Isojärvi National Park

Isojärvi National Park is an ideal destination for a hiker looking for peaceful forest and lake landscapes. The National Park is suitable for hiking trips lasting for one or two days. There is also a lot to see if you choose to go by canoe, and a canoeing trip lasting for a couple of days could be extended further from the shores and islands of the National Park.

Isojärvi National Park is a small wilderness-like area, where forest and lake landscapes alternate. There are long narrow lakes and rift valleys, formed in faults in the bedrock, which makes the terrain difficult at some places. The core part of the National Park is the continuous land area on the southern side of Lake Isojärvi.

The wooded hills and valleys around Lake Isojärvi bear traces left by both two-legged and four-legged loggers. Old cycle paths lead to former lumberjacks’ cabins and croft houses. The only loggers working in the park today are beavers. It’s hard to spot these shy animals, but you can’t miss the impressive results of their labours.

Rugged hills and deep ravines alternate in the landscape of the Isojärvi National Park. The landscape, which is characterised by steep terrain, was formed 200 million years ago as the Earth’s crust was fractured into fissure valleys stretching from northwest to southeast. The last Ice Age smoothed the rocks and moved large boulders but the existence of the fissure valleys prevented the formation of eskers. Vahtervuori, the highest point in the national park, rises 219 metres above sea level and about 100 metres above the surface of Lake Isojärvi.

MORE INFO: www.nationalparks.fi/en/isojarvinp