My name is Carlos I am originally from the Asturias in the north of Spain and I moved to Lapland 20 years ago. It wasn't planned to stay like that, it just happened. I had been looking for something all my youth and the road took me to Lapland. I am still looking...
I studied childcare when I was younger but for some reasons I never worked in childcare. Now, I care for travelers, which one could argue is almost the same thing...
I am a father and a husband and I am really curious, I like to learn new things.
Lapland made me a better person and showed me that I can do much more things that what I believed I could.
I love to spend time outdoors, either hiking, paddling, or back-country skiing.
My new goal in life is to become a scuba diving instructor and get better at surfing.
Guide, a childhood dream?
I don´t think so, or at least I don´t remember, to have had childhood dreams.
I don´t even think that I have dreams as an adult. I try to live my life focusing on the things in front of me, and when something gets in my mind I normally go for it.
Maybe one thing that could be a childhood dream is to travel the world. However, I don´t see it as a dream, I see it as a project.
What is your most memorable expedition ?
I started late in life to do longer expeditions especially in winter conditions. They are all memorable, especially the ones that are a bit harder. They leave you with a bigger sense of accomplishment.
I try to do at least a couple of at least one week trips in nature per year. Usually one in winter, backcountry skiing in autonomy and one in autumn either hiking or packrafting.
A very special one was one we did with a couple of friends. One of them was a pretty much normal human and the other one a giant Alaskan Malamute named Lonchas. We packrafted and hiked in Loppa komune in the north of Norway to visit the 3 only glaciers that still exist in Finmark. It was a mixture of hard hikes, windy paddling through fjords and amazing views through a very wild area, during autumn time.
Another one would be my first one. A crossing of Inari lake with skiis, here in my neighborhood, which is the third biggest lake in Finland. We crossed it in January. We did 115 km in 5 days, in the middle of beautiful surroundings and silence, with amazing northern lights.
What was your most beautiful encounter ?
Once I was kayaking in a small river here in Lapland, a river that you can paddle along for 5-6hours. I did it at a time of the year where it is narrow, the water level very low, and the sides of the river quite high. I was paddling slowly, and suddenly, I saw on the right side of the river a small elk, very close to me, and all of the sudden I heard a big splash and my kayak started bouncing. I saw another elk, this one much much bigger swiming across the river a couple of meters in front of my kayak. The mother elk crossed to the other side and met up with her baby. They looked at me for a bit and they continued their merry way.
What is your secret to keep in shape ?
I think that the thing that keeps me the most in shape, is to try to learn new things all the time. In my free time I love to do cross country skiing in winter, and I do a lot of Nordic walking during summer. They are not very aggressive for the body and keep you in quite a good shape. Also the last year and a half I started doing some kettle bell exercises and I am improving my cardio and my strength. I also try to eat as healthy as my sugar addiction lets me.
What is a thing you never live without ?
A good book, chocolate and my camera
What is you favorite meal after an expedition ?
Spanish ommelette.
Who is your role model ?
There are so many... I have been lucky to meet a lot of interesting people, and all of them have something in common, they live their lives their own way.
If I have to choose a famous person I would choose Fridtjof Nansen, polar explorer, humanitarian and Nobel peace prize.
If you were a city, an animal or a monument, what would you be ?
If I was a city I think I would be one of the Nordic capitals. If I was an animal, I would like to be a platypus, the most special animal in the animal kingdom. If I was a monument I would be one of those small monuments that are hidden in towns that only locals know about.
Randonnée
Packraft
Vélo
Chalet
