BORDER GUARDS FOUND ME!
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- Опубликовано: 8 сен 2024
- This time I Ieave winter vanlife and my self built campervan behind and make my way on foot with frozen boots thought the Arctic wilderness 50km in freezing temperatures to a reach Treriksrøysa which is the point Russia / Norway / Finland all meet 3 country border cairn . I have a camp fire and snow camp in the forest, I also meet the lovely and helpful Norwegian military border guards. I was the first foreigner to reach the point to this winter. No Chinese diesel heater to me warm at night this time, a sleep bag and a camp fire. I was Exhausted and cold by the end
Normally It’s only a 5.5km walk in summer to reach the Treriksrøysa and back again. But the 19km of road before had it in possible. The trek is public access year round a popular. It’s not public access from the Finland side
#livingthevanlife #wintervanlife #chinesedieselheater
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I did my service up there as a border guard. We didnt get many visitors in the winter time. They probably speak about the crazy Brit for the rest of the winter!😂
I asked them about how many people had come visit this winter. They said I was the first foreigner this year and only the second person, as a Norwegian had visited before.
I was surprised that they seemed quite fine with me being there, and actually enjoy something different to do
@@MispronouncedAdventures Yes, they certainly thought it was nice to meet you.
I can promise you one thing, it can get very boring up there in the winter on the darkest days. So you became the exotic element in a routine existence.
May I ask where you are now?
And where does the trip go next?
@@thenorseman2804 that doesn’t surprise me, especially with the short daylight hours and remote location that things out of the normal routine are probably on the rare side.
Next up was to make my way over to Vardø, from there, the plan was pretty vague, but met up with some other British vans in Alta
@@MispronouncedAdventures Nice! Maybe I'll see you one day. Hitting the road in a week or two! Stay safe!
Enjoy!
When you get older it's all about the experiences and memories and you've just 'enjoyed' a good one 👍 Well done Alex.
Generally always, enjoy my adventures, regardless of the discomfort along the way 😁
"Don't throw stones or snowballs at Russia" 🤣
Great video as always dude ✌
I guess launching projectiles into Russia could been seen as Hostile!
You could become invaded...
@@friendoftellus5741 probably not invaded, you’ll be more in trouble with the Norwegian police than the Russian side. Each sides job is to hold the international treaties they agreed. I talked to the Norwegian border guards about how the repercussions of incidents happen.
It's illegal to cross the border, and that means crossing with anything x) Some places you can even throw the fishing line over the border, because the border goes in the middle of the lake, and that gives you a fine ;) Last time I checked it was 50 bucks, but that is years ago, so it's most likely a higher fine now.
@@eskrace1104 indeed it is. Was chatting the border guide how it works. Fines are dependent on the nature of the infraction. they were mentioning they are having more and more issues with people flying drones to get videos and photos I cairn
Fair play Alex, that was no small walk in those conditions. Takes a strong mind to even consider walking 50k in those temperatures. Glad you did though. It was an amazing episode. Did it feel like the Norwegians were almost teasing you every time they drove past, even though they weren’t and just doing their job while making sure you were ok.
For me, I knew it was well within my skill set in those conditions and I had the equipment for it. It would’ve dwelled on my mind that I took the easy option if I didn’t do it.
I didn’t choose to record my interactions with much of the Norwegian border guards, who were frankly quite lovely, and they passed me a few other times during the day. Generally I think none of them would’ve had an issue personally giving me a lift, but they were told they weren’t allowed to which is perfectly reasonable. That being said, I do wish every time they drove past me I could of gone on!
My father almost caused an international incident in the 80's when he went for a swim in the river on the norwegian/russian border. Border guards on both sides were not amused. He just wanted to go for a swim, and didn't quite see what all the fuss was about.
I originally tried to get to that border area with the river, but there road was closed for the winter
I think for many Europeans it is hard to understand that there is a true border between countries where you can't play around. There are every year usually couple of cases of UK, Italian or German tourists that get to the border area before being stopped. If it's Russians that get you you can expect couple of days in jail.
@@tissot233 There is no need to invent fairy tales if crossing the Russian border will only result in a fine. If you cross the Finnish border, you will get 10 days in prison.
@@tissot233 In fact, the Russians are weakly guarding the border in this place. If you do not go far into the territory of Russia, your chances of seeing border guards are low.
@@DIOS-M Venturing into Russia without permission, especially these days would land you in a Russian prison on an espionage charge. So don't do it.
What an absolutely amazing trip. Thank you for documenting it so well.
The best vlog you have ever done about your travels, awesome!!!
Glad you have been enjoying them! Thank for watching!
I am really impressed by your hiking skills. It is hard to walk in snow like this and you did 30 km the first day👍I live in Pasvik and have visited Treriksrøysa several times by car, motorcycle, snowmobil and on skiis, but have never walked the hole distance like you did. So big 👍 for you. I wish you a nice adventure in Norway😊
I do with a had a snowmobile or skis but at short notice it wasn’t an option for me.
