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Terra.Anatolia
  • 4 hours ago
Transcript
00:00Water gives life, and it's a way of life. It shapes the land, and the culture, whether flowing, frozen, or in between.
00:23We'll follow the flow through Finland, where waterways can be highways, and Lapland becomes Lakeland, to discover the chills and the thrills of Scandinavia's wild water.
00:53The Archipelago Sea, a cluster of more than 50,000 islands.
01:21Maybe the largest archipelago in the world.
01:28This is the southern end of Finland. Winter begins its tight grip. And this water has low salinity, making it easy to freeze for three to five months of the year.
01:50When there's no ice, boats and ferries use these channels like roads. And when it's frozen over, it creates even faster options.
02:02A massive fan can push this hovercraft to more than 70 miles an hour.
02:18And if the ice is patchy, no problem.
02:33The Finnish government uses hovercraft as a free public transport option.
02:40From the capital of Helsinki, hundreds of commuters must get home to some of the islands every week.
02:55This is what passes as a daily commute.
03:01The sights are enthralling this time of year. And so too the sounds.
03:08Listen carefully.
03:18This is Scandinavia after the first cold snap of the season.
03:24It sounds like a Hollywood soundtrack for a sci-fi laser battle.
03:39But no. It's a skater on thin ice.
03:48Freshly formed black ice, around two inches thick, is the only way skaters can create this haunting symphony.
03:56The sound is the ice cracking behind the skaters as waves ripple through the water below.
04:15Scandinavia is the birthplace of ice skating.
04:19Blades were first made of animal bone more than a thousand years ago.
04:32And this form is called wild ice skating.
04:41More than walking on water, it's gliding on clouds.
04:50It's dangerous.
04:52But a change in pitch warns athletes if they move too close to ice, they might fall through.
04:58Ignore it at your peril.
05:10Special ice nails help skaters get to shore safely.
05:14The season for wild ice skating is short, only at the start of winter.
05:24Then it's a long wait before the waterways are clear again.
05:34You can still see how the rivers shape the land, stretching out and feeding Scandinavia like roots of a giant tree.
05:42Even iced over and caked in snow, the hidden power of the water shines through.
05:55In the mountains of Norway, it doesn't feel easy, but resists through the depths of winter, forcing wild wings to carve the water into a surreal patchwork of ice.
06:13It's like this for six or seven months.
06:20Then, finally, it happens.
06:26Spring unlocks the water throughout Scandinavia.
06:31Spring unlocks the water throughout Scandinavia.
06:41Lakes defrost, and rivers and streams flow again.
06:45Now, the islands of the archipelago can provide protection for regular boats.
07:05And once again, sailors must depend on lighthouses to warn them of low-lying rocks.
07:29Ferries take over from hovercraft.
07:44And the archipelago becomes the perfect racecourse for speedboats.
07:57You can also see the mysterious rock cut from a quarry on one of the islands.
08:16It's said to be a fine red granite sculpture shaped long ago to serve as Napoleon's tombstone.
08:31But it was abandoned.
08:34Perhaps because it was too large and heavy to be shipped.
08:38Throughout Scandinavia, the thorn now spreads north to reveal other mysteries and wonders.
08:56In southern Finland, the big melt unlocks thousands of lakes.
09:08Then swamps along the Russian border.
09:11And finally farther north into the Arctic Circle.
09:15Where once again, the biggest rivers can flow free.
09:19The great waterways of northern Scandinavia converge in the Arctic.
09:31Here, each spring, instinct drives fish by the thousands to return from the ocean and charge upstream.
09:41Arctic chow, sea trout, sea trout and salmon.
09:54They have their choice of more than 200 rivers.
09:58But one stands out above the rest.
10:03The Tama River.
10:05The word Tama means great.
10:08And it's well named.
10:11It forms part of the border between Norway and Finland.
10:20And it's 224 mile length has more than 40 tributaries.
10:27Together, they form one of the largest Atlantic salmon runs in the world.
10:34Once here, females begin their reproductive ritual by digging in gravel to create a nest called a red.
10:59Meanwhile, the males may fight for the right to get close.
11:03The lucky male moves in.
11:08And in just a moment.
11:13He fertilizes her eggs as she drops them.
11:18About two months later.
11:32This.
11:33Salmon hatchlings grow strong in the river for several years before heading out to sea.
