Finland’s labyrinthine coastlines and thousands of lakes with their countless islands, inlets and channels provide an ideal setting for leisurely canoeing trips or more challenging kayak safaris. Even if you don’t have your own canoe to paddle, there are many places around Finland where you can rent one – or join guided excursions run by local adventure firms.
To join a challenging sea-kayaking trip, we head an hour west from Helsinki to the picturesque seaside town of Ekenäs. This laid back resort in the heart of a Swedish-speaking region on Finland’s south coast is worth a visit even for landlubbers, with its stately stone church, winding cobbled lanes, and pastel-painted wooden houses.
The seven members of our group meet up with our guide and kayaking instructor Jöns Aschan from Paddlingsfabriken (the Paddling Factory) on a calm, sunny morning at Ormnäs campsite in dontown Ekenäs. We’re then driven by minibus to the start of our canoeing route, in the shadow of the small but perfectly formed Raseborg Castle. Considering that Finland has so few medieval relics, Raseborg remains relatively undiscovered by trippers and tour operators. Perched high on a rocky crag, the castle today overlooks peaceful meadows, but in its 14th century heyday Raseborg resisted bloody sieges, marauding Danes and fierce pirate gangs.
Struggling to stay afloat
Jöns starts by showing us a few basic paddling techniques. All of today’s party have at least some canoeing experience, but Jöns stresses that brave beginners are also welcome on such trips. I’m assigned to a long, sleek, bright yellow Barracuda sea-kayak – which to my dismay is designed for speed rather than stability, and feels distinctly wobbly until I get used to its balance. We seal our packed lunches and spare clothes in watertight compartments, and learn how to get extra steering control from the kayaks’ pedal-operated rudders.
When Raseborg Castle was first built, the waters of the sea lapped against its foundations. But post-Ice Age land uplift over the intervening centuries has left it high and dry, so the first stage of our journey leads along a gently flowing river that gradually widens into a reed-fringed inlet.
The creek ultimately emerges into a large bay, with rocky islets and larger wooded islands blocking the way to the open waters or the Gulf of Finland beyond. These islands ensure that we have no trouble with high waves. “If participants are more experienced, we can do rougher routes on the open sea,” says Jöns. “Last week on a trip into the Ekenäs Archipelago National Park led by me and another professional guide we continued out into the big waves, where the paddlers often almost disappeared, with only their heads visible between high wave crests.”
Unexpected obstacles
Our course winds westward, passing alternately through open waters and narrower channels. At one stage we have to force our way through dense reeds that have grown over the waterway – building up speed to plunge into the reed-bed, and hacking at the vegetation using our paddles like machetes.
For our picnic lunch we beach on a grassy shore, thankful to rest and straighten our backs. But Jöns only grants us a short respite, and soon it’s back onto the water for the long final strait to Ekenäs. According to Jöns, the 18-km trip from Raseborg can take from 4-6 hours, depending on the winds, the waves, and how many breaks are needed for photo opportunities or unscheduled swimming.
My kayak sometimes seems to have a mind of its own, veering off alarmingly towards the bank or across the boughs of another canoeist. But thanks to a mixture of skill, good coaching, calm waters and sheer luck, we all manage to avoid capsizing en route – though in any case we take a refreshing dip in the sea when we finally reach Ekenäs. Jöns congratulates us (and seems to breathe a quiet sigh of relief) as he rounds up our seven kayaks and tows them in a long caravan behind his motor boat off into the setting sun.
Encounter with an endangered lake seal
A second trip takes me inland to the Lake District of Eastern Finland, and to the Linnansaari National Park. The park is centred on a large island in Lake Saimaa, which at 4,400 square kilometres is Finland’s largest lake system. The whole Saimaa region is an ideal inland destination for canoeists, thanks to its peaceful inlets, spectacular granite cliffs, and wild wooded shores.
Kayaks can be rented at the Oravi Canoeing Centre, near the town of Savonlinna, famed for its spectacular castle and a major international opera festival held each July.
It only takes a couple of hours to paddle out from Oravi through relatively calm waters to Linnansaari Island. Ospreys soar overhead in clear blue skies, and beavers’ impressive dams, lodges and trails can be spotted along the shore. But the highlight of my day on the water is a brief face-to-face encounter with an inquisitive seal, whose whiskered head suddenly pops up just a few feet away to see who’s passing by.
Saimaa’s unique ringed seal population is highly endangered, as there are fewer than 300 seals left. Encountering wild seals in fresh water hundreds of kilometres from the sea seems almost surreal. The reason for their presence is that the seals (and the lake itself) only became cut off from the Baltic Sea at the end of the Ice Age about 9,000 years ago, when the land – relieved of its heavy burden of ice – slowly began to rise out of the sea.
Arriving on the island I occupy one of several small wooden chalets that can be rented cheaply for short stays. A local girl has opened the island’s small summer kiosk, and is selling freshly smoked fish – tiny vendace caught just this morning in the lake. These surprisingly tasty miniature members of the salmon family are sweetly smoked using alder twigs sprinkled with sugar. To end the day I stoke up the island’s traditional lakeside sauna for a soothing steam together with a couple of other friendly campers, and then we cool off with a dip in the lake.
Travelling by paddle power enables the canoeist to get really out into the wilds without disturbing the natural scene. Finland offers plenty of places to enjoy such unforgettable experiences.