Lighthouses on ice: A winter walk on the Baltic Sea
It does not happen often that the Baltic Sea outside Obbola is frozen all the way to Finland. Today I took a longer break from work and took a long walk on the frozen and snow-covered Baltic Sea.
I left the small islet (we call it Lillskär) behind and could see the vast expanse of snow.
I went between the islands of Bredskär and Bredskärsten and headed to the red lighthouse called Dynan. I’ve been there before once – by kayak.
I even continued to the next lighthouse – Revet, but it lay behind a frozen ice channel and I was not sure how stable it would be.
On the way back to Dynan I saw the ice, that covered parts of the lighthouse. Was it storm waves that created this icy layer?
In the distance I saw some moving clouds. There was probably an open ice channel there and when it is cold – around -12 °C today – the sea “smokes” building ice fog.
I crossed the ice back to the island Bredskärsten, which I circumvented. At the northern tip a two-metre-high wall of ice has built. Time for a selfie using the self-timer on my Nikon.
Then it was time to return to the mainland, first into the shower, then back to my desk.
Some words about the equipment:
When I am in doubt about the ice conditions I wear my neoprene floatation suit. In case I would break through the ice it would keep me warm and dry and provide enough buoyancy to get back onto stable ice. To get a grip in the ice I have ice safety picks hanging around my neck. The camera and a spare pair of gloves I have in my waterproof backpack. and my mobile phone is in its own waterproof bag hanging around my neck as well.
It is like carrying a first aid kit. You don’t want to use it, but you should have it with you to be safe. If you don’t have proper equipment and tested its usage I would strongly discourage you from crossing sea ice, especially when it is snow-covered and you cannot see the thickness of the ice. So – please stay safe!