Lieksa, Finland - Polarsteps

When a hike is described in Finland as “demanding”, be prepared. We have been doing a lot of intermediate hikes since we moved here and figured one step up would not be that much harder. And, besides, it was only 3,5kms, so we’ll walk that first, and then have lunch at the entrance of the park. It’ll take 45 minutes. Maximum. Boy, were we wrong. It took us two hours and we were exhausted. The height difference between the top and the valley of the hike was 112m and we ascended and descended twice in those 3,5km. But, with that pain came some absolutely glorious views. We also veered off the trail quite a few times to do some extra exploring. The sweat (and maybe some cursing) was so worth it!
  1. Trees, Tundra and Tunturi Tour
  2. Lieksa