Laukaa: Scenic Hyyppäänvuori

I just can't imagine a more beautiful day for a snowshoeing trip! My destination is a hilltop which some have claimed to be the equivalent of the famous Koli (of North Karelia) in the province of Central Finland. Hyyppäänvuori hill is located on the southwestern shore of lake Lievestuore in Laukaa and it rises to 171 meters above sea level. There are more than one path leading to its top; I select the shorter, unmarked one via Ruoholahdentie, being lucky in finding a place to park (for there really isn't parking available) by the side of the road only a little distance away. Also, finding the unmarked trail is easy because there are some footprints in the snow leading to the right direction.

Climbing to the top of Hyyppäänvuori is very good excercise. The path winds up the steep hill slowly but surely and I feel almost sorry for the cross-country skier who has also gone up the same way. When I am close to the top, I also encounter the marked trail which joins my path from the west.

Parts of Hyyppäänvuori area are also parts of a nature reserve maintained by Metsähallitus. As I'm out here without a map, having arrived here by following instructions only, it's great to see where exactly I am on the map as well as where the marked trail would have been (had I known about it!). Good to know for the next visit which might well take place when the snow is gone.

Well, I must say the view isn't too bad. Not bad at all. The view must be one of the best in Central Finland. And  there is no need for an observation tower because there are no trees blocking the panorama and there is a sheer drop right in front of me.

The lonely, grey pine tree strikes a weary pose for me. I stand still in the snow for a long time, gazing the blue-tinted view around me, and hear no sound, not even from a distance.

The other handsome, already grey or slowly greying pine trees may not be hundreds of years old but they are charming just the way they are. Let me think - there was also supposed to be a cave around here. It must be somewhere beneath me.

I take care in descending the rocky slope in my snowshoes and hope that I won't miss the cave; I have no idea how big or small it could be. Once I'm safely down, I start following the rocks and it seems pretty promising. I wonder if that can already be labeled a cave?

A couple more steps and... No doubt about it, this is a proper cave and it's easy to enter it, without needing to wriggle in through a tiny hole. I can well imagine someone must have slept here, safe from the wind and the rain. I guess these days this is not meant to be used for spending a night here... and making a fire in this area is forbidden.

I climb back up the hill and rejoin the trail that goes round the scenic Hyyppäänvuori, giving a view to almost every direction. If you are visiting Hyyppäänvuori and don't want to go down and visit the cave, you can also get a temporary shelter by sitting under the large rock by the path. Again, making the fire is forbidden and there is no fireplace offered here, unlike in many other nature trails. It is quite understandable because this gorgeous area had better stay as it is!

I walk down the hill with a light step, choosing a different shortcut to the road in my snowshoes now that I know the way. Hyyppäänvuori may not be the equivalent of Koli, and Lake Lievestuore doesn't exactly equal the huge lake Pielinen in North Karelia, but to me Hyyppäänvuori is now definitely among the most scenic spots in Central Finland. I hope to return here in the summer!

Laukaa: ice and snow at Järvilinna

Järvilinna Art Centre at Laukaa, Central Finland (15 km north from Jyväskylä) hosted an ice sculpting competition on Feb 10-14, finishing on Valentine's Day.  A good reason to visit the place which has art on display also indoors in the lovely main building (1891) and the surrounding buildings where some local artists have their own studios.

The ice sculptures have attracted many other visitors as well and that is no wonder; this is not a typical art form in Finland, although you might easily think so, as we have plenty of ice available for a considerable time each year.  The five teams invited to take part in the competition were from Finland, Mongolia and China (the Russian team canceled at the last minute). 

The winner was the humorous Kiss by the team from  Mongolia (Lkhagvadorj Dorjsuren and Bayarsaikhan Bazarsad). It suited well the competition's theme - love / friendship (in Finland, Feb 14 is celebrated as Friends' Day, not associated with romantic love).  I can't stop wondering at the fantastic, carefully made details - from the tail of the ox (with a knot in it) to the rose and necklace of his cute, slightly shy girlfriend.

