Hiking in Pyhä-Luosto National Park

Isokuru gorge is located between the Kultakero and Ukonhattu fell tops and is Finland’s deepest gorge at 220 metres deep.

A trail with wide duckboards at the bottom of the gorge leads to pond Pyhänkasteenlampi and to the Pyhänkasteenputous Waterfall. At the mouth of the Isokuru gorge there is a rest area, about 2 kms from Visitor Centre Naava.

The formation and geology of Isokuru gorge are featured on information boards along the trail.
Kindly notice that Isokuru gorge is a restricted area year round and visitors must stay on the marked summer trail at all times. That is for visitor safety and protecting the unique nature in the gorge. There is no winter trail to the gorge due to avalanche danger.

Visit Aittakuru (Aittokuru), Nature's own amphitheater. The route to Aittakuru starts from the Pyhä-Luosto road. The parking lot is about 2.2 km from Pyhä center to Luosto direction, on the right side of the road. The walk is less than half a kilometer. The extensive rugged rock walls give a foretaste of the geology of the Pyhä-Luosto National Park. The popular Pyhä Unplugged event holds its concerts in Aittakuru (photo).

At the back of Isokuru Ravine in the centre of steep cliff walls is the 12 m deep Lake Pyhänkasteenlampi. A stream flowing down through Karhukuru Ravine flows into the lake and forms a 17 m high shower-like waterfall the Pyhäkaste Waterfall.
The names for the area’s magnificent sights come tell of beginnings of Christianity and the old beliefs of the Forest Sámi (Pyhänkasteenlampi = Holy Baptism lake, Uhriharju = sacrifice ridge and Noitatunturi = witch fell).
Deer and their antlers were sacrificed on Uhriharju Ridge in hope of a successful hunt.
An old Sámi place of worship a seita was transferred into a Christian place of worship when a minister Esaias Fellman performed a group christening at Lake Pyhäkasteenlampi for the area’s Sámi in the summer of 1648.

Kindly notice that Isokuru gorge is a restricted area year round and visitors must stay on the marked summer trail at all times. That is for visitor safety and protecting the unique nature in the gorge. It includes also the waterfall area so do not go under the waterfall. This area is protected as archaeological monument. There is no winter trail to the gorge due to avalanche danger.

The highest peak of the Pyhä-Luosto fell chain and the National Park is Noitatunturi Fell which rises up to 540 m. Hikers who brave the demanding rocky summer route to the top are rewarded with magnificent views of the surrounding area.

Hikers following the Noitatunturi Trail will also pass Lake Annikinlampi which is deep within Kuorinkikuru Ravine up on a fell slope.

The view towards the north is gorgeous! Noitatunturi Fell was previously called Seitatunturi, as it was an old Sámi place of worship.

The ruins of the old loggers cabin by Porolaavu Trail tells the story of the area’s old logging tradition.
Logging took place at Pyhätunturi at the change of the 19th and 20th centuries. There are still signs of logging, such as tree stumps and winter roads.

Commercial forestry was practiced in the area until the National Park was established there in 1938. At the reindeer fences the Pyhä-Kallio Herders’ Association has reindeer round-ups at the end of the year.
During the round-ups reindeer are checked for their brands and those young which have yet to be branded have it done at this time. Reindeer which are to be slaughtered are also marked. Porolaavu lean-to can be reached along the summer and winter trails.

Quartz is the most common mineral in the earth’s crust after feldspar.
Amethyst, a rare violet coloured see-through form of quartz, has been found at Lampivaara in Luosto. The clearest parts of the amethyst found at Lampivaara are classified as a gem and is often used in jewellery.

Gathering or collecting any kinds of rocks from the National Park is forbidden except during a guided tour to the Amethyst Mine.
The Lampivaara Amethyst Mine is a sectioned off area within Pyhä-Luosto National Park and is one of the only jewel mines in the world where visitors are permitted. There is a café at Lampivaara rest area.

The grand Ukko-Luosto Fell rises from the area’s fell chain to a height of 514 metres.

After a steep climb hikers reach the top of the fell and can experience the high winds there and view the magnificent scenery of the surrounding aapa bogs and hills as well as the old-growth forests in which some of the trees are 400-years-old. The longer Luosto Nature Hiking Trail pops also at the top of Ukko-Luosto Fell.

The forests at Ukko-Luosto Fell slopes and on the southwest side of Lampivaara have not been touched by forestry and some of the trees there are 400-years-old.
Luosto is known for example for its grand old pine forests. Along the longer Luosto Nature Hiking Trail you can feel the atmosphere of these great old forests. In winter a cross-country skiing track curves along the western slope of Ukko-Luosto Fell.

In old times hunters stored their catch and other equipment such as clothing and animal furs in traditional food storage rooms which were built atop a strong pole or tree stump to keep them safe from predators.
These were built by hunting grounds far from settlements.

Especially during winter these storage places were used for storing catches and equipment up until they could be taken to the village.

There is also a traditional Lappish wooden storehouse and a big Lapp hut as resting place in the area. To Rykimäkero rest area it is only 600 metres distance from the parking place, from here you can also go to the Lampivaara.

Rykimäkuru Ravine is an impressive tear in the rock bed.
This gorge is different from the area’s other ravines as it formed in a tear in the Earth’s crust while the ravines were formed by water from melted ice during the Ice Age.