South is the optimal direction by the way. Most of the rivers go mostly east-west. The only north-south ones are the ones between kaumo and reemi, so you're more likely to run into a river by going in a north-south direction. Since the "can stay zoomed out" condition is finding a village, it's easier to find a village in the south because you might find a field or a pasture and then you can do a search around that area until you find the village. In the north where there isn't agriculture then you could pass a single tile away from a village and never know it.
On the other hand, there are a lot more mountains in the north so you are more likely to be able to peek and find a village that way. On the third hand there aren't as many lakes in the north and very few rivers (except the one in kuikka territory). There are also fewer mires so you won't find as many berries or enough water to drink unless you were lucky enough to start within walking distance of the sea.
Pay attention to the way the ground slopes. If it is sloping down a lot it may be heading towards water. sloping up may be heading towards a mountain. Each tile type has its own natural elevation -- if you're in a heathland and the gruond is sloping up there is a lichenous pine forest (or better: hill, mountain) in that direction. if it's sloping down then likely a coniferous forest.
the elevations go:
water < open mire < pine mire < spruce mire < coniferous forest < heathland, field < lichenous pine forest < hill < mountain
i'm not sure exactly where settlement, bushes, grove, thicket, pasture, road go, but i think settlement is the same as heathland and the others are like spruce mire or coniferous forest. (you can tell by standing on one while zoomed out and noticing which tile types act as boundaries to your sight. if you can't see past them, they are the same level or higher).
And usually the slopes are gradual so mountains will be near hills and heathland will be surrrounded by coniferous forest which is surrounded by spruce mire.
Cloudberries and to a much lesser extent cranberries are worth your time. lingonberries are not worth your time. Cloudberries and cranberries are found in spruce mire, pine mire, open mire. Don't eat them to stave off hunger, you can survive a couple months without food and hopefully you will find a village by then. eat them to prevent dehydration. the game will give you a few warnings before you die of thirst so you can wait until the warnings start. Keep them for emergencies because you may yet find a lake if you keep going.
Light a fire whenever you're cool. If you're by a lake, walk around a little to see if there's a big tree trunk nearby. if so, drag it to the lake and push it onto the ice then pull it back onto land. it might fall through making a hole, saving you some work and giving you information about whether the ice is safe to walk on. Stay at the fire until you're sweaty because literal sweat isn't implemented yet, or stay until you're hot if you want realism. if when you walk away from the fire you are chilly again 20 steps later, make a club and do some fishing until it's warm enough to safely leave the fire.
A 3x3 square of burnt ashes with you resting in the middle is as good as a big tree trunk fire and only requires 9-27 branches or spruce twigs. (you need fewer if you light the fires near some trees and let the trees catch fire, too)
Drop a small pile of spruce twigs whenever you meet a lake, some lakes are shaped so that you can accidentally wind up going in circles around them forever. if you come across the spruce twig pile, you know this has happened to you and can start searching for a way out (travelling at night with a torch can help you spot a way you haven't explored yet that may lead to the way out.