After a cup of hot chocolate at the café of Järvilinna we pick up our snowshoes and follow the local road for about a kilometre until we locate a cross country skiing trail that will lead us to a log shelter not too far away. As always, you are not supposed to walk on the skiing tracks, so we leave our snowshow footprints on the side of the skiing track, careful not to disturb it. The trail is used all year round but in the winter, the skiing folk naturally take priority.

I must admit that the skiing track looks lovely and this would be a great route for cross-country skiing. However, no matter how slow snowshoeing is, it is such fun to be walking here, taking it easy in the midst of pure, white snow, guessing which animal has left this or that footprint. Those must have been left by a hare, and that must have been a squirrel?

Walking slowly uphill we finally arrive at the log shelter where it would be possible to make a fire. This time we simply sit down to have a cup of tea.

The guest book of the shelter reveals that the majority of previous visitors have been here on cross country skis. They have meticulously written down their kilometres after their names (14 km, 10 km, etc.). Oh no, I'd better just write my name and not record the somewhat embarrasing 3 km. Only ;-)

After the short break at the shelter we turn to walk back to Järvilinna (about 1 km from here through the woods) but this time we decide not to follow the skiing track. The distance is so short and we are sure not to miss the road close by if we just manage to stick to the right direction. It is liberating to once again choose our own way in the snow. Round that tree, and then over there...

The air here is pure; as a sign of that, there is hanging moss on the trees. The snow gets deeper in the openings between the trees but is nevertheless easy to walk on. We start to climb up a small hill, Vierumäki.

We pass by a large rock and a pole that is painted red. I wonder what it means. It is very hard to say if there is something special about it now that it is covered with snow and ice.

The fresh little hole in an old spruce is an easier puzzle to solve: it must have been made by a woodpecker only recently. Probably a black woodpecker, to be exact.

 

We descend the hill, going round the steep rocky slope, and arrive by the side of a field. On its other side we can already see the road that leads to Järvilinna Art Centre. One more chance to see the lovely ice sculptures!

It is already getting late in the afternoon and the lights have been switched at the Art Centre. The skiing Moomin figure welcomes us back to Järvilinna.

Limits of Love (Pasi Ahokas & Juha Käkelä) became third in the ice sculpture competition, together with the team from China. Angels and Demons can be friends or even lovers, at least on Valentine's Day.

I step back to my favourite sculpture, The Kiss. The Mongolian team have impressed me most with their delicate, yet fun sculptures. I can't get over the eyelashes made of ice! Simply fabulous.

Thanks to all the ice artists at Järvilinna!

Laukaa: Multamäki nature trail

Multamäki nature trail can be found in Laukaa, close to Peurunkajärvi lake in Central Finland. The easiest route to the start of the trail is via Spa Hotel Peurunka (few kilometres north from Laukaa): drive past the spa hotel buildings and follow the road towards  Finninkylä and further until Multamäki. In the winter you may find the private road to Multamäki closed - and the nature trail (luontopolku) sign can be seen right next to the gate. If you are lucky, you may even be able to park by the side of the road - if there isn't too much snow!

I am equipped with snowshoes which proves to be a clever choice because although there is a snowmobile track at the start of the trail, it is made for cross country skiing and not for walking, and very soon we need to part anyway; the nature trail takes a sharp turn to the left and I see virgin snow ahead. The yellow trail signs lead me to the official start of the Multamäki nature trail with a map depicting the route. It seems that no one has stopped here for a snack for quite some time!

This seems to be one of the best marked nature trails in Jyväskylä area - thanks to Laukaa municipality which seems to take excellent care of such routes! 

As is typical on nature trails, there are quite a few signs with more information about nature along the way. However, the snowy weather has covered practically all of them and even if you brush the snow off, the text (in Finnish) is hardly legible because you'd need to scrape the ice off as well. I'm not in the mood for doing that with my woollen mittens! Also, typically these guides describe things that would be easiest to discover when there is no snow on the ground.

So, my walk in the forest is simply a pleasure walk, enjoying the beautiful scenery, the shapes covered with pure white snow, examining footprints and guessing who or what has gone past. Those could be the footprints of elks...

If I wasn't wearing snowshoes, I might be tempted to try a different route but now there's no stopping me. Straight ahead! Anyway, only few meters away I find a fresh trail of another snowshoe walker who makes my going even lighter in the powder snow. I climb up the hill and soon the nature trail again joins a wide trail made by a snowmobile. Careful... But there are no cross country skiers in sight.