11:49But it's not a safe time.
11:54There are many threats.
11:56This is a dipper.
11:57One of the pluckiest little birds you'll ever see.
11:59Dippers are the world's only aquatic songbirds.
12:01And they spend their entire lives around water, often by raging cascades.
12:06Cascades.
12:07Cascades.
12:08Dippers are the world's only aquatic songbirds.
12:11Cascades.
12:12Cascades.
12:13Cascades.
12:14Cascades.
12:15Cascades.
12:16Cascades.
12:17Cascades.
12:20Cascades.
12:21Cascades.
12:22Dippers are the world's only aquatic songbirds.
12:25And they spend their entire lives around water, often by raging cascades.
12:31Cascades.
12:51The relentless thunder is enough to turn many visitors chicken, which makes what the dipper
12:59does next in the wild waters of Scandinavia even more incredible.
13:11In Finland's far north, a miracle of flight, the fearless dipper bird flies through this crushing
13:24water undaunted, in and out, up and down, with ease.
13:41White-throated dippers have carved out a niche here, and they dive in to fetch food.
14:03The powerful currents they call home keep them safe from most predators.
14:10Where they use their unique abilities to capture and dine on waterborne insects, worms, fish
14:16eggs, and even fish.
14:24The dippers essentially fly underwater.
14:33Special white eyelids let them see clearly, while their blood stores large amounts of oxygen,
14:40allowing them to stay submerged for up to a minute at a time.
14:50When they swim through a waterfall, it's usually to get to their young, tucked into a nest on
14:56the other side.
15:00It's the safest place to hide from predators.
15:18The waterways of Finland support another bird, also unique.
15:26You might say these are odd ducks, they don't just swim, they dance.
15:38Don't forget shake your tail feather, try shake your head feather.
15:52Head shaking, diving, weed carrying, and rapid water treading are all for a purpose.
16:01This is a male and a female, and they both put in the same effort.
16:06All bird ways of saying, let's hook up.
16:11Courtship may look like a curious thing, but it works.
16:17Next step is to build a nest for mating.
16:23They start with a water plant base.
16:30Now that they are in this relationship, they both pitch in.
16:37But this is no ordinary house.
16:39It's a boat house, a nest that'll float.
16:43And now it's ready for some fertilized eggs.
17:01Once laid, the eggs will hatch in three or four weeks.
17:19Meanwhile, a bird's still gotta eat.
17:23And they dive for fish so fast, they've earned the nickname of water witch.
17:28Now you see them, now you don't.
17:34This is a meal for one, but they also make meals to share.
17:41The one on nest duty deserves something, especially when she has a surprise on her back.
17:51Meet Junior, oh wait, make that twins.
17:58Their parents' backs are their new luxury sweets.
18:03And it comes with room service.
18:06Hand delivered, or rather, beak delivered.
18:15Some meals include feathers.
18:17These will lodge in the chick's stomach.
18:23So only the good, fully digestible food gets to the intestine.
18:31It seems like an idyllic life for the birds on the waterways of Finland.
18:37But beware, they must be careful.
18:41Some dangerous predators lurk close by.
18:44Grass snakes also prefer life with a water view.
19:03They are good swimmers, and throughout Scandinavia, they use waterways to hunt for birds, frogs, fish,
19:15and even small mammals.
19:24Spring is in the air.
19:27And that means you often find more than one.
19:30One, even more than two.
19:35Sometimes, a slithering mass.
19:46Grass snakes are common in Scandinavia.
19:49And these are all males clamoring for the attention of just one female in the middle.
20:00She's the most popular debutante at the mating ball.
20:04The large female snake at the middle of this mass uses perfume.
20:21A pheromone that's attracted the horde.
20:27Another male comes late to the party, and he'll have a hard time joining in on the fun.
20:34Usually, only the first male gets to mate.
20:39And he leaves behind a plug that stops any others from getting in on the action.
20:46In two or three months, she may lay as many as 14 eggs.
20:51And a new generation of grass snakes will soon hatch.
20:56The volume of life in the pristine waters of northern Finland attracts fishermen from all over Scandinavia and the world.
21:10They capture 100 tons of fish from this region every year.
21:31And they are not the only ones hankering for a catch.
21:34Eurasian otters are fierce, water-loving weasels.
