Lappinreissu

Base camp at Tapojoki, conveniently located near Yllästunturi, Pallastunturi, and Levi

Day 1: foggy, then snowy.  Couldn't see much.

Day 2: Alpine Skiing at Yllästunturi

Weather: much better.

Oh, you know- I've just been working out at the gym lately,

and my shirt size happened to triple in the last month..

Yep.

Hit up the park like a pro..

not

Marko en route to downing 3 makkara's.. poor guy forgot to pack anything else

The versatile Finnish sausage- can be eaten in a sandwhich,

..or count as a serving of fruit..

After our late lunch we hit up the hill for a couple more runs.

Count the tracks: 2.

Tuomas and I couldn't resist the urge to poach a freshly-groomed closed run- it was over 3K long

Looking straight up at the sky: Big Dipper pointing to Polaris and the Little Dipper

..and of course: Northern Lights

Simppa playing with fire

Planning our route over breakfast

Day 3 at Pallastunturi

How about that for a view?

Crust skiing on a tunturi.  Does it get ANY better?

That dot is a cabin, and just so happens to be the furthest north I've ever been in my life.

Skiing out over the more-or-less-frozen lake..

I let the others go first

The light at the end of the tunnel.

A grueling climb back up over the ridge to get back to the cars.

It felt like climbing Hairpin 5 times, with a Cemetery Hill as a set break.

Some of these hills were just NOT meant for descending

Day 4: Last expedition, back to the Ylläs area, for an ascent of Kukastunturi.

Just drinking in the scenery.

Wow that was a bad pun.

"Ski team": Marko, Michiganin Mies, Jouko.

At the end of the journey: Sunlight

And coffee.

Heading back "Down South"