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Wild Rafting in Oulanka with Oulanka basecamp. Kitjajoki River in Kuusamo, Finland

The most intense and wild rafting in Finland with the legendary Millikoski and Aallakoski rapids.

By Packrafting.cat

August 13^th, 2025

🏕️ Oulanka Basecamp: the best accommodation in the National Park

If you are planning an adventure in Oulanka National Park, Basecamp Oulanka is undoubtedly the best place to stay. Located in one of the most beautiful corners of the park, this accommodation offers a unique combination of comfort, nature and direct access to the most impressive landscapes in the area.

📍 Basecamp is strategically located next to a small beach with a sauna and campfire area, ideal for relaxing after a day of exploring the nearby Piene Karhunkierros route or paddling in a packraft, kayak or raft. All three services can be booked with Basecamp.

Wild Rafting in Oulanka with Oulanka basecamp. Kitjajoki River in Kuusamo, Finland

It is one of the best places to watch the sunset over the river or enjoy the magical midnight sun while dining outdoors. I have not been there in winter, but I will definitely return because the snowy landscape, starry skies, and northern lights must be a special and unforgettable experience.

The wonderful dining room at Basecamp Oulanka

🛏️ You can book your stay at Oulanka Basecamp directly on their website.official website or viaBooking.

📶 The common area has very good WiFi, which is much appreciated in such a remote location.

🍽️ And if you don't want to worry about cooking, you can have lunch or dinner there (reservation required): the food is homemade, local and delicious, ideal for recharging your batteries.

✨ In summary: Basecamp Oulanka is not just accommodation, it is a complete experience in the wild nature of northern Finland.

📲 Follow Basecamp Oulanka on social media: inspiration in all seasons

If you want to stay up to date with everything happening in Oulanka National Park and discover spectacular spots throughout the year, we recommend following Basecamp Oulanka on social media. They publish incredible visual content, with photos and videos that capture the beauty of the park in its four seasons:

🍂 Colourful autumn, ❄️ magical winter, 🌸 vibrant spring and ☀️ eternal summer under the midnight sun.

🔵 Facebook: Basecamp Oulanka

📸 Instagram: @basecampoulanka

▶️ YouTube: Basecamp Oulanka canal

📅 It's also a great way to find out about events, news, availability, and see what the park is like in real time.

🌲 Highly recommended for inspiration before your trip... and to keep dreaming about Oulanka when you return!

Rafting Routes

The only complication with Oulanka as a base camp is deciding which route to take!

You have 3 options:

🔵 Family route: A 3-hour route that combines scenery and excitement for the whole family with rapids suitable for everyone. €59 for adults and €32 for children aged 5-12. You can find more information about this route at T4 Packrafting Kitkajoki Upper part.
🔴 Wild route: 2-hour route through the most famous section of the entire national park. For ages 18 and up, this is a short but intense route with the two heaviest rapids in Finland, Millikoski and Aallakoski. Only available for adults aged 18 and over. €65 for adults.
🟢 Scenic route: A 5-hour route that doesn't feel long at all because the first few kilometres are spent on continuous class I-II rapids between breathtaking walls and landscapes. €85 for adults and €49 for children aged 5-12. Details of the T5 Packrafting Kitkajoki Juuma - Millikoski rapids - Aallokkokoski rapids route

The beautiful map created by local artist Taiteilija Kerttu Määttä shows the three possible rafting routes you can take with Basecamp Oulanka:

The preparations

We arrive a little early at the Oulanka base camp and the guides explain the basics of how the day of rafting adventures on the Kitkajoki River will unfold.

Once we have heard the explanations, we head to the changing rooms, where we are provided with everything we need. All you need to bring is a swimsuit and a change of clothes.

A few final explanations at the Oulanka beach basecamp. I love this place so much that I found it difficult to concentrate and listen to the guide; my eyes were drawn to the landscape...

The team, Max the Flying Dutchman, Borja, Nicolás, and myself, ready to enjoy ourselves...

Boarding

Boarding takes place at the Oulanka basecamp beach.

Take out

Once past the Aallakoski rapids, we find ourselves in a backwater that, true to the proverb, represents the calm just before the storm.

For safety reasons, a rope indicates that we should not continue paddling down the river to avoid approaching the Jyrävä rapid, an impassable rapid classified as class VI, although I do not know if anyone has ever kayaked through this dangerous rapid. Updated: see the section Kayaking Jyrävä.

NOTE: According to the website www.suomenvesiputoukset.fi, which has a list of waterfalls in Finland, rafting at the waterfall is only possible for expert teams, after a thorough personal inspection and taking all necessary precautions.

The waterfall gets its name from the sound it makes, as the roar can be heard from a great distance (roar is "jyrinä" in Finnish). An impressive 9-metre waterfall surrounded by rocky walls that cuts its way through a narrow "channel" in the rocky bed until it reaches a pool. Of all the waterfalls in Finland, it is one of the largest in terms of flow.

A spectacle that I highly recommend visiting, an impressive waterfall that makes your skin tingle and makes you realise that we are nothing in the face of powerful and unbridled nature.

Kayaking Jyrävä

Mother of beautiful love:

In rafting, some crazy people have also conquered this rapid:

The most voluminous waterfalls in Finland are located in Oulanka National Park.

