DRIVING FINLAND’S EPIC ROUTE 62 | IMATRA to PUUMALA 🇫🇮

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

THANKS FOR WATCHING!! 👍 If you enjoyed the video please consider LIKING & SUBSCRIBING - they really help me out! 👍 🇫🇮 My FINLAND Travel Vlogs → bit.ly/mwt_finland | 📷 Connect on INSTAGRAM → bit.ly/mwt_instagram | 📍 My videos on a TRAVEL MAP → bit.ly/mwt_map

[@Tpojat]

Those "gate houses" were for milk. The milk truck would drive around every morning and collect milk from the farms. This was way back when most farms had cows and before mass industrial farming and hasn't been a thing for decades but the red gate houses are left as more tradition often used for mail or house trashcans etc.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's amazing, thanks for letting me know. Love seeing little pieces of history like that, I can only imagine how they operated back in the day. I'm really glad they're still in place even though they don;t serve the same purpose.

[@mikkorenvall428]

And they are not all old. They make new ones too. Some are used as busstop shelter, garbage shelters and so on... As buildings are look-a-like, scenery is kept stylish and nite.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Good to hear that history is still shaping what things look like in the future. Very creative!

[@fireknightofficial1340]

that cemetery you visited at Ruokolahti has grave of Simo Häyhä

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, I read that he's a famous and very skilled Finnish sniper. Shame I didn't realise at the time!

[@tl3664]

Right next to that wooden tower

[@tanjanikola9489]

How strange you got such a bad weather - in the south, it has been incredibly dry and hot since mid-May!

[@-tsvk-]

The vegetation looks like it's late in summer, this might have been filmed already like in August of last year.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

These videos were filmed last August, sounds like the weather is currently good. Maybe I picked the wrong time of year?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@-tsvk- Spot on!! August it was 😎

[@-tsvk-]

​@MattWhitingsEurope you could try to always add the filming dates of the footage of the video to the video description, so that people watching can better estimate what kind of weather and climate they can expect at different times of the year in the place you are visiting, if viewers are planning to visit too.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the suggestion, in the past I've tried to get away from filming dates and whatnot but you make a good point regarding helping viewers to see what the conditions are like at certain times of the year. I will consider it for future videos, thanks!

[@larrywave]

Those Gate house things are Milk churn stands

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Incredible, thanks for letting me know.

[@arcticcraic]

Fair play to you sir. Compared to other countries, Finland’s scenery fairly “constant” in appearance. But unlike so many others, you are finding all the hidden gems usually overlooked. You have done your homework. How far north do you intend to travel? Watch out for the big wildlife on the roads.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, glad you're enjoying the videos. I do try to research the places I visit in an attempt to capture the bits that many others miss. It's a shame I didn't have more time, the rain and weather conditions earlier in the day had put me behind schedule a little bit and I never caught up. I think a day would have been more appropriate for this stretch of road. Hoping to make it up to the Koli area on this trip! Thanks for watching.

[@Lefafel]

Unfortunate that you did not have the time to go see Kummakivi in person, it's quite spectacular indeed. You've caught route 62 at a pretty nice time, there's been some recent renovations to the road and it's got a varied nature surrounding it due to some lumber harvesting and replanting in the past decade. The Imatra rapids are currently flowing 24/7 actually, due to the abnormally high water level of lake Saimaa that they are trying to reign in by letting as much water through river Vuoksi as possible.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Those rapids must be quite a sight to see! Shame I didn't get to see them in action. Glad I picked a good time, sounds like there's quite a bit going on with route 62 at the moment. Thanks for watching!

[@ellu...]

i love these videos! saimaa is one of my favorite places in finland :) would love to have a cottage there

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, glad you're enjoying them. I really like the area too! Such an interesting place!! A cottage would be nice.

[@yoretabio4537]

This is one of the two most beautiful routes to drive in Finland. The other one is Ivalo-Inari-Kaamanen in Lapland.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the suggestion, I'd not heard of the Ivalo-Inari-Kaamanen route so have made a note of it just in case I'm up that way in the future!