Step by step I reach the very top of Multamäki hill, the highest point of the trail. Multamäki hill is part of the original so-called Struve Geodetic Arc (#46) which was measured and marked in the mid 19th century in different countries. There was a survey triangulation station for quite a long time but the last wooden station from 1980 is long gone; in its place is now the kota under which the original plaque still exists.

The view from Multamäki hill is lovely; I am now at 211.4 meters above sea level and lake Peurunkajärvi is about 105 meters below me. Besides the kota (which is the only place where you are allowed to make a fire here on top of the hill) there is also an open shelter for enjoying a snack outdoors. There are quite a few footprints on the snow so this seems to be a pretty popular place.

From the top of Multamäki hill, the nature trail continues down towards the lake, along long and steep wooden steps that are totally covered with snow. Should I take off my snowshoes? No way! I step off the steps and partly slide down the steep hill in the snow, falling down only once...This is so much fun!

When I get down to lake Peurunkajärvi I could even take off my snowshoes because there have been so many other visitors to the shelter - the path in the snow would be so easy to walk on. I can't see anyone skiing on the lake but there are a couple of ice fishermen!

I arrive at exactly the same time to the open shelter as one of the fishermen comes there for his break. Once again, I get to sit in front of a ready made fire and enjoy the moment with hot tea from my thermos flask. Another fisherman joins us and says a shy hello. The fishermen seem surprisingly quiet but soon I find out why: we don't share the same language. Unfortunately, I don't speak Russian so I can't ask whether they've had any luck fishing.

After the relaxing, quiet break by the lake I walk up the hill to finish the trail that goes past some tepees - a surprising sight in a Finnish forest but I suppose they are there for children's camps that are sometimes held at the nearby Multamäki recreation centre, owned by Laukaa municipality. After I've passed the Multamäki centre's buildings, the nature trail sign guides me to join the snowmobile track for the remaining 100-200 meters but I step off it, not wanting to leave my snow shoe prints on a trail that has been made for cross country skiing.

As usual, many trails that are used by walkers for 3/4 of the year when we don't have snow, turn into cross country skiing tracks in the winter. I try to avoid such tracks when I go for a walk and the best way to do it is to wear snowshoes which allow you to walk anywhere - but it may be frustrating if you see that the lovely, hard and wide track is unused when you are stepping deep in the snow. If you ski in the traditional style, there would be room for both skiers and walkers side by side on the track made by a snowmobile, but those who ski fast use ski skating technique which requires the full width of the wide track...  So, unless you are skiing yourself, it is best to stay off the skiing tracks whenever possible, and walk somewhere else.

Laukaa: Saraakallio rock paintings

Laukaa's Saraakallio in Central Finland can be reached both by water and on foot, and the easiest way to get there is by a marked path from the road between Tarvaala and Kuusaa. Once you have made it to the start of the trail, there is no need for a map. The texts only tell about the place in Finnish language, so this is what it is all about: there are prehistoric rock paintings at Saraakallio rock, and this is the largest rock painting in the whole of Fennoscandia. If I'm lucky, I may soon see images that are thousands of years old!

The trail goes through an opening to the spruce forest where the yellow trail marks guide you forward, towards more open space and pine trees.

I find myself on top of a ridge although there was hardly any ascent. The marked path continues along the ridge but I remember my only previous visit to Saraakallio that the one and only rock painting I discovered was from below. Of course, that time I came here by kayak and my poor footwear was more suitable for sitting in a kayak than walking on slippery, wet rocks...

Following my instinct, I abandon the marked trail and take a path leading towards the shore. Very soon I thank myself for choosing the right footwear this time. Hiking boots are the best for this rocky area where you really have to watch your step on the partly wet ground. Luckily, I slip only once and land on my butt on the wet moss. Careful!

Try as I might, it is far from easy to try to spot a rock painting - they really aren't marked! It takes ages for me to find even one, but finally I decide to trust my judgement and start believing that this red shape was made by a human being some thousand years ago. After all, there are more than a hundred paintings here...

I continue my search, put on sunglasses, take them off, still nothing more. The bright yellows on the bottom of the cliff try to brighten me up but of course it would be great to spot some more rock paintings, not just some pretty lichen!