I do have enjoy long distance walking so I had to give it a go
Skis would have been nice.
They would of yes
_"I am really impressed by your hiking skills. It is hard to walk in snow like this and you did 30 km the first day👍"_
The first thought that came to my mind also when I watched this video. And keeping up a pace of 5k/h!?!? Kudos to this chap!!!
@Muddy283 cheers! My background is an expedition leader and guides. I taken clients all over the globe from jungles, deserts, winter mountains and more for the last 10 years! I’ve had a bit of practice 😊
Thats a Hägglunds BV 206 the guys are rolling with. I drove one of those during my conscription in the finnish defence forces. Its a super agile vehicle, it can cross almost any terrain, even swamps and open water.
They look like amazing bits of equipments. I was pretty impressive seeing them in the deep snow
It has great snow traversing capabilities. It distributes the weight very well. You have to watch out, when getting out. The snow will carry this thing, but not your feet. You might sink in "a bit". 😂
Swedish engineering at its best. Love our Finnish and Norwegian brothers
@@Erik3E Love you too bro!
NATO-time! Nordic Brothers: together, at last!
🇸🇪🇫🇮🇩🇰🇳🇴🇮🇸
Damn what nice border guards and they were also speaking english really good!
Almost everyone in the Nordics speaks England very well. But yeah very nice people
This channel gets better and better the more confident you become on camera! Absolutely love the more honest approach. Just feels more genuine… Once again, loving your work Alex top man
Thanks for watching and I’m glad you like my approach!
I was expecting another mega cozy vanlife video but this caught me off guard. Hats off to you for pulling this off, and I'm positive you absolutely made headlines for months to come in that guard tower.
For me this video went oddly well, I expected it to flog as it wasn’t van related. But it seems people enjoyed me on a silly adventure.
The border guards, I met said I was the first for this year, so it was something different and exciting to do for them
A mountaineering tip for you: next time keep your boots in the sleeping bag with you for the night. That way they won't freeze. Nice hike you had there.
Aye indeed, I slept before my outer kit between the sleeping bag and the roll mat. Normally I used my technical B3 mountaineering boots ( Scarpa Phantom guides ) for mountaineering stuff, but as they are synthetic, I wouldnt normally use them as a pillow as the outer don’t wet out. But I switched to my lighter leather boots for this as I didn’t fancy walking 50km in a solid B3 boots, and my leather boots clearly need re-proofing. If I had noticed away on the outside or inside, I would’ve done that.
@@MispronouncedAdventures I did the same thing with my cross-country ski boots on the last night when I was serving up there. We where on a 2 week exercise and on the last night we slept in a snowhole. I always kept my bots under my sleeping bag at about knee level, but this night I was just so wore out I forgot. Woke up in the morning, boots frozen solid, I mean rock solid. Getting them on was a battel. Never did that again.
In my Swedish military service when we slept in a snow cave dug out from the snowy hill side we used to put the boots close to us or in the seeping bag so they didn't freeze. There is actually a risk that you break your shoelaces if you pull them when frozen.
Normally I’d used differently boots for winter and use them for a pillow if I’m winter camping or in a snow hole. I keep my outdoor kit between my sleeping bag and roll mat to keep them warm.
Finnish military uses rubber boots with thick felt liners in the winter, no freezing problems with the boots and the felt liners can easily be taken inside the sleeping bag if needed.
I’ve only recently discovered your channel and so happy I did !! Wow… you must be so proud of achieving that … well done you !! That was pretty brutal …. But I did laugh at the frozen laces 🤣 I’m going to enjoy binge watching all your videos now 😁 you’re awesome… funny…clever … brave…and a bit nuts 😂
Well I’m glad to hear you found my channel and you are enjoying it! I have to admit I was laughing myself at the frozen laces! Slightly grimacing as well because I was going to have to wear those boots for the next 19km 😂
Greetings from Finland! I have seen many videos of hiking to that place but this was the first one which was recorded in winter. Supercool video!
Thank you! When I was researching it I couldn’t find much information about it in winter
@@MispronouncedAdventures That's quite surprising that many people go there in winter too.
I guess Norwegian border guards are there 24/7 for watching hikers not to cross Russian border. Probably like 2 hour shifts or like that. Defence forces of Finland has a lot of similar vehicles as they drove in your video.
Did you know that you can't reach that point from Finland because there's a border zone between Finland and Russia? It's typically 400-1000 meters wide and entering the zone is prohibited without a special permission.
Yeah, not many people at all in winter. I was the first foreigner that year and only the second person.
I had also read that the Norway side was the only place approachable by foot with public access
@@MispronouncedAdventures I guess we Finns tend to go to the Norwegian-Swedish-Finnish border stone which is much easily approachable: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-Country_Cairn
Visited that one as well. A shorter walk for sure!