[@mariamm9460]

Beautiful video as all your videos are Matt, look how good breakfast, Love that table with chairs , nice room could live there anytime 👍I think you had enough of place in that hotel..thank you for sharing your journey in Finland, great information and videos ..❤🇫🇮

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, glad you enjoyed the video. It's always good to get out into the great outdoors and do some exploring - you never know what you might find.

[@mariamm9460]

​​@@MattWhitingsEuropeYou are more than Welcome Matt🥰😊how amazing video again. Imatra waterfall so beautiful you show it..thank you 🌊❤🌊I hope I can travel around Finland too,,but first Ilomantsi then all the cities as you been to ..You do excellent videos and your speaking pleasant to listen too ❤did you take Christmas tree🎄😂you are funny too Love it..yes be careful that you dont be lost in the forest..good you found your car 😊Kummakivi, you pronounced well enough ..wonder if you seen wild animals on your trips ..that area Imatra maybe have 🦌🐻🤔. .you said beautifully "Saimaan sydän" ..Take care , you are so brave Matt🇬🇧❤🇫🇮

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Unfortunately I couldn't get the Christmas tree past the border officers at the airport. Next time! 😉

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEurope hi hope my comment works now,, wish you get Christmas tree anyhow🎄☕🍰😘❤

[@icebear280173]

gatehouse..yeah right XD..its for milk...milk collecting truck gets milk form there..its called milk pier.or used to get..novadays there are stainless stell tubs that are chilled and tanker empties those

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the info, yes a few others have mentioned the same thing so I have learnt something new!

[@misanthrope8803]

Have been waiting for this, so glad I have found this channel, wishing you all the best! 💪

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much, welcome aboard! Hope you're enjoying the videos! 😄

[@Kuuj12]

Love this finland series

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Glad to heat it!! Thanks for watching 😀

[@oh2mp]

Nice video. Imatra is a very familiar town to me because I have strong family ties to there even I haven't ever lived there myself. The sign at 10:00 said "Falling danger. Movement with own risk" You found a nice hostel. Saimaan Sydän means the Heart of Saimaa.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you for the translation, always interesting to know. I really wanted to drive back there to see the show but it was just too far. Thanks for watching.

[@mikkorenvall428]

I don't think that the dam is for flooding, but to feed water to hydro plant. Imatra rapids is biggest waterfall in Finland.... not by height but by the volume.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

It's an incredible system, shame I didn't get to see it in action!

[@e-mat6077]

You forgot to tell the price of your accomodation at the end.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I'm not sure if I forgot to say or accidentally edited it out but either way it's not there. The price was €47 which I thought was a great price. I guess there are other rooms so more people can stay but I was the only one there on this occasion. For reference the accommodation was called Puumalan Rantapappila.

[@WITYTRAVELS]

Glad the rain didn't stop you from exploring. That has got to be the best Christmas tree shop on the planet. The balancing rock is neat; definitely next time. Great little place. Hopefully you had a chance to tickle the ivories!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I'm not sure I would have got it in my suitcase!! Lovely areas though and I always like to see Christmas trees growing in the wild. Shame about the balancing rock but I'll definitely get it next time!

[@Sir_Baddington]

Welcome to Mikkeli, it is my home town.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you very much, cool place. We'll see a bit more of it in the next video.

[@saturahman7510]

Yes, I recommend.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks 😃

[@Pikaxsu]

The "christmas tree" was not a baby spuce, but a pine which does not make a very beautiful christmas tree. :) The signage at the Salpaline site just reminds you of the falling danger and that you are there at your own risk. :) Second batch of christmas trees was nice young spruces. :D

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I'll take one from the second batch then 😂 - thanks for the info on the signs, next time I'll get my Google Translate app working!

[@Pikaxsu]

@@MattWhitingsEurope I was thinking it might be a bit useless, but if it shows clearly enough, I can easily translate things like that, if you want. No bother at all. :) You had some others in earlier episodes too, but I felt that maybe it would be silly to translate them. Even as Finnish is probably so different from most of your followers languages, that only Finnish text is difficult to guess, with other languages to help. :)

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Really helpful, feel free to translate in future videos if you have time - I always find it useful to know what the signs say.