On I go, walking further beneath the cliffs that are indeed a handsome sight. With or without rock paintings. Lake Saravesi glitters in the sun and I feel I'm higher and higher.

Even higher, on the top of the cliff, there is a neat shoe-shaped piece of rock off which a slice has clearly fallen down ages ago. I really like the shape of it. Why? Shoe is 'kenkä' in Finnish! Hi there mate!

I watch my step even more closely when I continue walking on the steep cliffs, but seeing that others have gone before me, it must be safe enough for me as well. Then I am rewarded: a real rock painting! I interpret these are human figures.

 

I have finally arrived to the right place. There are many easily distinguishable paintings right here, even if not all shapes are easy to interpret. However, you can't miss this elk walking on the cliff. If the weather wasn't so dry, it would be even easier to spot the red paintings.

I am walking without a guidebook or leaflet so luckily, I get some help from two better equipped walkers in trying to decipher what some of the paintings represent. The one above is apparently a boat with four people on it, and this is the one I remember seeing on my earlier trip. 

It is quite amazing; at Kirkkoniemi, not too far from here, I already felt I've stepped back in time but here I can see artwork created by our ancestors thousands of years ago.

The sign attached to the rock wall says that this is a prehistoric site, protected by law. The rock paintings have stayed there for so long... I really hope they will remain as they are for hundreds, thousands of years.

I descend to the lakeshore but the water level in Lake Saravesi is very high right now, just like in the other lakes in the area, and it is not possible to continue walking along the shore with dry feet. I turn back and return to the marked trail that will lead me to the top of Saraakallio.

Lake Saravesi is quiet and beautiful. I can hear only one motor boat crossing the lake - the summer season hasn't really started yet because the lake hasn't been unfrozen for long. Further away, on the other side of the lake, I can see the church tower at the Laukaa village. I'm taking with me memories of both our prehistoric past and this serene scenery.

Laukaa: Old church yard at Kirkkoniemi

A surprise is waiting for me at the outskirts of the quiet Tarvaala village in Laukaa, Central Finland. The reason I came here was simply the symbol of a 'cultural sight' on the outdoor map of the area. I find myself facing a gate to an old church yard. This is where the first church of Laukaa parish, founded in 1593, was built in the late 16th century, at Kirkkoniemi (Church Cape).

The wooden church of Hartikka by lake Kuusvesi is long gone. The church served the parishioners for less than 100 years before the second church of the Laukaa parish was built at Pellosniemi, close to where the centre of Laukaa is today.

There is hardly anything left of the church itself. The few pieces of the logs of the original building remain stored in the locked shed at the church yard, and on the ground you can only see some rocks that mark the foundations of the church. Today, this place feels very remote but in its day the area must have been busier, and the location by the lake meant that it was possible to come there by boat.

The wooden cross and altar are a newer addition to the church yard. According to the signpost, a couple of services are held out here in the open every year.

The wooden bell tower houses a small church bell. The bell tower was built here in 1993 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Laukaa parish and the money for it was raised by the local Martha club at Tarvaala village.

There's not only a church yard at Kirkkoniemi. I continue walking along the private road toward the end of the cape, past a beautiful well-kept wooden house with a porch that has coloured glass panes. The next sign tells me that I'm entering a state-owned forest managed by Metsähallitus. As I cross a narrow wooden bridge I begin to wonder whether Kirkkoniemi cape is actually an island....

There are plenty of old pine trees at Kirkkoniemi forest but some harvesting is still allowed in the area. I hope there isn't too much felling done here though. The needle-covered path is in very good shape and so much nicer to tread on than asphalt.

The water level of Lake Kuusvesi, just like of  other lakes in Central Finland right now, has risen pretty high, covering the roots of the trees that grow closest to the shore.

At the very end of the Kirkkoniemi cape, Lake Kuusvesi opens to the north. The water looks chilly now that there's hardly any green in sight, but of course that will change in the next few weeks! The log shelter provides a nice place for making a fire on a day trip or even spending a night here by the lake - for example, if you are paddling from Konnevesi to Laukaa. I've actually been thinking about kayaking along this route so now I already know one good place to stop for a night...