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T4 Packrafting Kitkajoki Upper part
14,5 km de Packraft clase II-III de Käylä - Käylänkoski y Harjakoski Rapids - basecamp Oulanka Beach.
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Oulanka National Park
See the main post with all the sections and information for Packraft and other activities in the Oulanka National Park in Finland.
https://blog.packrafting.cat/packraft-en-oulanka-national-park-finlandia
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I will explain in detail the following routes:
- T1 Koutajoki - Savinajoki River -> Savilampi Lake. 17.5km of class I-II
- T2 Oulankajoki river Upper Part Oulanka - Outlanka National Park visitors center. 22.3 km of class II-IV rapids.
- T3 Packrafting Oulankajoki lower part - Oulanka NP visitors center - Kiutakongas - Paljakka - Russian Border. 25.5km of endless meanders!
- T4 Kitkajoki Upper part. Kaila - Basecamp Oulanka.
- T5 Packrafting Kitkajoki Lower part Juuma - Millikoski rapids - Aallokkokoski rapids.
- T6 Kuusinkijoki
If I had to choose only one I would recommend the T5 combined with the Pieni Karkunhierros Trail of 12 km.
In this post I explain in detail the T4 Kitkajoki Upper part. Kaila - Basecamp Oulanka.
T4 Packrafting Kitkajoki Upper part
The upper part of the Kitkajoki river is not as famous as the lower part where we can find some of the most famous rapids of the area such as Myllykoski (class III), Aallokkokoski (class IV) or Jyrävä (class X) but in this section we have about 9 rapids (class I-III).
On the website asiointi.maanmittauslaitos.fi you can find maps of the area, such as the map of the Kayla area.
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Käylä y su entorno
The embarkation point is in the village of Käylä (but WTF! Käylä is village in finish), one of the few villages in the area with basic services such as supermarket or gas station. The village is worth a visit, especially to its natural environment such as beaches, rapids and wooden walkways that allow access to all these points.
In Kayla I recommend you to visit the wooden walkways that in turn will allow you to do a scouting of the first rapids in the area, the Käylänkoski rapids, I remind you that koski is Finnish for rapids and therefore the translation would be the Kayla rapids (yes! very original).
In the area there is a shelter (Laavu) in beautiful surroundings where I found mushrooms and wild strawberries.
The entry point to the river is a jetty that you can find on the "island" that is crossed by the Salla road (950) that allows you to ford the Kitkajoki river. At this point the river due to the island is divided into two navigation lines, the interesting rapids are on the left line of the river.
All the rapids in this section of the river are easy to navigate by choosing the right line. The most complicated rapid is Harjakoski which I will tell you more about later.
Other rapids in this area are Peurakoski (class II), Saarikoski (class II) and Harjakoski (class II-III).
The crystal clear waters of the Kitkajoki River are ideal for kayaking throughout the summer, as Lake Kitkajärvi ensures safe water all year round. The river drops 17 m between Käylä and Juuma over a distance of 14 km. The scenery is varied and the rapids offer challenges for amateurs and experienced paddlers alike.
The starting point of the section is the village of Käylä, where you can stock up on equipment and snacks. The starting point of Käylänkoski is right next to the roads.
An alternative starting point is also the end point of the route between Saarikoski and Harjakoski (see instructions and map link below). From laavu, you can walk along the trail to Peurakoski laavu and paddle/walk from there if you wish upstream past Vääräkoski to, for example, Nahkaniva.
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Käylänkoski Rapids
Käylänkoski Rapids, class I rapids of about 200m in length, are the rapids that you will find at the beginning of this route. It is a wide rapid of very little difficulty with a couple of big waves.
The rapid has two branches. The left branch that goes away from the road (in the direction of the stream) is easier, it has a direct downhill run. On the right branch (which goes under the road) there is a small köng (jump). There is a fish farm at the lower end of the waterfall.
The rapid ends up "taming" in the lake behind. In the lake we will have to paddle a few kilometers before the next rapids.
