselves.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

So they would have just been tugged away? Thanks for the info!

@Lahiss

17 күн бұрын

@@MattWhitingsEurope It is still being done in Saimaa kzread.info/dash/bejne/oqaVxcqpdNeWl6g.html An example of old time log rafting from riverds and rapids: kzread.info/dash/bejne/iIqB2bppkZu1lqw.html

@MattWhitingsEurope

16 күн бұрын

Great videos, thanks for posting! So much more impressive when you get to see it in action.

It is raining now here in Mikkeli. Sorry !

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

I must have visited at the right time. It had been raining the day before but I only got a few brief showers between Puumala and Mikkeli.

PS. That’s bloody good value for money for a one week car rental. Good to know.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Yes I agree, I thought it was going to be more than that! I think it might have worked out to 8 days so can't complain!

James may approves.

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

Glad to hear it 😄

4:00 I don't think they would have been loaded onto a barge, but they would have simply been tied together into a loose raft and perhaps hauled with a boat.

@MattWhitingsEurope

15 күн бұрын

You're right. A few others have mentioned this and I've now seen a video of them doing just that - incredible to see!! Thanks for the info.

On rational level I know it's because pre-industrial farming societies had relatively low yields in area of modern day Finland, people had to live in small communities spread over large areas. Still sometimes travelling in places like Savonia and Karelia I instictively start to ponder "why do people live where? What's here?"-

@GGLEGO

17 күн бұрын

Why not? They were born there and their family and relatives have lived there for hundreds if not thousands of years.

@Pyhantaakka

17 күн бұрын

People used to live around bodies of water, as it made movement easier and provides food. Lake Saimaa connected large areas together. Rivers do the same, for example Oulu and Kajaani is connected by waterway. Same applies to lake ladoga and Karelians. Oh, amd of course Saimaa is connected to ladoga and ladoga is connected to Gulf of Finland.

@JaniOllikainen

16 күн бұрын

Hey, Knut, I smell bacon this way... ;) If that doesn't tell you anything, google it and Wulff-Morgenthaler. It's taken from comic strip.

Oh my. Unleaded fuel? That car must be really modern. 😆😆

@MattWhitingsEurope

17 күн бұрын

The future is here!

Kaima = namesake

@MattWhitingsEurope

10 күн бұрын

Thanks, got it!

ASIKKALA-SYSMÄ-LUHANKA-KORPILAHTI beats the shit out of this 1. Take my heed, driven it dozens of xxx. Always take that from LAHTI - JYVÄSKYLÄ.

@MattWhitingsEurope

10 күн бұрын

Thank you! A few others have mentioned the same road, sounds like it's a good one. I've made a note of it so who knows! Maybe one day!! Thanks for the suggestion. 👍