Day 5

We arrive at the reindeer corral which is old...  

...but after using thread and weave it is functional again.

As the night´s cold has not withdrawn we take our equipment to Gräsviken, the place where the tests will be carried out before we collect the reindeer.

We already know from the test group the people that should be involved and we also know the requirements about the equipment. We are looking forward to welcoming some of the members in the project. We hope that the weather will turn warmer. It is nicer out then! They are not used to this kind of climate and the amount of snow.

Nils is one of the reindeer herders in the winter group.

He has thoughts about how far Tannak has reached with our system and when it can be in practical use. We explain the three-year length of the project tests but we hope ourselves that it could be possible to speed it up a bit . It is for us, as well as for him, a dream for a herder to be able to follow and control your reindeer.

Tannak starts to get a hectic and stressful feeling. Our winter group helps us to repair the corral and we also build a smaller corral connected to the one where the tests will take place. The reindeer will get the equipment attached and unattached a number of times and have to be kept in the corral overnight. The corral is 300 x 400 metres. Totally there are 7-8 corrals in the test area. Many have a round form and have a circumference ranging from 30 to 150 metres.  

In the area there is a cot with an iron stove. It feels secure to be able to offer warmth here in the forest. But first we have to get wood by using axe and saw. Reindeer skins from our village are very nice to sit on. Susanne´s sister Margareta takes care of the lunches and afternoon coffee.

Tannak has been in contact with a company to shovel the snow away from the parking site near the cot and the corral. Everything is soon ready.

The strong cold is releasing its tight grip on tree and land. We decide to try to move our reindeer closer to the corral. Tannak and part of the winter group take the snowmobile to get the reindeer. We drive to the fringe of the herd which is 12 miles from the test area. We are able to get a part of the herd and start moving them to Gräsviken.

The reindeer are wilder than usual today and not very cooperative at all. They do not want to go the way we want them to. After some will struggle we win and are able to move them 10 miles nearer the test area. We leave them there. There is grazing to be found. We hope that they will stay there until the next day when the tests will start...