Lake Saimaa

Saimaa is the great lake of Finland, so broken by islands, peninsulas and channels that its shoreline runs to thousands of kilometres. It defines the eastern lake district, a world of summer cottages, wooden towns and quiet water, and it is the only place on earth the Saimaa ringed seal survives.

History

Saimaa was formed by meltwater at the end of the Ice Age, and about 6,000 years ago the ancient lake, then covering nearly 9,000 km², suddenly drained through a new outlet, leaving thousands of square kilometres of new wetland; the region's population peaked in the decades that followed, before the land returned to old boreal conifer forest. The lake, now about 4,279 km², is the largest in Finland and the fourth-largest natural freshwater lake in Europe, with Lappeenranta, Imatra, Savonlinna, Mikkeli, Varkaus and Joensuu on its shores (Wikipedia, Saimaa).

The landscape

• The island labyrinth - endless forested islands and channels for boats and paddlers.
• The ringed seal - the endemic freshwater seal, seen best in the Linnansaari area.
• Lakeside towns - Savonlinna, Lappeenranta and their harbours and castles.
• Summer cottage life - the Finnish tradition of the lakeside cabin and sauna.

When to go

High summer for swimming, boating and the warmest water; late summer for lake cruises and calm. The lake half-freezes in winter, a different, silent landscape.

Good to know

Saimaa is enormous and diffuse, so there is no single place to see it - you pick a base and explore the water from there. Its pleasures are gentle and slow, boating, swimming and cottage life, rather than headline sights. A boat or a lakeside stay makes it, a quick roadside stop does not.

Nearby

Savonlinna and its Olavinlinna castle sit on the water; the Saimaa Canal links the lake to the sea near Lappeenranta.

Key facts