Arctic Adventure Challenge

About the challenge

The perfect antidote to a cold, wet British winter is a cold, dry Arctic adventure! Away from the crowds, enjoy mesmerisingly peaceful scenes of frozen lakes and snow-covered pine and spruce forests as we explore the silent wilderness.

We’ll be snow-shoeing to a remote overnight cabin, pushing ourselves in this harsh but compelling environment, and we’ll also try husky-sledding and, time and conditions allowing, some cross-country skiing. Staying in traditional log cabins in the woods, we can relax in Finnish saunas and enjoy the incredible night skies. If we’re lucky we’ll also see the captivating dance of the Northern Lights.

Day 1: London - Kijaani/Kuusamo

Fly to Finland (Kijaani or Kuusamo) and drive through the seemingly endless snow-covered landscapes to our comfortable cabin near Hossa in north-eastern Finland. Depending on arrival time we will either have an evening meal or head straight off to bed, ready for the challenge of the days to come. Night cabin.
Drive approx. 1-2 hours

Day 2: Snowshoeing

We have a full in-country briefing about the activities ahead and then kit up thoroughly. After an introduction to snowshoeing, where we quickly get the hang of this non-technical walking activity, we leave our cabin behind for our overnight adventure! Our route takes us through beautiful, silent woodland; the landscapes are magical, and the silence of our surroundings, broken only by the crunch of the snow and our laughter, adds to the atmosphere.
We break for a picnic lunch around an open fire, then continue our invigorating journey to our cosy wilderness cabin, complete with traditional lake-side sauna. Staying here is a remote experience and you will feel like the early pioneers! Night cabin.
Snowshoe approx. 5-6 hours

Day 3: Snowshoeing

Returning by snowshoe, we explore the ridges and frozen lakes on our way back. Elk, wolves, lynxes and hares live in the woods, though are very seldom seen; we may be lucky enough to spot tracks in the snow. Returning to our main log cabin, we have time to relax any aching muscles in the sauna and settle for an evening of watching out for the magical Northern Lights. Night cabin.
Snowshoe approx. 5-6 hours

Day 4: Husky-Sledding & Cross-Country Skiing

Husky-sledding is usually one of the highlights of the trip! We drive to our husky farm and meet our intelligent, enthusiastic and very photogenic teams of huskies! After learning a little about the dogs from our ‘musher,’ we have an introduction to sled-driving and set off! Pairing up, we take it in turns to drive while our sled-buddy enjoys the ride. The dogs will be excited when they sense a run, but when everybody is ready to go they suddenly go quiet as they set off through the frozen wilderness. The trail takes us through snow-white forests and frozen lakes; a truly memorable highlight of our adventure.
Depending on timings and group size, we'll hopefully have an opportunity for an introduction to cross-country skiing as well – one of the most popular winter hobbies in Finland. A relatively short tour through the flat pine forest and frozen lakes tests what we’ve learned; it’s not uncommon to see reindeer here, so keep your eyes peeled! We return to our base in the late afternoon where we'll gather together to celebrate our Arctic achievements and maybe one final Sauna and ice dip!. Night cabin.

NB: The order of activities and days may change depending on local conditions and logistics.

Day 5: Fly Kijaani/Kuusamo to London
Early start for the drive to the airport for our journey home.

Dates and Pricing

Dates Available

Cost information

When you register for this event, you can choose your fundraising option.

	Registration fee	Cost of trip	Fundraising target
Fundraising option	£299	£0	£2,900
Part-payment option	£299	£500	£1,900
Self payment option	£299	£1,450	Raise as much as you can

Once you have signed up for this event, we will support you by providing:

Fundraising pack full of ideas and advice.
Hospice UK t-shirt and fundraising materials.
Dedicated point of contact in the Events Team

Please note that this is an open challenge facilitated by Discover Adventure, so there will be participants supporting other charities on this trip.