Denmark - Finland - Greenland - Iceland

Feb. 26 The Last Of The Goldiggers: Living the Life of hermits in the open country of Finnish Lapland there are still a few men who can call themselves goldiggers. Fifty-five year old Nipa Raumala is one such man. He has been panning his claim since the 1940's, and once guided the President of Finland through the mountains and rivers that are his home. At Lemmenjoki Nipa and nine others have their log cabin homes, which they leave only twice a year to get supplies from the town of Enare. The land they pan is rich in gold and a thousand kilos has been found there in the last hundred years. Nipa himself has found twenty kilos since 1945 and is now the accepted Old man of his kind. Photo shows Seventy-two year old Jussi Mikkonen works his claim everyday. He digs the gold from the river bed and then pans away the sand and dirt. He wears water proof gloves to protect his aging hands from Rheumatism

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Accepted Aging Claim Digs Dirt Fifty-five Finnish Goldiggers Guided Hermits Jussi Kilos Lapland Nipa Panning Pans Proof Protect Rheumatism Themselves Thousand Twice

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