LIVES IN THE BALANCE
In Swedish Lapland, a new organisation aims to support the traditional Sami way of life while protecting the fragile ecosystems that they inhabit - and tourism is the key
Words⁄Daniel
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� Photography⁄Erik Olsson
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ver a meal of potato dumplings, Håkan Landström holds his audience captive. “30 metres, 20 metres, 10 metres… the three bears came towards me, shoulder to shoulder, without stopping,” recounts the Swede, with quiet intensity, his face bathed in the warm light of the fire. “I could hear my heart beating. I swore then that if I survived, my bear-hunting days would be over.” His evident survival doesn’t ease the tension in the room. “I stood up, waved my arms and shouted at the top of my voice,” he remembers. “The bears were just as surprised as me. They stopped, stared at me for what seemed like an eternity, and then just ambled away into the forest.” Anywhere else, this story would be shocking – but this is Swedish Lapland. Located on the far northernmost edge of Europe, the region is seriously remote – even for other Swedes. Gothenburg is as close to Munich as it is to Luleå, the region’s gateway city. Known as “Europe’s Alaska”, its landscape is characterised by great swathes of pine, spruce and fir, berrycarpeted tundra, white-water rivers teeming with salmon, and rustic lakeside villages. It’s a land where the brown bear and lynx, wolf and wolverine still roam free, and everyone has an intimate bond with nature. Sometimes too intimate. “Lapland is northern Europe’s last remaining truly wild area,” says Landström. “For those of us who live and work here, though, it’s also the
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“This is the place we spend our whole lives. For the sake of everyone, we must find ways to exist in a sustainable way”
place we spend our whole lives. For the sake of everyone, we must find ways to exist in a sustainable way.” True to his word, Landström has given up hunting bears and now spends his time trying to protect them – and other living things. Despite its reputation as a bountiful, unsullied wilderness, the area has its fair share of problems. Activities such as hunting, intensive forestry and mining have all had a negative impact on regional ecosystems, with a knock-on effect on local livelihoods. As managing director of Rewilding Lapland, Langström feels he’s able to offer some solutions. Officially launched in July 2016, the organisation is connected to the Swedish Ecotourism Society, and is part of Rewilding Europe, a pan-European organisation working to make Europe a wilder place by restoring natural habitats and indigenous species. By »
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“The Sami philosophy is to live with nature and leave no trace. Our whole concept of time is based on natural phenomena”
generating income from sustainable activities, such as wildlife watching and other ecologically focused tourist activities, it hopes to allow local populations to benefit economically as well as environmentally – essentially cashing in on the current trend for a greener kind of adventure. “We want to show how this is a far better alternative than relying on negative, resource-extractive industries such as forestry and mining,” he says. SUPPORTING THE SAMI One beneficiary can be found in the remote village of Flakaberg. Here, on the sloping shore of Lake Gorgim, 130 kilometres north of Luleå, Lars Eriksson and his wife run Årstidsfolket (literally “seasonal people”), a small company that introduces visitors to the intricacies of Sami culture. In the heated confines of a wooden lavvu (a teepee-like structure), Eriksson is dressed in traditional Sami costume, or gákti. This comprises a dark blue woollen jacket that flares into a skirt, with a red, green and yellow trim, a pair of leather trousers, silver jewellery, and an ornate leather belt, from which hangs a pair of
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small knives with intricately carved reindeer-bone handles. “The colours of the gákti are deeply symbolic,” he explains. “The blue is for water, the yellow for sun, the red for fire and the green for nature. The Sami philosophy is to live with nature and leave no trace. Our whole concept of time is based on natural phenomena.” As the only indigenous people in the European Union, the Sami are a geopolitical anomaly. Their history dates back thousands of years, and Sápmi, as they call their cultural homeland, today spans the borders of Arctic Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia. There is no census for the Sami, but the current population is estimated to number 80,000, with around 20,000 living in Swedish Lapland, together with 300,000 reindeer. Traditionally, Sami have been nomadic reindeer herders, but life has changed dramatically over the last 50 years. While 900 Sami are still actively involved in herding, divided among 51 Sami communities, each of which has its own grazing rights, many more are involved in tourism, food production or other rural activities. »
Opening spread⁄ Lars Eriksson with one of his reindeer Previous spread from left⁄ Canoeing on the Råne river; Preparing a Sami delicacy This page from left⁄ Traditional Sami knifes with carved reindeer-bone handles; Sami reindeer hide boots; Årstidsfolket’s lakeside huts and sauna
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“In the past, the Sami would go out on foot and follow their reindeer herds. Now fewer are involved in herding”
“In the past the Sami would go out on foot and follow their reindeer herds,” says Eriksson. “Now there are fewer and fewer involved in herding.” There’s less work for the villagers, prompting many youngsters, including Eriksson’s own two daughters, to head to the city to find employment. Their decision to quit is typically an economic one. “I used to make a good living from 200 reindeer. Now you need 1,000 to survive,” says Eriksson. “You have to feed them, which costs a small fortune.” In the past, the reindeer’s winter food was the lichens under the snow and hanging from the trees in old growth forests. But these are now a much rarer commodity. “The forestry companies use clearcut logging techniques and chemical fertiliser. This means there is less and less lichen,” explains Eriksson. “The Sami aren’t trying to end the forestry industry, but it’s really pushing herding to the edge. We have no voice compared to them.” The Rewilding Lapland organisation is now working to help select Sami communities preserve their culture of reindeer husbandry by protecting critical grazing land, easing seasonal migration routes and developing opportunities for Samifocused tourism. A project has also begun to restore the Råne river, the longest forest river in Sweden, and its tributaries. “In the
past these waterways were partially dammed by forestry companies to facilitate the transportation of logs,” explains Landström. “By removing these dams we lower the water level and allow reindeer to cross the flow more easily.” The success of Årstidsfolket has shown the potential for culture-based tourism in Swedish Lapland. Lars Eriksson believes the scaling up of such sustainable ventures could prove critical to preserving Sami culture. “It’s sad to see so many Sami villages disappearing,” he says. “The Sami are proud of their culture. Even young people like my daughters are proud. We need to find a way to move forward in a changing world.” »
Who’s afraid of the big bad bear?