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The Kayla area is worth a visit, and Kayla beach (iumaranta is Finnish for "swimming beach") is a good place to watch sunsets and take a dip.
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The navigation is very quiet until km 4.4 where we find the shelter (Laavu) and the first rapids:
Vähän-Käylä rapid, clAse I, 200 m.
Typical straight, smooth, fast class I wave. Descending line in the middle. After the Vähän-Käylä rapids, the river turns sharply left to Nahkaniva, where there is a strong current limit (a good place to play).
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All rapids (koski) are marked on this map where you can also see the dotted line indicating the rapid.
- Vääränkoski (class I)
- Peurakoski (class II)
- Saarikoski (class II)
- Harjakoski (class II-III).
All rapids are portageable and avoidable by land.
Vääräkoski, class I, 200 m. Km 5.7
S-shaped rapid, descent line in the middle. On the lower left edge near the rock, a small plug.
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Saarikoski, II, 400 m. Km 6.5.
Exit from the left side of the center line. Next to the rock on the left Köngäs is lowered (approx. 1.5 m), after which the rapid calms down. The narrow branch on the right can also be lowered, but it is advisable to check the road on the ground before descending for possible fallen trees. Landing line to the left of the center line. The outer edge of the branch is rocky.
On the section between Saarikoski and Harjakoski there is , at km 7.1 of the route where there is a shelter that can be reached by a forest road. It is a good alternative embarkation or disembarkation point or for pre-scouting. From Harjakoski there is a free path along the ridge to the shed/end of the forest road.
Harjakoski class II-III, 300 m
This is the most complicated rapid of this section, we find it at km 7.6 (see Wikiloc map). The upper part can be paddled in two possible lines:
- The right line is mainly straight.
- The left line is a line that has a final drop of 1 meter (class III).
There are small holes on both lines and at the end of the rapid. Next to the high crag, following the main stream to the right bank, where the arms meet. I touch small plugs in the intermediate stages. At the bottom, in the center, there is a spiral wave and a plug that can be circumvented on both sides.
Here are some videos of the area when I was scouting walking along the trail on the right bank of the Kitkajoki river. By the way on the trail I found some mushrooms very similar to our Boletus Edulis but with an orange color.
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Juuma
As you can see on the map, after the Harjakoski rapid, we enter the Juuma lake (JuumaJärvi, Järvi is lake) and 5.5 km of paddling await us until we reach the Juuma bridge at km 13.1.
The Juuma area has the best accommodations in the area, with two campsites that rent cabins (you can find them in booking), and the basecamp Oulanka.
In fact our route ends at the Oulanka basecamp beach at km 14.7.
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My beloved Aorakie Valkyrie from Packrafting Spain on the beach of Juuma Bridge on a radiant day!
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Käylä beach
A super quiet and charming place. The locals have the habit of coming by car to the beach, dive for a couple of minutes, put on their bathrobe and go back home! I love it!
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In Kayla there is a volume gauge of the Kitkajoki river.
From Caj Koskinen's blog we see that they performed this section with 33 m³/s.
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Blog de Caj Koskinen
This section is very well explained in Caj Koskinen's blog, the article is:
An inspiration! Thanks to Caide78 and his Instagram account, I got to know this wonderful place that is the Oulanka National Park.
Next section
T5 Packrafting Kitkajoki Juuma - Millikoski rapids - Aallokkokoski rapids
Los mejores 21,5 km de Packraft en un río con rápidos de todos los niveles y en un entorno natural de ensueño.
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See you in the river!
A packraft in your head, a packraft in your head!
A packraft in your head, a packraft in your head!
A packraft in your head, a packraft in a head!
you got a packraft in your fuckin' head!
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The river is a living environment, changing and subject to permanent development. The publishers of the river sketches and the creators of this website cannot be held responsible in any case in case of inaccuracy, omission or error in the river sketches. The topos editors and website creators disclaim all liability in case of any accident that may occur on the rivers described in this guide.
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