Birthday skitrip

This month's skiing was a bit of a challenge. Travel is difficult, unlike in August. Many of things that one could do were already done.

But, could I move some snow from the local ice skating rink to the ski slope, and then ski that?

Three hours later, I realized carrying snow was a bit of a work, but I had a line. A line that was thin but went maybe one third or one fourth of the slope, and had turns. A line that I was able to ski...

This article has also been published at TGR. See more Planetskier stories from TGR, Blogspot, and Planetskier.net. Photos, videos, and text (c) 2020 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Underland

 

I got a tip from Johan at work about an interesting book, one that deals with underground wonders. The book is Underland by Robert MacFarlane. I don't really know yet what's inside, but there was a recommendation in New York Times, that can't be bad :-)

The article is here and you can order the book in Finland here and from the publisher here.

See more caving stories at Planetcaver.net, and all Planetskier and Planetcaver stories at Blogspot and TGR! See also my cave map that runs the Psgeo software that has now been open sourced! This article and photos are (c) 2020 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Inside the blown up central nazi navy command bunker. Alone.

 

Need some excitement? Maybe crawling inside a blown-up bunker in the middle of dark forest would help. Hope the Nazi command is no longer on site...  and that the ammunition laying in the ground isn't dangerous.

Lager Koralle was the Nazi High Command of the Navy, and controlled their naval and submarine fleets. The operations were moved from Berlin to Lager Koralle in 1943 as the air raids had increased.

After the war, the Soviet troops blew up most of the bunkers and structures in the camp, but the underground command bunker and Döniz's house still remain. The blown up parts of the camp still lie in  massive piles of concrete blocks. The highest pieces are used by climbers for practice.

Unfortunately, I did not find the underground bunker, and I've also understood that it is closed off now, due to vandalism. The area is big, and there's no exact coordinates for the bunker and the house. I did search for couple of hours, though, and managed to pass through many barbed wire fences and old ammunition during the search. Perhaps I can make a connection with the locals managing this site and visit it ... some day.

Read more urban exploration stories from theurbanexplorer.net, and other underground stories from planetcaver.net. Text and photos (c) 2020 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Lilla Karlsö Caving

 

Lilla Karlsö. A paradise for birds, enough to warrant ban on entering except during special times and only with a guide. Of course, we didn't know any of the stuff about the guide, but wanted to visit some caves. Turned out that we had to follow a guide, and that it actually was a very good idea to follow the guide. 

The island's cliffs are dangerous, and the guide was able to take us to very interesting places on the tour. E.g., during low-tide at the bottom of the cliffs:

The biggest cave is the Suder Vaghus (south trolley depot), a massive hole in the cliff walls. The cave is not that long, but it is massive! Norra Vagnhus is smaller, but kind of similar. Finally, the third cave we visited, Kuren, was small hole but with character.

Exact location of the caves is kept secret. Do sign up to the boat trip and follow your guide around the island, though! Much recommended. The boat trips are available from here (same boat goes to Lilla and Stora Karlsö).

The cliffs. 

There is also a rapakivi stone, drawn here during ice from Finland:

But back to caves. Suder Vagnhus:

And Suder Vagnhus side cave:

Norra Vagnuhus (first picture at the top and then below):

Kuren:

Trip:

See more caving stories at Planetcaver.net, and all Planetskier and Planetcaver stories at Blogspot and TGR! See also my cave map that runs the Psgeo software that has now been open sourced! This article and photos are (c) 2020 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Solbergagrottorna

Cracks... cracks... and ladders.

It was getting dark though, we were running out of time to find and visit this place. We just did, barely, before the darkness arrived.

Again, I cannot reveal the coordinates for this cave, but it is near Stockholm. Join the Swedish Caving Association, though (link) and get access to their massive database of caves! 

See more caving stories at Planetcaver.net, and all Planetskier and Planetcaver stories at Blogspot and TGR! See also my cave map that runs the Psgeo software that has now been open sourced! This article and photos are (c) 2020 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.

Kasbergsgrottan

 

Small cliff.. but such a nice cave and rock!

I suppose there are strawberries here at some time in the year, based on the sign. Or maybe its just a sign telling us how good this place is.

Unfortunately, I am not allowed to tell you where this cave is, but it is within a driving distance from Stockholm. If you join the Swedish caving association, you get access to their cave database, though.

See more caving stories at Planetcaver.net, and all Planetskier and Planetcaver stories at Blogspot and TGR! See also my cave map that runs the Psgeo software that has now been open sourced! This article and photos are (c) 2020 by J. & J. Arkko. All rights reserved.

Getsvältan

 

Getsvältan offers great views onto the sea and a nice crawl into small caves.

The location of this cave is a secret to avoid vandalism; please take care. The location can be acquired through the Swedish caving association, members have access to the the database of caves.

See more caving stories at Planetcaver.net, and all Planetskier and Planetcaver stories at Blogspot and TGR! See also my cave map that runs the Psgeo software that has now been open sourced! This article and photos are (c) 2020 by Jari Arkko. All rights reserved.