Alex you are a handy bloke to know in the frozen wilds. Really enjoyed this, thanks 🇬🇧🇬🇧
Highly qualified in the area as well 😁
@@MispronouncedAdventures I hope you do more of these adventures. Pretty epic. But please bring skis next time! Make it a series: A Brit learning to ski!
Another great vlog and that icicle on your face was impressive you are one hard core bloke or just bonkers haha like always look forward to your next vlog.
Thank you for watching! And probably just bonkers!
Awesome! Looking forward to the van being upgraded with tracks instead of wheels, could come in handy in these conditions.
That would be some hard work! I think a AWD with chains could of done it.
Strongly suggest you instal an electrical winch system on your van for just such emergencies. Just tie it of on a strong tree or rock and tow yourself out. I also keep portable metal snow tracks in my car during the winter and slip those underneath the wheels and voila, you are free.
Indeed, I have brought up in in previous videos on this trip. The electric winch is definitely something I’m looking into
Great backpack you got there. Subscribed myself to your channel. Thanks for taking us along. Greetings from the Netherlands.
Cheers. It’s one of my main expedition bags. It’s been all over the world. it’s a Lowe Alpine Altus
Fabulous video Alex. Pretty sure that tracked vehicle is a Volvo. British army has them as well but with normal tracks. Awesome bits of kit for most terrain. Wonderful shelter area for people who venture out there. Keep up the wonderful adventure videos mate. Safe Travels
Whatever model it was, it was a pretty cool, looking a bit of kit!
It's a Hägglunds BV 206 or 208 manufactured by Hägglunds in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. (Since that Hägglund has been included in BAE Systems.) They where common in the Swedish army and many was sold to the privat market when the military downsized in the 90's.
It's dead easy to get a short stay Russia visa online and it costs very little. Russians are extremely pleasant, interesting and hospitable- they just want to protect their borders- and are doing better than we are, that's for sure. And taking a vehicle into Russia is very easy too - one can buy insurance online or on the border, again cheaply. Forget all the Western propaganda and paranoia nonsense, I've been there / driven there time after time and was only met by kindness and decency across the entire country.
It doesn’t appear to be easy at all for a Brit to get a visa or cheap. Information says whilst I can do parts online I must go to a visa application centre in London, Manchester or Edinburgh to submit biometric data and a single entry tourist visa is £365. I would do this in my home country before hand. with Russia current being “all but essential travel” by our FCO, normal travel insurance and normal vehicle insurance will not work or cover Russia.
Before the current conflict as well, on a previous trip we looked at going between Finland and Estonia via St Petersburg, but again visas did not seem viable or easily attainable for us
@@MispronouncedAdventures it may be a sudden issue because of the war - though e-visas (short stay) online started only a year or so ago. You can get Russian vehicke insurance of varying levels of cover on the border/online, I checked only 2 months ago. Normally travel insurance covers one as far as the Urals - again that may have suddenly changed. I'll ask a few friends and if can get up to date info will let you know. Cheers.
@@MispronouncedAdventures ah, I found out that most (not all) EU countries' citizens can get an easy e-visa, as can those of many other countries worldwide - but not Brits. I can understand the Russians' point there after the trouble we've escalated, but sad for ordinary travellers. So full visa it is then, for Brits, from London, and entry points are of course v limited (not by Russia but by Europe) - easiest is to enter via Turkey, (and sometimes Estonia, but even that border crossing is becoming uncertain now).
Great job Alex! One of my favourite video’s so far. Well worth the effort to generate that impressive snoticle. Every video you post makes me want to make the trip more. I’ll have to start researching preheaters and battery warmers for next winter.
Glad you enjoyed it! That’s snoticle, even surprised me I knew it was there, but I couldn’t really see it in person until I took the video I was surprised by the overall length! Best of luck on your research, I have a Videos in on both of those area
nice video. my sort of adventure... had my legs let me but nice to see others doing stuff like this.
It was a great fun of an adventure, but my knee was not thanking me a few days later
Hey ! Cool ! I have been at that place too. By ski...in 1985. We got four day of from the military... because we asked to go skiiing a roundtrip in that area. We were four of us and on the trip we past and visited Treriksrøysa... Nice nature up there and...we got free time...just because they considered it training...and excercise so we would be more effective and better kanon fodder...if those three countries choosed to do so...with you and me. Never the less...I still live and did have a marvolus life...and still optimist for rest of life.... Like this traveller...optimistic and down to real life ! :-)
Thank you very much for liking the!
I have to admit skis would probably made my life a lot easier, but just as I didn’t have them. I’m not gonna shy away from a bit of work.
Sounds like you had quite the enjoyable trip and adventure yourself when visiting!
I really did ! :-) Fresh air and that nice nature and all the space we hade! We all enjoyed sucsessfull winter skii there. Take care :-). Keep adventure coming ! :-)
How cool was that tracked vehicle the Norwegian border guards were using! It looks like it can go anywhere!
