Blog
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The Picks of the Season 2019
The past summer was our sixth Wayfarer sailing season. There were many great moments once again, and we gained some sailing experience too. In the following post I have analyzed the highlights of the season.
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Suuri Lintusaari
· Suur-Saimaa · Sarastus · 23 MOne of the top destinations in the previous summer was Suuri Lintusaari. We thought it would be nice to revisit it. A fresh southerly breeze would make it possible to broad reach if we launched from Sarviniemi slipway. So, we set off in late afternoon on Satuday and headed to east. The breeze blew at 17 knots in the beginning but gradually fell to 8 knots when Suuri Lintusaari started to be close.
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Ilkonsaaret and Peräsaari
· Suur-Saimaa · Sarastus · 34 MOur objective was to sail to Peräsaari where we hadn’t been for a while. The weather service predicted wind of 1-9 knots which would strengthen to 9-17 knots by the evening. So, the conditions looked quite promising.
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Halsskär and Södra Benskär
· The Archipelago Sea · Sarastus · 31 MIn March Seppo and I had agreed on the day and destination for a sailing trip in August. However, as the weather forecast got more and more accurate we realized the northern lake, which was our initial planned destination, would be quite cool and rainy during the chosen weekend. After discussing and weighting alternatives we ended up keeping the day but changing the destination. The trip would take place in the Archipelago Sea!
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Hietasaari
· Suur-Saimaa · Sarastus · 6 MFinally a warm breeze from Central Europe reached the coolness and raininess of the North. We wanted to make a boat trip to somewhere where you could swim comfortably. The weather service predicted northerly light breeze, so we chose Hietasaari as an easy destination. Sarastus was launched at Sarviniemi, which was an abnormally crowded place, and headed to north. In the beginning light breeze made us to progress nicely at speed of four knots.
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Lanskeri
· The Gulf of Finland · Sarastus · 16 MOnce the Finnish national parks connoted to me just frontiers in the distant Lapland. That was a quite limited view which has broadened not only because of our trips to other onshore national parks but also to those on the sea. The Eastern Gulf of Finland National Park is often shadowed by the more well-known ones but that doesn’t mean it wouldn’t have many magnificent destinations to see.
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Värrätsaari
· Suur-Saimaa · Sarastus · 13 MThe beginning of July was record-breaking cool and rainy. We had looked for a weather window for several days. Northerly wind offered a nice chance to try an unusual destination. We set off for Värrätsaari island whose best shores open to southeast and southwest. It’s bit a secluded place compared to the more popular destinations, but that makes it also more quiet.
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Taka-Ruuho
· Suur-Saimaa · Sarastus · 13 MFamily sailing is often about balancing between other commitments and weather. Finally there was an optimal day to have a trip. Our destination was set to Taka-Ruuho island, where a moderate crosswind took us nicely.
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Päihänniemi
· Suur-Saimaa · Sarastus · 5 MThe meteorologists had praised loveliness of the upcoming weekend. The surface water temperatures in southern Finnish lakes have started to be at acceptable level, that allowed to go for sailing confidently in light air. The official marine forecast predicted variable wind from zero to five knots. Essentially that’s not an ideal sailing weather as dead calm is to be expected. Still, it ensured a safe journey and beautiful weather.
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Towards Summer
This morning, after opening the curtains, it seemed like the spring had been cancelled, as we had got several centimetres of snow during the night. Temperature raised above zero by noon and most of the new snow melted from the roads and the roofs. It was a nice surprise to find a few yellow coltsfoots near our home! On Lake Saimaa there is still a thick ice layer of 35 centimetres of left and it isn't going to melt any soon.