Haparanda Sandskär Bird Observatory
Practical information and advice
Much practical information about Sandskär
is available in the home page of Bosmina, http://www.bosmina.bd.se/. Bosmina is
the boat beloning to warden Staffan Svanberg.
The ringing site
The distance from Kumpula is 800 meters.
The site is equipped with a small ringing hut and a toilet. There is no
drinking water. A thermos bottle and a water bottle are recommended.
The ground where the nets are placed is
often relatively dry, but the water level fluctuates considerably and sometimes
certain nets are in such deep water that (knee)high
rubber boots are needed. The grass is often damp, in particular early in the
morning. Rubber boots are also needed when handling the wader cages.
Accommodation
The staff of the Bird Observatory uses a
cabin in Kumpula beloning to the County Administrative Board of Norrbotten.
(Bevakningsstugan), The distance between the harbour and the cabin is about 150
meters. The cabin is equipped with two bunk beds with in total four beds, a
table, a gas stove, a gas refrigerator, a wood stove and full kitchen
equipment.
There are pillows and quilts. Visitors
should bring their own bed sheets (recommended) or sleeping bag and towels. If
you bring a sleeping back you should anyway bring a pillow case.
The cabin is equipped with a solar panel
that is used for lamps and for the station computer. We do not have a lot of
electricity, so remember to turn off the ligths. It is a good idea to bring
candles if you come in August, September and October. There is a limited
capacity to recharge batteries for mobile phones and cameras. There is a 12 V
cigaret lighter socket, so if you have such a connector you should bring it.
There is no 220 V system in the cabin.
Fire wood is taken from the sauna.
Bear in mind that you share the cabin with
others in the staff, also people that you perhaps do not know. (Like in a
mountain cabin.) If you wish to have more private accommodation you should
bring this up with the director of the observatory beforehand.
Food
Every staff member is responsible for his
or her own food. In addition to the gas refrigerator there is a simple cellar
in the form of a cement cylinder (well section) dug into the ground. There is
no store on the island and you have to count on the risk of bad weather so that
your stay on the island is a day longer than expected. So
be sure to bring enough food!
The gas stove has two burners. There is no
baking oven.
Drinking water is carried from a well.
There will be advise in the cabin on which well to use.
There is complete kitchen equipment with
china, glasses, cooking pots etc. However, you can not count on using the
cooking pots to store food, since you share the kitchen eqipment with the other
members of staff. If you wish to cook much and save cooked food until the next
day you must bring your own jars and
bags.
Bear in mind that you share the kitchen
space with others!
On Sandskär there is an abundance of
lingonberries. They are ripe towards the end of August- September. With some
sugar in your supplies you can have fresh lingonberry jam. Before the
lingonberries there are blueberries and raspberries.
Food purchase
In Sangis is Coop Nära
Sangis at Bagarvägen 2 , Tel: 0923-671002. Near to the
bus station.
Hours: Monday-Friday 10 - 18, Saturday 10 - 13
From there you can order food in advance
and pick it up after you have arrived in Sangis.
In Kalix, Strandgatan 8 you find ICA Supermarket open 9- 22 daily
Coop Forum Kalix, Strandgatan 22,
Monday-Sataurday: 08- 21, Sunday: 11- 21
In Nikkala there is ICA Nära, Hours:
weekdays 09-21, Saturdays 09-16, Sundays 12-16.
In Haparanda there is Konsum Haparanda at
N. Esplanaden 8 very close to the bus station. Hours: Daily 08- 21
In Luleå there is Willys at Småbåtsgatan 3,
400 m SE of the railway station and about 500 m S of the bus station. Hours:
Monday-Saturday 8-21, Sunday 10-21
Equipment
Clothes for ringing need to be robust – it is a rather dirty activity – and give good protection against vegetation and insects. (There are no poisonous plants though). Avoid garmets with many buttons and details that can get caught in the nets when you extract birds. T-shirt and shorts are not considered a good alternative by most persons, due to the insects.
During the first net rounds in the morning or after rain there may be much moisture in the vegetation, so that a pair of rain trousers and rubber boots are suitable, even when the weather is good. Rubber boots are also needed when handling wader cages and during periods with high water level. Both rubber boots and rain pants usually get quite a bit a wear, so it is a good idea to use an older pair. The observatory has two pairs of wader trousers for use when the water level gets extremely high.
Everyone is responsible for bringing his or her drinking water to the ringing site (well in Kumpula). If you wish to have something warm to drink you should bring a thermos bottle.
Sometimes birds get caught badly so that it is necessary to cut a few net strands. It is a good idea to bring a stitch ripper (comes together with a sewing machine) or small pair of scissors. Some ringers use a fine crocheting hook to catch difficult strands.