Just a reminder that this trek to the three country cairn is public accessible but only from the Norwegian side all year around.
Looked like a BV206, we had them in the UK forces (or did when I was in).
@@chriscameron5873 Yes, it is. They are really fun to drive and you can go almost everywhere with them.
@@chriscameron5873 It is a BV206 ... swedish built tough .. and yeah we have had a few of them for a long time, they do get you almost everywhere.
When I served the army as a borderguard I remember one of our drivers used to submerge these quite too often 😛, he simply just drowned it.
BV stands for Beltevogn - literally means belt wagon. The Swedes claims it means Bandvagn - band wagon lol. I guess that's why they have ABBA.
BV206 is quite a fun vehicle to drive.
Just one word for thIs blog Alex. EPIC! Love the wildness of the area and getting there in the dark was, in some ways, better. It was all a bit sinister, what with the border guards there and Russia a few steps away. Bet there was some comms going on with the torch light being seen so close! 🤣 Well done. You can definitely call this one a success, despite forgetting your tin mug. 🤣
Glad you enjoyed it! Also, I didn’t see any people on the other side of the border. I am well aware that they would likely watching from the tower opposite the Norwegian one at the beginning of the walk
Would have given anything for a ride in the Viking! Great piece of kit.
You need a winch, snatch block, various slings, multiple clevis, tire chains, shovel, traction pads, etc.
I’d quiet like a few of those things for sure
@@MispronouncedAdventures I live in rural Canada so when it gets cold dress warm and have tools to solve your problem without walking. In most cases, do not travel when it is really cold. Biggest problem is when no one is around to assist. Stay safe.
@adamz8276 I’ve plenty of equipment to look after myself, plenty of warm kit, to satellite comms. I chose walk to the walk in this case.
That looked epic. Very enjoyable to watch. Seeing you go walking into the wilderness was very interesting.
Glad it was enjoyed a bit different from my usual videos
There's not many videos where I have a continual involuntary urge to hit the "thumbs up" button when I have already hit it. Your walk in the snow made me think of the book The Long Walk by Slavomir Rawicz, a book I'm sure a lot of your followers would love.
Well thank you for hitting the thumbs up button and I’m not familiar with that book. I will have to look it up!
Amazing book. Harrowing is the word that comes to mind 👍
that is bs story , sorry but it is bullshit story
Ya? I'm gonna start reading I tonight
❤❤❤ that is one of the BEST videos I have ever seen. Such an adventure - don’t have the words to express how EXCITING it was. THANK YOU ❤❤❤
Thank you very much for the praise. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Sharing the hell out of it 😅
Thank you 😊
That was an impressive trek. Nice weather. Not too much wind. Wind would have made that a brutal trip. Lovely terrain.
Aye wind which of made it less fun. At least the forest would of given some good protection. But the wind chill would of made it feel a lot colder
Alex... Excellent idea and brilliant youtube, with outdoor survival thrown in, 9 out of 10 for missing mug 😵💫
I was so annoyed! I had two of my 1 L water bottles with me but they are plastic, but forgot my titanium cooking set!
But on reflection I very much appreciate the mileage you had in you to do the walk so call it 10 out of 10 😀
That was a great video mate loved it fair play to you for the hike in and out a lot of people would have turned back, keep up the great work. Atb Wullie ✊🏻🏴
Thank you very much! I had the skillset, kits and fitness for it! So I had no real good reason not to do it!
Can't believe you did not notice the Finnish snipe and spotter team buried in the snow.
I wouldn’t expect too! history has proven their very good at their jobs!
In which minute?
@@tiberius579 Obviously that was a joke, those guys were there for sure. but you can't see them ever.
Alex, that's some of the best 27 minutes I've had in a while, and I do actually have a life 😀 what a great video.
Thank you very much, glad you enjoyed the watch! I was getting worried during the editing phase that it might of been overall too long!
OMG I miss that place... I never thought I'd say it! A friend of mine has a cabin up there. I'm gonna have to talk me into giving him a visit one day.
It’s great here
Lol, "Sauron", brilliant!
Great yomp Alex, thanks for sharing.
I am laid up with injuries just now awaiting surgeries so I can't tell you how much I appreciate your videos, but I'll try...
I REALLY appreciate your adventure videos, the filming, the determination, the humour - thank you!
I felt a little harsh referring to the Norwegians as Sauron but they were a glowing red tower in the distance, watching me! I wish you all the best with your surgeries and a speedy recovery. Glad you’ve been enjoying the videos.
Yet again another ballsy adventure well documented. Enjoying watching your winter travels. Did those boots ever warm up?😄
Those boots thawed out when back in the van! At least they softened up on the walk a wee bit!
