berghem

interesting turn of events these past few days.

before i left for my trip i became a member of Couchsurfing.com, where travellers can connect with people who have floorspace or couches you can crash on for a few days in different countries. the girls i stayed with in Stockholm were from just such a site. on tuesday a guy named Jonah from there wrote to me after noticing the last time i'd logged in was from Jokkmokk, just to ask what i'd though of their little town. long story short, he and his roommate were going out of town this weekend, but he let me stay at his apartment in Jokkmokk (where i am now) for a few days while i got in touch with the folks i might be renting from.

i left my stuff at the apartment and went to the store to buy a few necessities. when i got back, his roommate, Keira, was there, getting some things before heading back to his father's place to take care of their reindeer. Keira ended up inviting me up to his father's house, in an area called Berghem about 45 km outside of Jokkmokk. when we got there, the first thing we did is go on a snowmobile drive over another frozen lake in pitch darkness! i drove for a while and it was so cold but so unlike anything else...i felt like i was driving through outer space.


the lake during the day

the house where his father lived had been built by has Sami grandparents in the 50s, and still had no electricity or running water. thus, to get water, one had to go to the lake, to a hole they'd cut out with a chainsaw and draw water from it.



keira chiseling the ice hole



keira, 24 years old. loves "snus" aka snuff tobacco, which is really popular in Sweden.


iron stove was the only source of heat


a neat painting

it goes without saying that to use the restroom, one has to go out and take care of business. this was not fun in -30C, or even -25C during the day....like today, when they had to feed the reindeer. this has been an exceptionally harsh winter, the harshest in recent memory. the reindeer are unable to reach their food because of the deep snow and ice, and so the herders must feed them. some people have built fences and corrals to make this easier this winter, but most people let their reindeer roam free in the forests at this time of year. every other day they must do this intense series of tasks, regardless of the cold, which is as follows:

1.) chop up frozen hay bales with an axe and crumble the hay into smaller pieces, enough to fill a huge sack
2.)load up snow mobile into a trailer, along with chainsaw and food pellets and hay
3.) drive for 30 minutes, unload snow mobile, food, and retrieve other snow mobile stashed nearby, with a sled attached
4.)drive snowmobiles really far across frozen lakes to first reindeer hang out spot, scatter food. do this twice more
5.)go into the forest and with a long stick shake free from the branches a special kind of moss the reindeer like to eat. this is especially exhausting work as the snow is waist deep in some places
6.) chop down several old trees for firewood, cut into smaller pieces and load onto sled
7.) return to car, load everything, drive home, unload everything

total time about 4 hours



getting ready to spread out food


reindeer food pellets


shaking moss loose from branches

i would've taken more photos of the action but i was more worried about staying warm and not getting frostbite. at one point i fell in the snow when i wasnt wearing a glove, and immediately my hand started to become so stiff i couldn't move my fingers. i secretly panicked for a moment before i stuck my hands into a backup pair of mittens i'd bought and breathed warm air on them.

reindeer herding it is hard work, but people truly enjoy it. it's a tradition that encourages a passing down, as most young people i've spoken with have said (looking forward to their own families and grandchildren). also, it has it's own advantages, such as everyone owning a summer place/cabin in the areas where you take the reindeer during the spring and summer, usually in the mountains.

fyi: it is considered rude to ask people how many reindeer they have




after the coldest day of my trip so far and helping out around Berghem all day, i feel like i could sleep for 10 years. what wonderful folks i've been able to find so far... taack Jonah and Keira!