[@saturahman7510]

I live in Mikkeli. The weather is really hot right now.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I must have chosen the wrong time of year to visit!

[@Mojova1]

Christmas trees are spruce. That was a small pine. 😉 Second time you said it, those were spruce. Did you say the price of the hotel or did I miss it?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the info, my knowledge of trees is pretty bad as you can tell. Unfortunately I either forgot to say the price of the room or I accidentally edited it out - either way it was €47 and called Puumalan Rantapappila.

[@Mojova1]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Good price for that. As a foreigner did you prefer the place empty or would it been better for you if there were others staying also? Just curious.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I actually preferred it empty - I was enjoying the isolation and quietness on this trip. Yes it was a great price and very helpful that it was self check in, meant I could take my time getting there and enjoy the drive.

[@Mojova1]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Thanks for replying. Looking forward to your next video. Am I correct if I assume this was filmed late summer last year?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, I'm looking forward to sharing it! Yes my trip was in August! As you can hopefully tell I loved every second of it (except for one incident in a couple of videos time).

[@TheFuel89]

With such great 4G and 5G networks available wifi isn't as prevalent in Finland as in some other countries. Might be a good idea to provide one for the tourists though.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes I noticed that, although I did have 4G in most places.

[@krakulandia]

You didn't tell how much the hotel cost?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Sorry about that, it was 47 Euros a night and called Puumalan Rantapappila.

[@anttieskelinen1]

6:10 you just miss the grave of Simo Häyhä. Grave behind you.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I didn't know who that was but just looked it up and see he's a very successful Finnish sniper. Thanks for the info, shame I didn't realise whilst I was there.

[@spertti]

Nice vid.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks ☺️

[@Hongaars1969]

Greetings 1) you looked truly drenched. The weather was not kind 2) oh to see that spillway overflowing…my father (wisely) said that you never (get to) go back 3) What an adventure 4) Brilliant filming and editing. You are def a natural presenter and editor. 5) how does one share personal details with you so as to be able to take communications privately? Cheers Zoltán

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you Zoltán, glad you're enjoying the videos. Yes I was pretty drenched for part of the day but thankfully the rain didn't get beyond my coat. In terms of communication, I think my email is on the 'about' page or you can use instagram. I don't check those other accounts as much so prefer the comments but either way is good.

[@jukka7697]

The most epic scenarios are when you drive from Puumala to Mikkeli

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Indeed. That's coming up!

[@vs123]

I like damp

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I don't mind it but my camera isn't keen!

[@jukka7697]

In Finland, you can roam free in nature and don't need to worry about trespassing. It is your right. But trees, even baby ones, are owned by someone, so you're not allowed to kill any trees. The Finnish golden rule is to leave everything in the same or better shape when you leave. So no Christmas tree as a souvenir, sorry 😉

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I would of struggled to get it in my suitcase anyway 😂. Interesting to read about the right to roam laws, we have something similar in the UK but it's only applicable to some land.

[@justskip4595]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Nature is free to roam apart of places like military areas which tend to be fenced off anyway. Built up areas and their vicinity are not for the peace of the owners. You can pick mushrooms, berries and other such things freely from the forest but hunting is with the permission of the land owner.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's good to know, thanks for the info. Makes sense.

[@zoolkhan]

why the elevator music all the time, allow the nature sounds to be heared for once

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the feedback.

[@Mojova1]

Much better music then most people traveling this country. I actually enjoyed it.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for saying. I do put quite a bit of effort into trying to select tracks that match the content. I guess it's subjective but I'm a bit of a perfectionist in that regard. If I'm not feeling the music I'll work on it until I do. It's been known to take me hours to find the right track before.

[@KK19825]

It's such a shame that they harnassed Imatrankoski back in the day.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes indeed, bet it was a real spectacle.