Trip around Finland on a -81 GS850G

[Juke Nukem]

So I’ve been fixing my 850G to take on a 40-years birthday trip (mine and the bike). It was supposed to be to continental Europe but covid changed all that and now I’m going around Finland.

The build thread can be found here: https://www.thegsresources.com/_foru...-for-road-trip

I started today from Espoo where I live. Cloudy day, about +15C but no rain.

[Juke Nukem]

First destination, Finnish Motorcycle Museum in Lahti. Drove small roads and spent the best part of the day getting there. It’s a small museum but the bikes on display are really cool. No GS’s this year though.

[Juke Nukem]

After Lahti I had to start using the bigger and more boring roads because it was getting late. Arrived to Hankasalmi, where there was an annual meeting of a classic japanese bikes -club. There were some really nice bikes there, including GSs of course.


I had zero chances of actually test driving the bike before leaving, and was really worried when I found out that the steering end wobbles really badly in certain speeds, even when not breaking or accelerating. Higher speeds are Ok. Then I noticed that the front tyre is not properly installed. The lip of the tyre is probably not on the edge of the rim all around. I just had it done in a shop before leaving! Tomorrow it’s sunday and all service places are closed in the countryside, so I’ll have to manage one full driving day with it.

edit: distance covered 373km / 231mi

[GSXR7ED]

Thanks for the link to your Road Trip Prep. Those bags came out really nice...and fixing the fuel petcock...and the maintenance checklist that had lots of feedback!

I also love that your bike resembles mine with a black tank. That's about all the similarity...lol.

Stay safe!

Ed

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[alke46]

Subscribed. Safe travels to you.

[Juke Nukem]

Thanks alke and GSXR!

Sunday started after a poorly slept night. I wanted to cover some distance so took big roads right through Kuopio and stopped at Outokumpu for late lunch. Great weather! Then it was Koli, which is a tall fell (we don’t have proper mountains here) and the view from the top is considered a national treasure.


I then took smaller roads through Nurmes, Kuhmo and Suomussalmi. I wanted to get to Kuusamo for the night but it was getting late so didn’t really stop for sights. The last leg was about 140km in darkness, following a truck because there’s a constant threat of elk and now also reindeer. It was pretty exhausting really, I was cold and squeezing the grips so hard that my hands are now jello. Petrol was gettin low too which added to the stress. At 11pm arrived to Kuusamo where everything seemed to be closed. I got some petrol and luckily a spa hotel was open and I got a room. Bought a sandwhich from the reception and went to bed.

edit: distance covered 719km / 446mi

[Juke Nukem]

Bulked up on the hotel breakfast and headed to town to find a tyre shop. After few tries ended up in a place which normally deals with cars an heavy equipment. They world for a full hour trying to get in fixed. It’s apparently a bit quirky setup I have there. It came out Ok. Not perfect but so much better than before. They charged me next to nothing for the work. Then some oil and other stuff from a few places and further north!


p.s. Another badly slept night, even in hotel sheets. This is starting to feel a bit.

[Juke Nukem]

Headed to Salla and entered Lapland. Finland is pretty empty in general but here it’s just forest and empty roads. It’s starting to be off-season too, so no tourists. Trees are getting shorter and there are small ponds and streams everywhere. the roads are nice and weather continues to be great. This is the best bit so far.

[Juke Nukem]

Reindeers have been all over the place since Kuusamo. Makes me want to follow a car but there aren’t many of those around.

[GSXR7ED]

Nice Travels JN (Juke Nukem)

You can call me Ed...instead of GSXR7ED. I've used that profile name since Fall of 2011 when I bought my first bike.

Ed

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[Juke Nukem]

From Salla switched to smaller roads to Savukoski and then even smaller roads to Sodankylä. Really cool rugged landscape and a narrow but still paved road going through. The pavement was really rough and there were wider spots regularly where two cars could pass each other. The speedo cable apparently broke so I will have to rely on Google maps for the distance information. I’m so glad I have a functioning fuel gauge!

In Sodankylä I had a reindeer-shrimp-pineapple pizza for dinner and drove in one go to Ivalo and set up my tent in a camping area.


Distance covered 442km / 274mi

[steve murdoch]

Reindeer on a pizza? I wonder if i can get that at my local shop?
I followed your preparation thread and now it is great reading about your on-road adventures.
Thanks for taking the time to share it with us.

[Rich82GS750TZ]

Great travel stories. Now we just need you to post better pictures. I have written instructions on using Imgur for this purpose, in my signature.

[Juke Nukem]

Sorry for the low quality pics
I don’t think I’ll subscribe while on the road. Would Dropbox work somehow? That I have.

Anyway, another tent night and then towards Norway. Through Inari, then to East towards Sevettijärvi and Näätämö. Uneventful but nice driving. Beautiful clear lakes and streams. Hardly any reindeers. Cold, must be below 10C. At one point there was a road construction site where they were laying new foundations and I had to deal with loose gravel about 5km. Nerve-wrecking!

[Juke Nukem]

Across the border over to Norway! No problem with the EU certification of full Covid vaccinations. Immediately after crossing it’s all mountains and fjords. Same happens south between Sweden and Norway: Sweden is flat and boring and from the border it’s boom - mountains!

I guess it had to rain eventually. Today has seen showers every now and then but also sun. Arrived in Kirkenes and got a room from a Scandic Hotel, I feel I’ve earned it. Then out to town to a nice restaurant for excellent fish and cold Czech beer. The town is situated by a fjord of the Barent’s sea. Very small town with an iron ore mine, so not exactly the most idyllic place ever but still nice. So glad the old GS took me all the way up here!


edit: distance covered 239km / 148mi