Current Hiking Conditions
The Ketunlossi Ferry Is Closed for Winter
The Wells of Repovesi are in Use Year Round,
Using The Non-composting Toilets.
Be Prepared and Safe on Your Winter Day Hike
(December 6th 2023)
Fancy a nice dayhike in the wintery frosty forests of Repovesi National Park? Make sure you take care of these things in advantage:
Warmth: pack some extra clothes and something warm to drink to your backpack. If you are wishing to make a camp fire, it may be a good idea to take fire starting sticks or dry paper with you. Remember matches and a knife!
Light: Always take a headlight or a torch with you. Even if you are planning a day hike. Night will fall early and can be pretty dark.
Connections: Cold temperature freezes your phone quickly, so keep it warm i.e. in a pocket near your body. If something happens, 112 is a right number to call.
Current Hiking Conditions
(Updated November 27th 2023)
In this updating text, we will compile current issues for hiking in Repovesi National Park.
There is 10-15 cm of snow on the ground at the moment. No skiis or snowshoes needed. In general, most routes remain quite well trodden throughout the snowy season. There will be no maintained cross-country ski tracks in the national park.
Lakes are getting frozen, but it is not safe to walk on the ice. Changing streams weaken the ice weak and unreliable through the winter especially in Kapiavesi lake. The Lapinsalmi bridge is the only way to cross the Kapiavesi Lake. Ketunlossi ferry is closed for the winter.
Be prepared for darkness and slippery hiking conditions. Hiking shoes with grippy soles or winter boots are the right choice. Take a lamp with you, even if you're just going on a day trip. Dusk can surprise you and after dark the forest can be pitch black. Repovesi has no lighting at all.
All wells are in use. Water is drinkable without boilling. Water of Kuutinkanava well has high levels of iron, which makes water quite unpleasant to use. It is safe to drink though.
The Lapinsalmi parking area will be maintained and plowed through the winter. There may be some delay in maintenance and parking areas may be slippery, so it is a good idea to have a small shovel and a bag on sand in your car.
Please respect the privacy and peace of nature
(Updated November 6 th 2023)
There are plenty of cottages in the Repovesi area that are protected woth the law of domestic privacy. Rented cottages, tents, hammocks and other accommodations are also covered by the domestic privacy law. Give cottage dwellers and tired fellow hikers the opportunity to sleep and enjoy the peace of nature.
When moving on water, keep a distance of least 50 metres from the beaches belonging to these cottages. This way everyone can enjoy the magnificent views of the lake in peace.
In the map, the private cottagess and beaches belonging to cottages have been marked in red. Map (pdf 3,2 Mb, julkaisut.metsa.fi).
Wells of Repovesi are in Use
(Updated October 6th 2023)
In October 2023, the water from the Kuutinkanava well was found to smell and taste strongly of iron. The color of the water is also brownish. Water is still drinkable, but not necessarily very pleasant, so we recommend filling the drinking bottles from other wells or using a water filter.
All wells in Repovesi National Park are in use. According to research results (2021) water in wells of Repovesi is drinkable and no boiling is required.
Water in wells of Määkijä, Lojukoski and Kuutinkanava may have slight color and odour nuisances. You will find more accurate information on the info boards by the wells. Water in Valkjärvi well has strong color and odour nuisances, so we recommend to take drinking water from other wells.
Remember to wash your dishes and yourself at least 5 metres away from wells and water bodies like lakes!
Never Throw Anything Down the Olhava Hill
(Updated 8th August 2023)
Olhava hill is an amazing landscape and also one of Finland's best climbing cliffs.
When you’re at the top of Olhava, remember that there may be people climbing the rock wall below you. NEVER throw anything off the cliff. A rock or any other object dropped or thrown off the top of the cliff may cause irreversible and serious damage.
All Toilets are Non-composting Toilets
(Updated 15 November 2022)
All toilets in Repovesi national park there are non-composting which don't have to be emptied so frequently. The content is used for soil improvement. Visitors should bear in mind two factors so that the toilets will have good ventilation and the smell will be minimized:
1) Please, close the toilet lid when you leave
2) Don't put anything else than toilet paper in the toilet, not even biodegradable waste
