You can’t avoid it; there is something about these Nordics! It’s as simple as that. Their progressive societies lead the world in so many ways.

And yet again they prove to be showing us how it’s done. 

Let’s put Nuuksio aside for a moment and introduce Repovesi! A stone’s throw from Helsinki, Tony has managed to set up a Tentsile Experience Camp at the Repovesi National Park, which, by the way, borders Verla UNESCO World Heritage Site. This pretty much makes this Tentsile Experience Camp one of the most special places in Europe - no, scratch that, the world! How many other places on this planet combine a national park and a world heritage site?

The Tentsile Experience camp at Repovesi, otherwise known romantically as TEC No. 2 out of 10, promises to pack a punch when it comes to experiencing nature in its purest form and areas of historical interest. This pristine area of Finland, with its lakes, wildlife, trees and tranquillity, is just two hours from Helsinki International Airport and easy to reach from all over the world. And it has everything you need for a perfect getaway Tentsile Experience. Fitted with cooking facilities, sanitation, showers, an on-site shop, parking and the all-important electricity (you can opt out of this if you want to go proper cave man style), you can lose yourself in a world of walks, climbs and guided treks, or disappear on a kayak or a canoe and explore millennia-old water ways and Stone Age rock paintings from around 5000BC.

Or you can cast yourself back into a piece of Finland’s more recent past, and visit The Verla Ground wood and Board Mill, a unique, intact industrial site dating from the early years of the Finnish wood processing industry. The whole estate is complemented by the workers’ housing and numerous other buildings in the area. You may choose your accommodation between Tentsile and these historical buildings and even combine depending on your length of stay. 

Yes, there is lot to discover. Here you can really reconnect with the things from which you spend so many days disconnected. The host and operator of this TEC is a lovely couple, Sami & Marika, who have developed services here with passion and dedication to sustainable travelling. Most of the services are booked, operated and handled by innovative online and SMS mobile solutions to cut down on handovers and drop-offs, which gives visitors the freedom to book and choose almost anything they need during the visit. For more information about when this opens and how to book your stay, visit www.tervarumpu.fi/tentsile

Well done, Tony. Well done, Finland. You are certainly finding ways of bringing the Tentsile Experience Camp to life. Where else in world will you take us?

To find out about the next Tentsile Experience Camp, follow Tony’s journey - #ChallengeTony.

 

 

Jethro Shirley-Smith