Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
By the entrance to Kultamuseo, this atmospheric goldpanners' cafe-restaurant actually
predates the museum and serves typical Lapland dishes. It has apartments (2/4 people €80/
98) and cabins (€55) and you can also camp here (€12). A gram of gold will buy you sev-
en beers.
Getting There & Away
Tankavaara is on the main Rovaniemi-Ivalo road 30km south of Saariselkä and 100km
north of Sodankylä. All buses pass the village, stopping on request; nonexpress buses actu-
ally enter.
Saariselkä Wilderness & Urho Kekkonen National
Park
Saariselkä Wilderness, including 2538-sq-km Urho Kekkonen National Park and large
tracts of protected forest, extends to the Russian border. It's a fabulous slice of Finland,
home to bears, wolverines and golden eagles, plus thousands of free-grazing reindeer. This
is a brilliant trekking area, with a large network of wilderness huts amid the unspoilt
beauty of this huge expanse of forest, marshland and low fells.
The park's divided into several zones, each with different rules. Check www.outdoors.fi
for details. Although fires (using dead wood) are allowed in certain areas, take a camp
stove, as fire bans are common in summer.
There are national park nature centres in Saariselkä, Tankavaara and Savukoski villages;
you can also pick up information at Kiilopää. A map and compass are essential for the
most remote areas of the park.
There are three Karttakeskus maps available for the area. The western part of the park is
shown on the 1:50,000 Saariselkä-Kiilopää map; the 1:50,000 Sokosti-Suomujoki map will
take you beyond Luirojärvi; the entire park is shown on the 1:100,000 Koilliskaira map.
Visitor centres also sell a simpler map for day walks in the Saariselkä-Kiilopää area (€3).
 
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