You're fantastically amazingly nuts!!!! Wow for this video. Well done on just the walk alone. ❤
I do my best to be nuts
Alex, you are officially bonkers brilliant in my book. My family still waiting to be fed coz I wanted to see this all in one go. Love the way you take everything in your stride, pun intended 😆 Well done dude.
👏🏅👍
I’m glad you have enjoyed the video and apologise to the family for me. I hope you get fed soon.! Lots of strides in this case!
The pink hat gave you away😅
That and maybe walking down the middle of the main road they drive down
Very jealous, spent several years up at Bardufoss with the RN! Absolutely stunning country side! Used to drive the BV’s there (the tracked vehicle) too as it’s the only way to travel in those conditions! Well done!
Those are definitely an incredible bit of equipment. Must’ve been a lot of fun to drive.
Imagine that when you finally get back to the van you realize that you forgot the car key back at the camp... Well done, this 50 km march. In the snow. On foot. Impressive
I would be fuming! I wonder if I told the Norwegian border guards that story, they might actually give me a lift back 😂😂
@@MispronouncedAdventures Haha. i guess they would. Especially if you "decleared an emergency"
You are amazing. Doing a trek like that on your own. You are the guy I wish I was. Resourceful, determined, fearless and (mostly) prepared. You need to come to New Zealand and hike some of our mountain trails...
Cheers.
I would love to come to NZ and go trekking!
@@MispronouncedAdventures You'll only be let in if you can pronounce Aotearoa correctly, with the stress on the right syllable.
Just bevare, there have been some hikers that never returned home. Saw a documentary about that! Be careful, but most of the times it goes absolutly fine 👍🤞
Great video! "Alex's guide to dating". Swiping front to back with Tinder. 🤣🤣
Haha yes!
I feel like I just saw into a little world I didn't know existed. Great work.
Thank you very much for watching. Little glimpse into my mad & cold world 😂
the sauron joke was pretty funny ngl
Glad you liked it
When you get close enough to the border that roaming might switch to a different provider, consider changing the roaming setting to manually pick network. It could get expensive if not.
That’s what I do ( Im not sure if I say in the video ) but I manually switch to back to a Norwegian mast.
with my EE contract you can’t accidentally use roaming outside your area with replying to the message and approving it . But not all companies are like that
the snot icicle at the end hahahahahah awesome
It’s my far the longest I’ve ever cultivated
I couldn't help thinking "why aren't you skiing?!?" again and again while watching this ;) But that was a rather respectable winter hike, so very well done! Greetings from Finland!
If I had skis with me I would of! ( or if I could of found somewhere to rent them I would of! )
Just put it down to Brits being weird and liking to walk places!
@@MispronouncedAdventures I put it down to Brits having enough sisu to do it the hard way ;)
That’s a good word, I like that
By seeing youtube comments Lotta seems to be very common name in Finland or are you seeing Nordic videos and commenting a lot 😅😊
At the bootcamp when we where outdoors sleeping we used to put our cloths including the boots at the bottom of the sleepingbag to keep them warm in the morning...
Very true, I do what normally I’d do with snowholes or camping in snow where all my outer kit does between sleeping bag and the roll mat to keep it warm.
Boots wise I normally would use them as pillow is they were wet. Buy normally use a synthetic pair in winter were the outer doesn’t wet out. But I went for my lighter leather boots that time. Whilst they were dry on the inside, they outer was dry during the day but the first must of melted to snow on the them make outer went with me noticing in the dark
-16 is a warm day. It can be an issue up there starting the car as in some models the pre heating stops working at low temperatures. We needed to get a tow company to start our car at -34 as the cold drained the battery charge. They can and started it with a truck battery. Is your van back wheel drive? That would be a nightmare up there. Cheers Andrew from Helsinki.
Aye, -16c was sent really that cold compared to the rest of the trip. Starting the engine isn’t a issue for me. A 5kw diesel powered engine, preheater and a a number of charging options for the started if flat. Rear wheel drive is far better than front wheel drive on snow with vans with weight in the back axle . Cars can be the opposite as generally the heavier part is the engine over the front wheels.
Really enjoyed watching the walk to the cairn 😮
As did I! A good fun adventure, even more so afterwards
@@MispronouncedAdventures finding your Artic vlogs fascinating. We’re soon to do a road trip to Tromsø in our trusty Volvo. It’s in for service on Wednesday to get fluids winterised, don’t want slush-puppy coolant😅
Best episode ever
Glad you enjoyed it!
That was epic.. that "snotsickle" on your face.. lol
I’ve had many a snotsickle over the years! And that one wins by a mile
Absolutely love this episode 🤩, well done for the long hike into the snow Alex,you're videos are inspiring our adventures, thanks for sharing 🤗 Oh and a very cool icicle by the way 🤣🥶❄️
Cheers for watching! You’re own adventures are great!
@@MispronouncedAdventures Thanks 🤗
Well Done! We are inpressad by your long and hard walk to the cairne.