Previous page⁄ A free-ranging reindeer herd; reindeer antlers are used for everything from knife handles to key rings Left⁄ Mikael Suorra offers wildlife watching in his extremely comfortable hide from where you may see bears, eagles and moose (above)
Sweden is home to around 3,000 bears, but while they have been known to take reindeer calves, they aren’t aggressive towards humans. The Scandinavian Brown Bear Research Project recorded just 31 attacks in all of Scandinavia between 1977 and 2012.
Statistically the most dangerous animal in Sweden is the wasp, which kills one person on average every year.
BEAR ESSENTIALS Around 100km south of Flakaberg, among the towering, matchstickstraight trunks of birch and spruce, Mikael Suorra puts a cone-shaped device to his lips. Moments later, a long moaning noise, interspersed with strange whining sounds, reverberates through the trees. “That, my friends, is the sound of a female moose,” he says with a grin. “If we were trying to attract a male for real we’d have to be downwind. Moose have a fantastic sense of smell.” Another animal with a supreme sense of smell is the brown bear. Suorra, another Sami, knows this because much of his life is now devoted to interacting with Swedish Lapland’s top predator. Laplanders traditionally have had a contentious relationship with bears, which prey on young
reindeeer, and are generally prized more as hunting trophies than as valued neighbours. Although the bear is a protected species under EU law, their populations have been growing, resulting in an increase in bear hunting over the last decade. Suorra hopes to provide a totally new perspective on the issue, taking advantage of northern Sweden’s fantastic potential for wildife watching to found Hide & See, a company based around what must be the most comfortable hide in Scandinavia. Built after years of painstaking research, this deluxe wooden structure comes complete with beds, toilet and a ready supply of local snacks. Guests typically stay overnight, waiting for bears to approach bait left in a nearby clearing. “I use a secret recipe for the food,” says Suorra, with a twinkle in his eye. »
Unlike brown bears in other parts of the world, which are mostly carnivores, the Swedish brown bear’s diet is around 45 per cent berries – they can eat a massive 180,000 blueberries in one day, around one-and-a-half times their own weight. They also eat ants, reindeer, moose and sheep.
The north and west of the country are the best places to catch sight of one – and your chances are increasing. Despite legal hunting since the 1940s, the population goes up by around five per cent each year.
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While you’re in… Swedish Lapland
“For everyone here, creating a long-term green economy is a real priority” From left⁄ Exterior decor at the Treehotel; Sörbyn Lodge’s fishing guide, Michelle Staaf; Flyfishing on the Råne river; Michelle’s love of fishing is skin-deep
SLEEP Treehotel
Unveiling a brand-new seventh room this month, this legendary collection of individually interesting treehouses provides great views over the Lule River. treehotel.se
EAT Kallkällan
“I could tell you, but then I’d have to leave you tied to the bait.” Suorra’s expertise in concocting bear snacks is proven, with Hide & See guests enjoying regular sightings of bears, as well as moose, foxes, martens and even golden eagles. “Hide & See is the type of venture we really want to support and encourage,” says Håkan Landström. “Not only can the Sami benefit, it means live bears are more valuable than dead ones.”
everyone here, creating a long-term green economy is a real priority.” “The jobs here are vital to help reverse the trend of people leaving the area to find work,” adds Michelle Staaf, one of the lodge’s young fishing guides. These projects are just the start. By 2025, the project predicts it will have created a new economy anchored in the protection of natural and cultural values, and made the region a magnet for visitors from around the world. Landström admits it’s a big challenge, but has faith. “Sometimes little things can make a big difference,” he says. “If we undo the problems man has created, nature generally looks after itself.” rewildingeurope.com, hideandsee.se, sorbyn.se
Norwegian flies to Luleå from Stockholm. Book flights, a hotel and a rental car at norwegian.com
This restaurant, part of Sörbyn Lodge, has a good reputation for Swedish dishes with a modern twist, based around local ingredients such as reindeer and cloudberries. sorbyn.se
DO River rafting
As well as fishing, Lapland’s rivers are great for white-water rafting, kayaking and canoeing. Creactive Adventures offers outdoors experiences and activities all year. creactive-adventure.se
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S ORBYN LOD GE
A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT Criss-crossed by countless waterways, Swedish Lapland is defined as much by its rivers and lakes as it is by its forests. While many of these rivers have been dammed, others provide some of the best salmon, trout and pike fishing in northern Europe. Rewilding Lapland has begun the restoration of several tributaries, and
the re-creation of spawning grounds for various fish, including brown trout and grayling. As well as encouraging fish stocks, these projects help to boost the local economy through increased tourism, and by providing work opportunities for local people. Situated near the village of Gunnarsbyn (around 75 kilometres north of Luleå), on the banks of Lake Vitträsket, Sörbyn Lodge is the premier accommodation in the Råne River Valley. Taken over by the local community six years ago, it boasts rustic cabins and more comfortable rooms, and has built up a reputation for fine local cuisine and even finer fishing opportunities. “Most of our stockholders and employees are local people,” says Cecilia Andersson, the lodge’s head of marketing, who works in partnership with Rewilding Lapland. “For