There are usually a few things that need to be carried to the ringing site, so you should bring a rucksack that can take a few more things than just your own pack lunch and extra clothes.
At the ringing site there are bird books, ringing equipment, first aid equipment and a wash bowl for washing your hands that we usually fill with collected rain water.
After the ringing it often feels good with a bath, so bring beachwear and a towel for the sauna. Sandskär also has a nice beach.
From the beginning av August you whould
bring a flashlight and/or a headlamp.
Order
Keep good order in and around the cabin.
The dishes are to be washed at least once per day. No garbage, leftover food or
tools must be left around the cabin. Empty tin cans are to be washed and put in
a bag for your later transport back to the mainland.
Garbage
Everyone brings their garbage back to the mainland. Paper can be burned in the stove. There are recycling stations in Sangis and Nikkala. At the recycling station garbage is sorted into the following fractions:
- Soft plastics
- Hard plastics
- Metal containers
- Uncolored glass
- Colored glass
- Newspaper
- Paper packages
Do not try to burn packages lined with
aluminum foil. They contain too much metal.
Personal care
All visitors on Sandskär are welcome to use
the wood heated sauna close to the ”bevakningstugan” and the new sauna close to
the shore. Use is for free.
Toilets (privies) are found along the
boardwalk from the harbor towards the chapel and in the west part of Kumpula along
the way to the storage hut.
Weather
Temperatures during
2002 och 2003
|
|
July |
August |
September |
October |
|
Max |
32 |
28 |
20 |
10 |
|
Min |
14 |
7 |
-2 |
-6 |
It is often
drier and sunnier than on the mainland, but you must be prepared for rain and
strong winds. During times of low pressure and strong southerly winds the water
level may rise unpleasantly quickly.
Transports
See special information sheet.
Telephone and Internet
Phone numbers: GSM:
+46 (0)73-087 6630
ice.net:
+46 (0)766-63 52 94 (function uncertain)
E-mail: hapsand@gmail.com
The bird observatory has a GSM phone with a
cash card. Until now we have not charged anyting for private domestic calls.
Short messages are OK, but if you wish to talk a lot you should ask the other
person to call you. The mobile phone
coverage on Sandskär is bad. It is sometimes possible to get contact in a few
places such as close to the chapel and at the tip of the jetty. The best way to
reach people on Sandskär is to send SMS messages that get through more easily
than phone calls.
The Summer 2008 we started using our mobile
broadband. It worked most of the time. You can, however, not count on spending
much time by the computer, since electricity is limited.
Mosquitoes
Do not forget to bring mosquito repellant.
Count on both mosquitoes, horse flies, and gnats! Clothes with long sleeves and
long legs is good protection, in particular when you try to concentrate on the birds.
Tetanus immunization
All staff members are requested to check
their tetanus immunizations. It is often difficult and expensive to arrange
quick transport to a doctor.
Insurance
Everyone is responsible for his or her own
accident insurance.
First aid equipment
Is available both in the cabin in Kumpula
and in the ringing hut.
Fishing
Fishing is allowed, also with nets. You are
allowed a maximum of 6 nets per person, and you may put a maximum of two nets
together. The observatory does not
have a boat.
Per diem
Many staff members work as volunteers, but
ringers and assistants can also apply for a Per diem. The amount is 70 SEK per
day. Per diem is granted to persons up till the age of 25 and to others who
have special reasons. The Per diem is granted for days when the person is
present at the observatory during regular ringing hours and participate in the
ringing work. It is also granted if the ringing must be cancelled due to bad
weather. The amount can be reduced for people who deviate markedly from
following the observatory procedures.
The observatory pays for boat transportation for ringers and assistants between the mainland and Sandskär, provided that the stay at Sandskär is at least one week. Family members and others can use the station boat trips if there are free places, but we charge a fee for this. Information about the fee is obtained from the station director.
For ringers and experienced assistants and
persons up to 25 years of age who stay for two or more weeks we pay for
verified transportation costs within Sweden up to 1000 SEK.
Contact information
Haparanda sandskär bird observatory 073-087 6630 (During the field
season)
Director vacant
Jan Andersson 0921-179
39, 073-024 20 79
Earlier director jan.andersson@edu.boden.se
Staffan Svanberg 0922-13395, 070-5527636
Warden, Skipper, Bosmina bosmina@mailbox.hogia.net
Boat transport
Rune Lindquist 0923-67 12 53, 070-631
75 28
rune.lindq@telia.com
Mats Lindelöf 0922-204
29, 070-355 38 23
Contact persons, County administrative board
1.
Warden,
Staffan Svanberg, 0922-133 95, 070-5527636
2.
Lena Bondestad,
0920-962 21
3.
Maud Videhult, 0920-960 76, 070-629 60 76