I do enjoy long distance walking, so it was a good opportunity, and I kind of had no reason not to do it since it was well within my abilities
Don’t touch the rock lol, fantastic vlog looks so peaceful albeit next to Russia. Did you do a vlog on the van set up for the cold with pre heaters etc. interested to see how your engine block doesn’t freeze and what van insulation you used on your build . Keep em coming.
Definitely don’t touch the rock no more international incidents please! Yes, it is some ways of mad to see how peaceful the border this country is, but then again, Russia, the largest land borders of the world and I get a very small part of it is the problem.
And yes, if you find the build series for the van, I have videos about engine pre heater, main heater and more
Depends a bit where you touch the rock. If you do it in Russia, you'll rot away in some Siberian jail. If you do it in Finland, you'll be totally bankrupt, because they take a percentage out of your yearly salary. If you're in Norway, you'll get a standard fine, but it's a pretty painful one, however.
I'd really like to know why they are so pedantic about touching a bloody rock?!!
@@chartphred1 becuse you are not allowed to touch border markers. If you touch the top stone where the borders meet you are also tecnicaly in Russia, and liable to a hefty fine. Also, people tend to run around the cairn for fun, that is about a 1 500 euro fine for each round...
@frodestock1676 the Norwegian border guards. When I was there were really quite nice and chatty off camera and they told me about some of the issues they have in summer with people doing those things are not taking it seriously. And repercussions of doing so.
Enjoyed the HELL out of this! Love your sense of humor! Excellent vid! Glad I found you the 1st time you came...
Thank you very much for watching! I’m glad you enjoyed it and my sense of humour!
@@MispronouncedAdventures yvw!
@@MispronouncedAdventures bet that fire felt excellent!
The usual,practice to avoid frozen boots is to take them into the sleeping bag. Not comfortable but can be pretty effective.
That night, I slept with all my outer clothes under my sleeping bag but above my roll mat to keep ( same as I would do normally in the winter camping ) my boots. On the other hand, I presumed they weren’t wet because they had been frozen all day. Unfortunately, they got wet due to the fire in the evening, melting them out.
If I was doing it again, I would’ve use them as a pillow to keep them warm. Oversight on my behalf. But not too much of an issue as I knew they were dry on the inside.
@@MispronouncedAdventures how much was the temperature when you slept outside ?
@silvanbeppigno4050 warm, only -16c
Only just found your channel mate , so pleased I did . Great adventure . Loved it , thank you 👍
Thank you very much for subscribing, and I hope you like the rest of the videoS
Russia ❤😍
Fantastic stuff, really enjoyed the video 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Thank you very much. Glad it was enjoyed
Everything gets much easier if you have the right vehicle, in that case the Hägglunds Bandvagn. No problem with deep snow for that one! 😁
When I was at the three country border point, I met some Norwegian police officers, they invited me to a ride back to civilisation on one of their quads! Very much appreciated, because in summer those woods are horribly bug infested, probably the worst I have ever experienced. Be glad you did the hike in winter!
Yeah, watching the BV206 do a U-turn in the deep snow was pretty impressive.
That’s nice of the police officers. Sounds like they’re around in the summer more in person when it’s far busier.
@@MispronouncedAdventures It was actually funny in several ways.
The two young border guards were quite impressed when I told them about growing up within a km of the German-German border, with it‘s fences, land mines, shrapnel shooting devices and a shoot-to-kill order of the guards in the east.
Then the two police officers: I guess they just had a boring day, so the one decided „Let’s do a trip to the border cairn and maybe I can get some nice photos with my brand new Nikon Z6!“
We had a good laugh when I asked him if he gives me a ticket, because I was riding as a passenger on his quad without a helmet. Quite relaxed folks in Norway! 😁
That is epic mate! Well done for cracking on and getting there. Most people would just give up and go home so really cool you persevered! Now we can go to the 3 border cairn without getting out of our warm beds! Thanks 😅
Don’t think I could’ve lived with myself, if I hadn’t of even tried! Putting the footwork in so others don’t have too and can enjoy it from their beds!
I think I would have been slightly scared to accidentally take a wrong turn and walk into Russia.
Why don’t they want anyone to touch the stones though?
Well you could have been on the news!
Nice video, great to watch from a warm sofa 😁
It would be quite difficult to accidentally walk into Russia.
The reason for not touching the cairn/rock itself is it divided into three so touching the wrong part of its, You’d are entering the wrong country, which, whilst does sound quite absurd it’s also is quite serious, the white stone, which is on top (covered in snow) is all three countries at once, so definitely no touching.
@@MispronouncedAdventures Glad you were safe, unable to walk into Russia by accident.
Happy further travels!
Great content mate. I kind of did the same thing last week myself but maybe a bit more extreme than you. I stood in the fridge section at bookers for 13 minutes! 😂 But yeah loved this one, as did everyone else it seems!
