Finnish inventor sails his sauna to Estonia

GULF OF FINLAND — A Finnish inventor successfully sailed across the Gulf of Finland in his self-made floating sauna Monday.

"The idea going to Estonia - it just came to my mind that celebrating 100 years of Estonia, it's never been done, it has interesting points about technology and of course it's dangerous and exciting," said Janne Kapylehto.

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The floating sauna looks like a shed on a raft.

It's equipped with four engines, solar power panels, a sauna for three, an observation post, sound system, a fridge and a grill.

The crew made the 50-mile journey from Helsinki to Estonia's capital in 16 hours.

It took longer than expected because of high waves and winds of up to 33 miles per hour.

"We had a lot of water, wind, waves, but the vessel actually performed really well and felt safe even like there was water everywhere and rain and high waves," said Kapylehto.

Despite the rough weather, the inventor says his sauna boat performed great.

The crew even spent two hours of the journey in the sauna and grilling on deck.
 
"Having a sauna on a boat or sauna boat is actually handy, because the weather was a bit cold, a lot of wind, but it's also a nice place where you can warm yourself," said Kapylehto.

The original plan was to sail the sauna boat back to Helsinki, but those plans were scrapped because of worsening weather.

NBC