Once again I slept well – it must be all the exercise! I didn’t bother getting the trangia stove unpacked for porridge so just ate a few nuts and raisins knowing I had only a short ride to Inari. I packed up and got back on the road. I viewed the whole ride into Inari on the basis of how difficult I would have found it if I’d carried on late the night before. I’m sure the road was becoming more difficult and I had made the right decision to stop when I did. I got into Inari about lunchtime, it’s a small place but had a busy feel to it, largely due to the tourists. I treated myself to a sandwich at the Hotel Inari. While I sat on the veranda I realised why the town seemed busy. It was because of a dozen or so camper vans and numerous starnge vehicles taking part in a “Round the Baltic” tour.
I soon found the campsite (€10) and showered, washed clothes etc. Many more people at this site due to the “Baltic Tour” including a fire engine, but only one other tent – a Finnish cyclist. He had started in south Finland a month before and had many stories of bad weather, including being stuck in a forest for four days due to heavy rain, I made a mental note to keep food reserves high!
I had originally planned on taking a day off in Inari as there were a couple of things I wanted to do here. However I decided to squeeze them into my spare afternoon. Siida is a Museum about the culture of the Sami People and the Nature of the Arctic, it was well worth visiting especially the outdoor museum of relocated buildings. I then walked to the Wilderness Church, a 4 km walk from the nearest car park but a 16 km round trip walk from the town. It was definitely worth the effort, for the scenery on the walk in and the remote wooden church. It felt good to be using different muscles than cycling.
Back to town for a beer, pizza, live band and more tremendous sunsets (but the sun never quite setting).
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