In the smaller, wilder stretches of a river where rafts couldn't get through, masses of individual logs were driven down the river like huge herds of cattle. "Log floating" in Sweden (timmerflottning) had begun by the 16th century, and 17th century in Finland (tukinuitto). The total length of timber-floating routes in Finland was 40,000km.

The log drive was one step in a larger process of lumber-making in remote places. In a location with snowy winters, the yearly process typically began in autumn when a small team of men hauled tools