Finland
From CruisersWiki
An online cruising guide for yachts sailing to Finland.
Finland
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Capital | Helsinki |
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Language | Finnish, Swedish |
Currency | Euro (EUR) |
Time zone | EET (UTC+2) , DST: EEST (UTC+3) |
Calling code | +358 |
Finland (Finnish: Suomi, Swedish: Finland) is in Northern Europe and has borders with Russia to the East, Norway to the North and Sweden to the West. The country is thoroughly modern with well-planned and comfortable small towns and cities, but still offers vast areas of unspoiled nature. Finland has approximately 188,000 lakes (about 10% of the country) and a similar number of islands. In the northernmost part of the country the Northern Lights can be seen in the winter and midnight sun in the summer. Finns also claim the mythical mountain of Korvatunturi as the home of Santa Claus, and a burgeoning tourist industry in Lapland caters to Santa fans. Despite living in one of the most technologically developed countries in the world, the Finns love to head to their summer cottages in the warmer months to enjoy all manner of relaxing pastimes including sauna, swimming, fishing and boating.
Archipelago navigation skills are requred when cruising in the Finnish waters. Latest nautical charts are accurate, most of the rocks are known and the rest can be avoided with a depth sounder. It's recommended to use landmarks for navigation instead of markers, that tend to be replaced often. It's not rare, that a lateral marker is replaced with a non-lateral or some buoys can be even added and old ones removed.
Charts
Weather
Finland has a cold but temperate climate, which is actually comparatively mild for the latitude because of the moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current. Winter, however, is just as dark as everywhere in these latitudes, and temperatures can (rarely) reach -30°C in the south and even dip below -50°C in the north. The brief Finnish summer is considerably more pleasant, with average temperatures around +20°C, and is generally the best time of year to visit. July is the warmest month with temperatures up to +30°C. Early spring (March-April) is when the snows start to melt and Finns like to head north for skiing and winter sports, while the transition from fall to winter in October-December — wet, rainy, dark and generally miserable — is the worst time to visit.
Due to the extreme latitude, Finland experiences the famous Midnight Sun near the summer solstice, when (if above the Arctic Circle) the sun never sets during the night and even in southern Finland it never really gets dark. The flip side of the coin is the Arctic Night (kaamos) in the winter, when the sun never comes up at all in the North. In the South, daylight is limited to a few pitiful hours with the sun just barely climbing over the trees before it heads down again.
Sources of weather forecasting:
Passages
List popular passages/routes, timing, etc.
Islands
In the Finnish waters, the are no remote offshore islands, but all the islands are located relatively close to the continent.
Communication
Add here VHF channel for coastguard, harbor masters. etc.
Also see World Cruiser's Nets
When cruising in archipelago you must know your location all the time for sake of your safety and to make quick navigation decicions. It's recommended to not rely on GPS or plotters, because an inaccurate or erroneous course can make your boat to collide with rocks, that can cause huge damage.
High speeds should be avoided by motorboats, because there is a risk of collision with others. Records of such accidents exist.
Entrance
Arrival
When arriving from outside European Union, go to coastguard post. If you are coming from EU, go where you want but prefer official passages when arriving.
Departure
When departing to outside European Union, go to coastguard post. Otherwise exit using official passages.
Immigration & Customs
Immigration
Contact:
Customs
Contact:
Health & Security
There are no sharks or other dangerous animals, except viper and mite, that are the most significant ones. By using common sense, you can avoid them. Especially long hay and shores tend to be places, where you get bitten by them. In case of emergency, dial to 112.
Berthing
Marinas & Yacht Clubs
Use this section only if there are few marinas not covered in pages under Ports and Islands above. Remove if not applicable.
Anchorages
List anchorages including the ones of nearby islands list under "Islands" above. If there is more then 1-3 paragraphs for a given anchorage, create a dedicated page for it (Port/Stop Template). Remove this section if not applicable.
- [[large Anchorage1]]
- [[large Anchorage1]]
Transportation
List transportation to other countries, etc.
Friends
Forums
List links to discussion threads on partnering forums. (see link for requirements)
Links
References
Comments
We welcome users' contributions to the Wiki. Please click on Comments to view other users' comments, add your own personal experiences or recommend any changes to this page following your visit.
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Date of member's last visit to Finland and this page's details validated:
This is a usable page of the cruising guide. However, please contribute if you can to help it grow further. Click on Comments to add your personal notes on this page or to discuss its contents. Alternatively, if you feel confident to edit the page, click on the edit tab at the top and enter your changes directly. |
Contributors to this page
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Names: Lighthouse, Nausikaa, Haiqu, Timovaan |