My Strava doesn’t lie. It shows me walking 300 metres across the water from Helsinki’s shoreline, just near Kaivopuisto in southern Helsinki, to the island of Harakka. I walked over water that is six or seven metres deep!
In winter, Helsinki can spend weeks below zero Celsius, which means vast areas of the sea freeze into thick ice. The water I walked over was covered by about 1.5 metres of solid sea ice. Ice that is strong enough for people to walk, ski, and even cycle across. A whole harbour below me! Surreal and exciting. I don’t think the locals out for Sunday strolls were as thrilled as I was.
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Harakka is a small, rocky island in the open inner archipelago just off the coast of Helsinki’s Kaivopuisto Park. In summer, a ferry connects it to the mainland. The island has varied landscapes, including bare rock, coastal meadows, grasslands, alder groves and small ponds, which make it unusually rich in plant species for its size. It is an important nesting island for seabirds; some areas are closed in spring and early summer, and there is a bird hide, viewing platforms for birdwatching, and a nature centre housed in old military buildings.
Harakka was a military island for decades, with Russian-era barracks (1908), a Finnish Defence Forces chemistry laboratory (1920s) and bunkers and ammunition depots. It opened to the public in 1989
For someone who has spent most of their life in temperate or hot climates (I have lived in Australia, Thailand, El Salvador, Nigeria and the Middle East, none of which are known for cold winters), standing on frozen bodies of water feels both thrilling and slightly unnerving. I have now walked on frozen dams in North America, on a lake in northern Finland, and on the edges of mountain lakes in Tasmania. Walking on a harbour was another deal altogether.
One of the gifts of travel is gaining new experiences and seeing things you would never have at home. I’ve walked on ice before, on ponds in the USA, but this was my first time out on a harbour. For the locals, it was just another winter experience, but for me, it was completely new. As an Aussie, I don’t get many chances to walk across a frozen harbour, so every crunchy step on the ice between Helsinki and Harakka felt surreal and special. I’ve added this to my list of “most memorable new experiences”. The situations that make that list are the ones that make you feel exactly like this: slightly out of your depth and very aware you couldn’t have done it anywhere else.
What are your most memorable travel experiences?
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