On Thursday morning, November 26, a gray dawn broke over Tohmajärvi, bringing the temperature to just a few scant degrees above zero Celsius. But at the Sirola Farm, preparations were already in full swing. We were expecting unusual guests, who would be arriving first thing in the morning. A four-person BBC film crew had come to visit our farm all the way from the United Kingdom. They were hoping to learn what a sheep farmer’s daily life is like in North Karelia, Finland – an area known for its very dense wolf population. The crew had arrived in Finland on Tuesday, and during their visit, they were planning to learn as much as possible about Finnish wolf politics and attitudes by interviewing authorities, hunters, and individuals alike. The BBC film crew’s footage from our farm is expected to be released in early spring as part of a larger documentary.

We wanted to be able to fully focus on exhibiting our farm, so by the time the film crew arrived, our diligent workers had already finished all our morning routines. If only we’d known that the film crew had intended to film us during our work! Luckily, this amusing little setback was easily overcome. Outi drove out the Valmet mini tractor into the spotlight and re-bedded the pens, Roosa added more marking paint to Frodo the Ram’s chest, and Jari began mixing compound feed. We may or may not have swung some shovels and re-turned the feed that we had delivered earlier in the morning as well. In addition to our daily work, the film crew also filmed footage of animals ruminating, Gerald the Ram mating with a ewe, and the carnivore-proof fence circling our field.
Lastly, they filmed an interview with Outi, asking her about her views and concerns regarding wolves here in North Karelia as well as her general opinions on wolf hunting for population management.

Since the film crew had other footage to capture before sundown, they were in quite a hurry to continue on their way. But they did make time for a quick cup of coffee and a taste of our neighbor Eila’s freshly baked Karelian pasties, topped with egg butter and our farm’s very own salami and cold cuts. Before leaving, the film crew gave us their heartfelt thanks and kudos. I do believe their visit left all parties in a very cheerful mood!