Koli National Park — Attraction in Pielinen Karelia

The second mpst beautiful National Park in Finland, right after Irho Kekkonen National Park. Unlike the Urho Kekkonen, Koli is really small, only 16 km long in the air and covers 30 square kilometres. A tiny treasure in Eatern Finland. I visited in the end of January - Beginning of February and I'll never forgat that breathtaking winter scenery. They say, Koli ia the only place in Southern Finland, which looks like Lapland and not like a traditional Southern Finland landscape. During my visit, the snowcover on the top of the hills reached 60cms thickness, some points over 70 cms. On the calleys 50cms snowcover was the average. You can do several outdoor and wellness activities around the park and inside as well. There are several maintained cross-country ski routes, some of them Lightened. In the centre of the northern National Park, stands the Ukko-Koli confidentally. Ukko-Koli with its 347 ms hight above the sea level, the highest peak in the entire Southern Finland. Doesnt seams so high, however there are downhill skiing slopes from Ukko-Koli with steep slopes. Have fun...

Parking was easy to find (places marked with P1-P5). Camping was dedicated to specific spots, but they were easy to find from the map on the Koli website and on the local maps along the trail. Additionaly, the camping spots sometimes had running water, outdoor toilets and flat grassy areas for tents (however, be prepared to carry much water or to purify the lake water). We walked along the "Herajärven kierros" that is either 30 or 60 km long. The trail was suitable for 3-4 days of hiking and camping. The route has many scenic spots while hiking along the mountains back between the lakes. You can also find the Pirun kirkko "devil's church" along the trail, which is a cave-like...

Ahh. Just wonderful. The Finnish national landscape. You got rocks, you got lakes, you got islands, you got dense forests and quiet people. Or not that quiet if you go in high season as we went.

Koli National Park is a well maintained and beautiful national park with a bice variety of hiking trails and "services" in the forests. Epic views through the year makes it a nice place to go whatever the season.

Grab your hiking shoes, throw your backpack on your shoulders and load your camera as you're in for a...