21:48They will hunt birds, frogs, and other small mammals.
22:04They will hunt birds, frogs, and other small mammals.
22:08But their favorite is fish.
22:24They are usually loners, like this one, and defend their territory.
22:29In this part of Scandinavia, that means having to navigate some rough rapids.
22:43rivers in the northern regions of Finland have some of the best white water in all Europe.
23:02The river Kitka hugs the Russian border on its way to the wide sea.
23:12And for at least part of its journey, it carries rafters and kayakers out for a bit of Finnish fun.
23:32There is a lot of Challenge.
23:33If you don't have to, you see one of the countries even with contribute.
23:35There is a push in the distance to help the west.
23:37I know aspects of Southland gigabytes, say,
23:39First of all in Australia, Buenasher and Welle are really the lighthouse-directed비 climate in.
23:55The winds of trend forever have a great and the23- Sunday forces over to the coast.
23:58They are quite fast and more packed in places and not only have a great and healthy source of experience.
24:01The waterways of Finland
24:13have long functioned as highways.
24:24A little farther south,
24:27kayakers now follow a nature trail
24:30that used to be all about business.
24:39This is the tar route,
24:42a watery path that was once a beeline
24:45for barrels of tar being transported
24:48from the Taiga forest on Scandinavia's eastern border
24:51to the Baltic Sea.
24:53The tar was one of Finland's most important exports
25:01from the 1500s to the 1800s.
25:05And who needs roads or rail
25:08when you have calm, reliable waters?
25:11It's a soft adventure.
25:30But get out on the banks
25:32and you might find some serious danger.
25:34More than a thousand bears
25:39hug the waterways
25:40and often hunt for fish in Finland.
25:43More than a thousand bears
25:45hug the waterways
25:46and often hunt for fish in Finland.
25:49The brown bear is Finland's national animal
25:54and a significant part of Finnish culture.
25:58The brown bear is Finland's national animal
26:02and a significant part of Finnish culture.
26:04The Finns have more than 200 names for bear.
26:24So when this big boy dines,
26:27he will happily eat 90 pounds of food in a day,
26:35if he can find it.
26:49And around Finland's waterways,
26:52his search is not restricted to land.
26:57There's a huge attraction.
26:58So when the air qualifies
27:00two investors,
27:01a small group shared
27:02together with an island,
27:04another mix to sit
27:04and fight?
27:09What does that mean?
27:10If you pay attention to Dortmund's meters,
27:14you'll see agagefenbolic town
27:16and look for 2 hours so soon!
27:18They're going to run there!
27:20And here's a hugephyse
27:21that you need to make.
27:23And I've gone to erstmal
27:24before dinosaur
27:25and fishingTV,
27:26This brown bear is a powerful top-of-the-food-chain predator.
27:56A small fish may not seem like much, but it all adds up.
28:26He still has meat on his mind, and his ears prick up at the sound of a nearby commotion.
28:41These ravens may direct him to some food in the forest.
28:51It's worth a look.
29:13As he heads farther south, towards the Gulf of Finland, another big flyer signals the presence of great waterways.
29:23Sea hawks. Call them osprey, if you prefer.
29:36They are never too far from water. And here's why.
29:43A fish or eight a day keeps the hunger away for these two parents and their hungry chicks.
29:54Ninety-nine percent of an osprey's diet is fish.
30:19In between meals, the little ones practice stretching their wings.
30:37Soon, they too will patrol the skies of Scandinavia as adults.
30:46They may even use the very same nest to start their own families.
30:59Unless, of course, their trees targeted by some industrious developers below.
31:12Fallen logs and giant dams are the first telltale signs that the beavers are back.
31:21They were hunted to extinction in Sweden and Finland.
31:25But Norway's beavers have since been used to help them out.
31:31Beavers are still hard to see because most of their work is done at night.
31:42Under the cover of darkness, they whittle away at trees, collect branches and deep mud to build dams.
31:58The water that spreads because of this work gives them easy and safe access to more food.
32:08And when the work is done, there's some time for play and romance.
32:17The work of these beavers is remarkable, but it's nothing compared to what's about to pass them by.
32:26Perhaps the most impressive woodworking accomplishment on all of Finland's waterways.
32:34Nearly halfway down Finland, you can see the real timber industry at work.
