Salla National Park

Salla national park was established at the beginning of 2022, the most recent addition to the Finnish network, covering a block of fells, old-growth forest, bog and streams in eastern Lapland that had long been proposed for protection. The landscape is the transition between the fell country of the north and the forests to the south: rounded summits with open ground above the treeline, spruce and pine below, and wide bogs between. Marked trails and wilderness huts have been developed since designation, and the area is used for walking in summer and for skiing and snowshoeing in the long winter. Reindeer herding continues across the same ground.

History

People settled in the Salla uplands soon after the Ice Age, and Stone Age lakeshore sites such as Kenttälampi and rows of hunting pits can still be seen. From at least the 16th century the area belonged to the Kuolajärvi siida of the forest Sámi, who fished, hunted and began keeping reindeer, and later Finnish settlers left slash meadows and hay barns along the streams and mires. In 1960 the Tuntsa fire, the largest recorded forest fire in Finland, burned some 20,000 hectares on both sides of the border. Most of the area lies in a Natura 2000 site designated in 1998, its core became a state nature reserve in 2017, and on 1 January 2022 it became Finland's 41st national park, 99.83 square kilometres managed by Metsähallitus, which recorded about 62,200 visits in 2023 (Wikipedia, Salla National Park).

Highlights

• Rounded fell summits - open ground above the treeline.
• Old-growth forest and bog - the lower ground between the fells.
• Marked trails and wilderness huts - the routes developed since 2022.
• Working reindeer herding - the land use continuing in the park.

When to go

March and April for skiing with returning daylight, and July to September for walking. A day or two. Facilities are still developing; check current trail information.

Before you go

The park is new and infrastructure is thinner than in long-established parks. It is remote and needs a car. Mosquitoes in midsummer are severe. Winter conditions are serious and require proper equipment.

Nearby

Salla village is north-west; the eastern border lies close.

Key facts