On the river

The highlights of the route are:

Km 0 Boarding at the Oulanka basecamp beach
Km 0.6: Niskakoski rapid. After practising the movements with the guide in the calm waters of the Juuma suvanto, we reached the class II rapid, Niskakoski rapid, just 600 metres away, right after the suspension bridge at the start of the famous KarhunKierros trail, also known as the Bear Trail. It was a good warm-up for what was to come.
Km 1: We sail looking for the main current and avoiding the stretches of vegetation on Lake Jyravanjarvi.
Km 2.1: We arrive at the most scenic point of the route, and this is where things start to get serious. The Millikoski rapid or mill rapid (Milli = mill, Koski = rapid). This rapid is undoubtedly the most famous and iconic photo of Oulanka National Park, and overcoming it by packraft or rafting is one of the highlights of a trip to Oulanka. If you had to put on your best faces for the photos at the previous rapid, get ready here because the audience will be watching you closely from the mill walkway and the suspension bridge.
Km 2.3: We rested from the excitement of the first rapid in the Suvanto, a backwater after the Millikoski rapid, and prepared for the highlight of the day:
Km 2.6: the key moment of the day, overcoming the powerful Aallakoski rapids without falling off the raft. I did it alone once in a packraft, and it is one of the most impressive rapids you can do, with a respectable length and drop where you have to navigate multiple powerful holes.
Km 3.4: we paddled through a backwater until we reached some buoys and a rope warning us not to navigate in the area if we didn't want to end up in the jaws of the impassable and fearsome Jyrävä rapid, a deadly rapid with a total drop of almost 10 metres in two steps, a first waterfall with a very dangerous hole, and a final waterfall, all in quick succession, where, according to the guide, the water creates a hole no less than 30 metres deep, where if the water. We leave the river via a wooden staircase, while the guides launch the rafts down the Jyrävä waterfall. The rafts are collected after the waterfall and taken to the end of the Kitkajoki River, on the Russian border, where they are picked up by transport that takes them back to the Oulanka base camp.

The scenic rafting route

See the article:

Wikiloc route

Wild rafting on the Kitkajoki River in Oulanka National Park, Finland, with base camp in Oulanka

Google My Maps

Packraft en Oulanka National Park - Finlandia - Karkunhierros Trail

Niskakoski rapid

The Niska Rapids (Niskakoski) connect the two lakes (lakes or areas of calm water between rapids) in the Juuma area: JuumaJarvi and Jyrävänjarvi. Just before the rapids begin, we will pass over the suspension bridge at the start of the Piene Karhunkierros trail. Smile, everyone, because you're sure to have photos taken by the expectant crowd watching you from the bridge!

Nuestro paso por Niskakoski.

Millikoski rapid

The most iconic and photogenic rapids, so much so that I have decided to dedicate an entire article to them, which I am currently writing about the Millikoski rapids.

El rápido de Millikoski visto des del remanso (Suvanto) una vez superado el rápido.

That was our experience on the rapids.

Aallakoski rapid

The video of the day: Aallakoski's spectacular rapid descent, with more water than when he did it solo in 2023.

Other activities

🎶 Juuma Fest

📅 Date: 26 July 2025, from 1:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

📍 Location: Juumajärvi – Säkkilä, on the shores of Lake Juuma in Kuusamo, right on the edge of Oulanka National Park.

🧭 A unique festival

This is a day-long travelling festival on four stages located at different points along the lake, which can be reached by rafting boats, following an authentic Juumalian route.
The €40 ticket includes access to all stages and transport between them. You can also purchase a package with direct transport from Ruka for €60 (departure at 12:30 and return at approximately 22:15).

🎤 And what's happening at Basecamp Oulanka?

Basecamp actively participates as one of the main stages of the festival:

At 3 p.m., The Koskiset takes to the stage, a band that takes you on a nostalgic journey through Suomirock and the great rock classics of the 70s and 80s, all in a spectacular setting by the Kitka River, next to Pieni Karhunkierros.
After the concert, attendees climb back onto the rafts to continue the festival at other venues.

🍔 Gastronomy and atmosphere

Each venue at the festival offers its own festive menu, with delicious food, refreshments and a natural setting. You can even take a dip in the lake if it's hot.
Basecamp brings its renowned culinary expertise: local dishes, regional products and good food to enjoy while the music plays 🍽️.

🚐 Why is Basecamp Oulanka the ideal place to stay?

Perfect location: Basecamp is located in Myllykoski, about 20 km from the Ruka ski resort (Kuusamo), an ideal place to combine snow activities and nature. AllEvents
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If you stay there, you're just a short walk from the stage and the raft tour, and you can continue enjoying the festive atmosphere after the festival if you stay there.

✅ In summary: festival + nature + Basecamp

What Juuma Fest offersHow it links up with Basecamp OulankaTravelling festival on raftsBasecamp is one of the official venuesVaried music: rock, indie, metalPerformance by The Koskiset at BasecampPlan a musical and scenic itinerary in one dayBasecamp is integrated into the Juuma Fest experienceLocal food at each venueBasecamp provides its own high-quality local restaurant

🎟️ Would you like to attend?

Visit the official event website at Ruka.fi to purchase tickets or book transport from Ruka.
You can also follow updates on social media and stay up to date with related activities.

It's the best way to experience music in the heart of the Finnish boreal landscape, and Basecamp Oulanka is an active part of the show!

A peaceful day in Oulanka 😉! See you at the river!

The river is a living environment, constantly changing and subject to ongoing development. The editors of the river sketches and the creators of this website cannot be held responsible for any inaccuracy, omission or error in the river sketches. The editors of the topos and creators of the websites decline all responsibility in the event of an accident occurring on the rivers described in this guide.