Island of Dangers and Beauty

Exploring a high, rugged island filled with wonder and danger — a story of water adventures, cautious climbs, and the deep respect nature demands

My dad, his partner, and their dog have been our guests at the cottage for a couple of days. We’ve had a wonderful time — lots of swimming, time on the water, sauna and grilling. Also island adventures and a visit to the bog! My dad brought all the old watersports gear — towable tubes and a kneeboard. Those were a big part of my childhood. Back then we used to tow a tube behind the boat out at sea — in the Gulf of Finland.

We spent a day on towable tubes taking turns. Of all the kids, the 3-year-old was the most surprising one — asking for more speed over and over again. I was with her on the two-person towable tube, and she didn’t say anything, just signaled more speed (finger up) many times. All the children enjoyed being on the tube. My partner wanted the fastest speed — over 50 km/h and fast turns, which made the tube bounce on the waves.

I’ve saved some pictures from our water fun for the end of the post — don’t miss them! But first, here’s the story of our trip to the Island of Dangers.

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I chose a travel destination for us — an island near, but very high, called Kinissaari. We packed just drinking water, cookies, and shoes — no coffee this time! — and made a quick go. The children travelled in the cuddy cabin, my better half operated the boat, and my dad, his partner and their dog sat in the seats. I sat on the roof, on top of the paddleboard — probably the nicest way to travel on a hot day.

Because of the island’s rocky shore, we left the boat at anchor and landed by paddleboard. My partner went first to tie the boat to a tree, then he returned to pick up the rest of us in small groups. We were all surprised at how well the dog handled the short paddleboard trip. When we all were on the island, our journey began!

The first thing we encountered there was a large spider — Araneus diadematus, the European garden spider, in its web. It drew our attention with its size. It really was big! And there were many — in a small area of trees, we saw at least five of them with their own webs.

We could see the high cliff behind the trees. It really was a special island compared to others. We left our belongings to the shorecliff. There was a path leading from there and we started to climb. It was a hot day — maybe too hot for climbing. The path was lovely though: so much moss, lichens, and early evening sunlight filtering through the trees.

The lake view was visible the whole time, peeking through the trees. During the climb, we chatted about how hot evening maybe wasn’t the best possible day for a steep climb. And we hoped that the saying "the higher you climb, the stronger the wind" would prove true.

Well, that turned out to be a lovely fairy tale — too bad it wasn’t true.

When we finally got up to the highest cliff, we understood that the island was quite dangerous. My first thought was that — once again — I had brought children on a risky trip. But we were careful, and there were many of us adults watching to make sure no one fell. The drop was steep! And someone had really died there — according to the monument.

Up there the view was amazing. The children had to hold adult’s hands while watching down from the edge. When the risk is death or serious injury, we take great care. We admired the landscape for long time. My dad threw a rock down, and I joked that when we get back to the boat, we might find the windshield cracked. As it turned out, the boat was in a different direction — but that just proves my sense of direction isn’t the best.

The deceased hiker was only 20-years-old man, a passionate nature enthusiast. This island cost him his life, which made me reflect on how powerful nature truly is — and not only because of storms, wild animals or natural disasters, but even the terrain itself. In Finland, the landscape is generally quite flat, with no mountains, just gentle hills.

I found myself wondering how experienced the hiker had been. What exactly had happened, and who was the one to find him? Was he alone, or did another hiker come across him? This tragic incident occurred back in 1979, when hiking was very different — there were no mobile phones or virtual maps to rely on. Since then, hiking gear and safety measures have improved a lot, making such trips safer today. Yet, this story reminds me how unpredictable nature can be, and how important it is to respect its power — no matter how experienced you are.

Seeing that small monument on the cliffside made me pause — I held my daughter’s hand a little tighter.

Then we returned down the same path. Up there, beside the trail, the heathers — Calluna vulgaris — were in bloom. The trees on this island were quite old. This path has once been a proper hiking trail, but nowadays it seems quite forgotten.

Once we reached the bottom, I went to dive at the island’s shoreline, while my travel party returned to the boat with the paddleboard. The cool water felt amazing after the hot hike! Once the others were ready to go and had weighed anchor, I was meant to swim to the boat’s dock ladder and climb in. But they had a fun time sailing away and waving to me. I waved back and moved quickly to the shore cliff to pretend I was sunbathing.

When they came back after less than a minute, it looked like I had been lying there for a long time, waiting for them. Everyone — including me — was laughing as I returned to the water and swam to the boat.

My dad and my son having fun with the kneeboard

On the two-seat tube with my 5-year-old

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