32:51And here, the Finns use waterways like highways.
33:01Finland is one of Europe's largest producers of wood.
33:05And what better way than water to move all that wood to market?
33:10Workers wire thousands of logs together to form giant floating trains that can be close to a mile long.
33:28This timber is on a 150-mile journey downstream.
33:35And what you see above the surface is only one-tenth of what lies below.
33:43Perhaps the biggest marvel of this method is how they navigate under bridges and through tight channels.
33:51A single tug does the pulling, while others keep the swaying tail end of this wooden dragon in check.
34:07About 40% of Finland's timber used to be transported this way.
34:14Now it's less than 3%.
34:16But that's still more than a million tons a year.
34:21This is the most affordable way of transporting timber over long distances.
34:42Just a little farther down the length of Finland is the so-called land of a thousand lakes.
34:52In fact, a thousand is a vast understatement.
34:57Try 188,000 lakes.
35:03They stretch across hundreds of miles.
35:09This is the largest lake district in Europe.
35:13More than 40,000 bodies of water make a labyrinth of rivers, canals and islands.
35:20On Lake Saima, the largest of the lakes, one island calls Olavinlinna Castle.
35:41Also known as St. Olaf's Castle.
35:44It was the first Finnish castle to be built with firearms in mind.
35:54And that served Finland well.
35:56It's near the border of Russia.
35:59Traditionally a conflict hotspot.
36:01But it's withstood several sieges and wars.
36:05And is now more than 500 years old.
36:10Lake Saima is also famous as the home of an extraordinary creature unique in the world.
36:23The Saima-bringed seal.
36:26One of the most endangered species on the planet.
36:30Unlike their seawater-loving cousins, they must deal with ice cover all through winter.
36:42And here it comes.
36:48Winter once again grips Scandinavia.
36:53nămώνumbragiln
36:54A kingdom of snow white.
37:03of snow white and ice slowly grips the lake now you see what makes the saima
37:21ring seals so special they are one of the few seal populations on the planet
37:27to live exclusively around fresh water and they mostly eat fish which can make the ice cover that
37:37comes with winter a challenge when fishing they must often look for holes in the ice so they can
37:45catch their breath making it more fun for a playful seal lots of bubbles the fishermen of Finland just
38:06above also want to catch they have to get creative finish fishermen clear the snow and penetrate the
38:34ice with an auger this stone-edge technique is done now throughout Finland with more modern lightweight
38:50equipment the holes are eight inches across small consultant is the catch
39:20sanders and perch just enough to fry up in a pan and the numbers can make up for the size
39:41the winter fishing season is long sometimes more than six months
39:51the ice gets strong enough for four-wheelers and even heavier vehicles
40:01maybe more than three feet thick
40:12it's not all about the fish
40:17here augers and maybe a special eyesore are used for something very different
40:27more than an hour's work not to collect giant ice blocks
40:42nor to get to the fish beneath
40:48Sami Rautiainen wants an ice hole off the end of his dock
40:54so we can make a polar bear-like plunge into the frigid depths he knows how that sounds
41:02sounds crazy and it might look crazy but actually feels very good it's more like fun for me and my family
41:13the lakeside building here is a Finnish favorite a sauna after a quick warm-up inside it's 20 seconds to dive time
41:32I put snow or cold water to my heart just to give the picture to my heart what is coming up
41:51so I don't go direct to the water so then already heart starts pumping when I touch it with the cold water or snort
42:09it's time
42:18there may be some therapeutic benefits and it's a national pastime for thousands of Scandinavians
42:25and nowadays in bigger cities there is even this ice hole swimming clubs and some people are getting the fresh feeling to start the working day
42:38no more than a minute or two at most then it's time to warm up again
42:44while the ice hole immediately starts to freeze over
42:56beneath the ice the waterways keep flowing
43:03they continue to course through the veins of Scandinavia
43:15winter and summer alive
43:18it's life giving blood
43:21and much more
43:24water fuels the clock by which all of Finland sets itself
43:30nature times its rhythms
43:33to the freezing and the defrosting
43:37and the people of Finland fit right in
43:42they harness the power of the waterways
43:46take the wild frills
43:49and spills
43:52in their stride
43:56and somehow always manage to go with the flow
44:03you
44:05you
44:07you
44:09you
44:11you
44:13you
44:15you
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