Hello. Just wanted to pop in and say: Next time you visit our beautiful part of the world, do the proper visit to the border. Either up in Pasvikdalen (actually down at the map) or just drive up towards Jarfjord, then you really can see how the border works. Noadays its a bit "tricky" with the war and all that, but its peace and quiet up here in Sør-Varanger. Welcome back, hope you visit our little town, Kirkenes, just to say that you have been here 😃👌 Remember, we have an airport that connects with the rest of the world. We also have Hurtigruten, they take cars on board if you want. And the famous E6 (Europ road 6) stops here. Have safe trips 🤗🤗
I'm sorry mate, but for a Norwegian this is kind of painful to watch xD no skis, brings water instead of kettle that can melt snow... No worries, I'd bring a Solo myself. I served up there at the as a journo for the garrison paper, so I took quite a few trips around that area. It's very beautiful both summer and winter, but the winter up there can be harsh with a big H, with temps going towards -50 Celsius.
Brits we just like to walk everywhere 😂. If I had skis I would of used them ( I have used Nordic skis before )
All sets for cold weather and had check weather before I left. It is would silly for me not to attempt to walk, well within my skillset
I have a new life goal, to own and drive one of those cool tanks as my daily driver.
The BV206 is definitely a very cool bit of equipment!
Awesome adventure!
Ps : always always place your boots in the bottom of your sleeping bag and socks under your armpits , night night 👏👏👏
Glad you enjoyed, I never leave socks out & I sleep with my outer kit between my sleeping bag and roll mat to stop it from freezing. Normal boots are not a issue but I don’t normally wear this set in winter. they had stayed dry all day, but I think the fire thawed out onto the snow around them which wet the outer and then froze.
Hi Alex, I am now very curious, as you said Brits (I assume anyone else that does not have a Schengen zone residence permit/passport) can no longer cross from Norway(EEA, Schengen) into Finalnd (EU, also Schengen) in a non-official crossing point. Did you manage to figure out which regulation stops this, or is it part of the special regulation area near the Russian border. I wonder whether that will apply between Liechtenstein/Austria or even EU and Switzerland.
I’m not actually sure if I’m honest with you. Since I was officially already in the Schengen zone, I didn’t see why I couldn’t. There are plenty of other borders in Schengen. I am pretty sure I would be allowed to cross even a non-official points.
I assumed that as long as you are within Schengen legally (like travel to Norway or any other country within) it meant that you had access to all schengen countries. Have not heard any thing else to be honest.
@@arcticblue248 I think the guard was just confused, unless as you say there is some very specific rule for that particular area (I doubt it). Once inside Schengen, you can definitely move freely without being restricted to crossing points (of which there are very few these days).
Brilliant - great achievement and great video - really bizarre the implications of stepping a few foot further forward. All the best, David 👍
I agree. The absurdity of an invisible line in a forest. And the consequences for putting a finger over it.
I´ve never figured out why the rules about the Russian border seem so stringent in Finland and in this case Norway. In Estonia you find a road that you can drive on without formalities that actually goes a little bit through Russia in two separate spots (in Värska). Rest of the border towards east seems relatively relaxed also (aside from the part where there is a silly war happening)
I’m not familiar with out parts of the Russian border on Finland but I know this 3 country cairn area needs a permit on the Finland side
On Finnish side the border zone (up to 3km wide) is mainly to make actually guarding the border easier. If you require permits from anyone being there very few people will go there and then you can just install a bunch of motion detectors and cameras all over the place and send a guard to check pretty much everyone who moves in that area.
If you actually do have a valid reason to be there getting a permit is easy.
laws put in place during the cold war i guess , iirc it was the only Nato member sharing a land-border with the USSR
Really? But don't need a visa to go to Russia from Estonia as well... I doubt you can cross the border from anywhere.
Stumbled across this video via the mysteries of the youtube algorithm - and its gained you a sub :)
The algorithm is Mysterious beast, glad to hear it sent you in my direction!
If you are from a non-friendly country (USA, UK, EU, Canada, Australia), then it's a bad idea you cross the Russian border sneaking, you can get arrested
If you are from any other country, then it's OK you enter and register yourself within the first 5 days
But obviously, it's better to always enter thru the checkpoint
Yes, generally considered not a great idea to enter a country you legally can not, in my case as s Brit, a pre approval of a visa is need to enter Russia
Excellent. Very nice video 😊. Greetings from Finland
Glad you enjoyed it. Thank you for watching
Nice of them to leave you some wood for the night. But why no door lol?
Indeed it was, what do you mean by no door?
Yeah, that was a crazy venture just for a picture and to say so.
As are most adventures. the point was just to visit
8:55 he gave a nice wave at least.
They were really nice I got to speak to them a couple times over that day when I caught up with them
I always like to see people like you do a nice cup of coffee and knock up a high calorie meal. 'Outdoor boys' guy makes a big deal of cooking in wild Alaska.
On this trip, I was happy with water and a sausage cooked on the campfire although I wouldn’t mind a coffee in the morning that’s for sure!
@@MispronouncedAdventures I got seriously upset if I left my flask behind working on the railways. (walking 6-7 km a day) You must have been pretty upset at that one.
@johnjames4681 definitely was, I wasn’t impressed with me not bring a mug!
So *you* were the one who took the last roll of toilet paper from that critical outhouse. International incident coming right up... (Nice video.)
I took the whole mega pack of 18 toilet rolls 😂😂😂 no, I was very courteous. I used a few sheets and then returned it.
Absolutely Love your determination,! Epic video 😊
Thank you very much😁
They seem pretty friendly! Crazy how chilled out they are. In November 2023, I spent a week in Ida-Viru County in Estonia (staying in Narva, right on the border) and I got interrogated by border guards three times at different spots down the eastern border. They were a little bit scary but were mainly just a bit baffled by me, I think. They'd clearly been tracking my movements as they knew where I'd been. I also noticed little red lights in the Russian forests at night; apparently that's the Russian surveillance. The guards did say that the Russians will have footage of me as I'd basically spent a week taking photos of the border area. All good fun!
Yeah, really friendly. But this is a pretty normal tourist area to trek too. less so in the winter
But yeah, taking photograph the border area does certainly get your noticed!
Them chopped wooded blocks were left there by the border guards. I have no doubt.
Aye, I say that in the video. They didn’t look frosty like the rest of the place. very nice of them, as I hadn’t planned for one
You've got a Finnish skills for survival in cold! Awesome! Your firemaking skills are super good.
Thank you! I have spent many Scottish winters guiding clients and running winter skills course for work
Wow, truly impressed, great adventure
Thank you
Great place to be, you should get your self some touring skis and boots, you’d cover way more distance and it’s so much fun
I completely agree, unfortunately I can’t downhill ski so I don’t own any kit for that however I have Nordic skied a few times but not often done in the UK. next winter. I’m definitely considering it
@@MispronouncedAdventures don’t wait just get some second hand ones and have a pootle around, if you’ve done it before you’ll pick it up easily enough, even if all you do is shuffle around 😂 plus a great additional skill to your ML qual (sort of)
Oh hope you get warmed up back in the van. Great video, well done!
Definitely warmed up back in the van!
You're a tough optimist.
Well done.
Really enjoyed you sharing this. Thanks
With a trek like that, I knew it was well within my skillset, experience and I was equipped for it. I would’ve been disappointed in myself, if I hadn’t of attempted, and taking the easy way out of not bothering
good go buddy!
Cheers!
I just found your channel by accident. I'm so impressed.
Hope you enjoy! A few weeks away from leaving for the next Arctic trip!
Seems like a Nice trip, no Northern Lights, that’s too bad. Melt snow in water bottle/Camelbak inside jacket, all damp clothes and boots inside sleeping bag to let body heat dry it over night.
It was, got Northern Lights plenty other times.
Wasn’t really short of water, so it wasn’t massively necessary to any.
As for damp clothing clothes wise, it was either kept on or between my sleeping bag and my roll mat, boots. I would normally use as a pillow, but forgot that night.
First time seeing your videos and im really impressed with your vlogging.defintely made a new sub
Welcome to the channel, I’m glad you enjoyed this style of video. Definitely a fun little trip to do.
Best video so far, thanks.
Glad you enjoyed it!
superb
Thank you
Dude, your videos are pretty much fun to watch. I have subscribed. I’m from Russia and talking to me wouldn’t be dangerous if anything 😂. I don’t get why the guy from the border patrol didn’t allow you to do so. Anyway, wish your channel grow. Russians are not so freaking scary as you folks are told.
God bless.
It’s been the rules there for a long time, even before the current goings on. They don’t seem keen either way for interaction over the border.
@@MispronouncedAdventures Got you, it’s like better safe than sorry)) That was a tough hike I assume. Taking into account weather conditions and slushy snowy stuff under your feet. Takes stamina and training. Tons of respect. Thnx for your content.
Gortex isn't waterproof when you're not wearing it (aside from any water repellent coating which wears off). It needs body heat to stop moisture coming in...
I think you are mistaken. GORE-TEX is designed to be waterproof regardless of whether it's being worn or not. Its waterproof membrane prevents water from passing through, regardless of external factors like body heat. I’m happy for you to back up your reasoning.
Also I wasn’t any Gore-Tex, my trousers and jacket were different fabrics. my boots have a Gortex lining under the the leather, but again they weren’t wet inside.
You are incredible!!! What an awesome adventure!
Thank you very much! It was a lot of fun!
That was a brilliant video , so interesting , and well done you for sharing it!
Thank you for watching. Definitely an interesting place for sure