Outdoor trails take you to Karila Farm
Karila farm is located right next to Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park. In winter, you can reach Karila from the village of Äkäslompolo either by cross-country skiing, walking or cycling along the marked winter path or cycle route. The distance is 3 – 4 kilometers, depending on the starting point. In the summer there are also plenty of hiking and biking trails leading to our farm.
Winter trail
The winter trail marked with blue signs starts from the shore of Lake Äkäslompolo, at the junction of the illuminated ski trail. The trail is not paved with a snowmobile, but simply traverses through the forest. Usually, you don’t even need snowshoes on the trail, as hikers and the frost harden the trail to make it passable.
The trail first passes over a small ravine and immediately after that climbs up a ridge. After the ridge, you will come to a spruce forest, inside which you really feel like you are in the shelter of the forest! In the spruce forest, the trail also passes a small spring. After the spruce forest, there is a small clearing where there is sometimes sheet ice. If necessary, we will mark a detour there. After that, the trail climbs along the edge of Nilivaara towards the Äkäsjoki River. When you reach the Äkäsjoki River, you climb up to a fine sandy ridge, where you can listen to the song of the river and watch the river flowing below. Sometimes you can see otter tracks on the edge of the ice. From Hiekkaharju you can already see the bridge crossing the river and the Navettagalleria café is only a short distance away. The winter path is about two kilometers long, measured from the intersection of the light trail to Karila.
You can walk back to the village along the winter path marked out on the other side of the river.
Äkäslompolo Story trail
Äkäslompolo Story Trail (FIN), which goes around the entire village and has 21 information points, passes by Karila. The information points tell the history of the village with stories and pictures and is suitable for all ages. There are also works of art along the trail. Karila’s Barn Gallery and Café is located approximately halfway along the trail.
Skiing tour through Karila
A really nice ski tour can be had by skiing from the direction of Äkähotelli over Nilivaara to Karila and then via Riemuliiter back to the route that goes around the lake shore. The distance is 5 – 6 km.
Tahkokuru and Kesänkitunturi (winter trail)
Starting from the Barn Gallery, follow the instructions for the Poroaida winter trail. After the reindeer fence, the marked route continues onward, to the Tahkokuru hut at Kesänkitunturi. The route goes through an old forest, so it is worth stopping to admire the old trees. As a sign of the purity of the air, you can see the leaves hanging from the branches of trees. Especially near Kesänkitunturi, there are a lot of light green or yellow leaves. (Or is it just a leaf?) Along the trail, you can often see the tracks of various animals and sometimes you can also meet forest dwellers!
Tahkokuru hut is nice and is located in a very picturesque landscape on the lower slope of Kesänkitunturi. From the hut, it is only a short distance to Pirunkuru. It is best to always climb Pirunkuru from the direction of Kesänkijärvi, as it is very steep. But there are magnificent views from the edge of Pirunkuru, so it is worth climbing to see the scenery! Tahkokuru is about four kilometers from Karila.
Climbing the Kukastunturi peak
Conquering Kukastunturi is on almost everyone’s agenda and the beautiful fell landscape at the top awaits! The journey there takes you through an old forest and the summit area is gentle in shape and accessible even to younger hikers.
The ski trail to Kukas starts from Karila. Immediately after crossing the river, there is a junction from where you start skiing in the direction of Kotamaja. After a couple of kilometers, the trail deviates from the Kotamaja route to the left. The climb to Kukastunturi begins. However, the climb is not very difficult. Only at the tree line does the slope start to get a little steeper. As the slopes of Yllästunturi start to appear behind you, the climb also starts to feel easier. Towards the top, the slope becomes almost flat. In good weather, the view of the entire fell area opens up from the top of Kukas, all the way to Pallas. Kukas itself is not the largest and most impressive of the fells, but the other fells rise up around it all the more impressive.
From Kukas, you can either ski back the same route or continue your journey along the magnificent downhill slopes towards Kotamaja. From Kotamaja, there is a gentle downhill route back towards Karila!
The winter bike trail to Kukas is also suitable for walkers. It starts on the left side of the trail leading to Kotamaja, immediately after the junction behind the river. The trail runs close to the peak of Kukas and then continues towards the wilderness café Elämänluukku. The trail is sometimes muddy in the fell area in winter and snowshoes are needed there in the fell. The distance from Karila Navettagallerya to the peak of Kukas is about four kilometers.
Dog trail from Karila
A trail also starts from Karila’s farm that you can ski with your dog.
Start from Navettagallerya and turn right at the junction, towards Riemuliiteri. After a couple of hundred meters, turn right again, towards Konijänkä. The trail crosses Karilantie, Mellatie and the main road leading to Muonio, continues from there through the Heluka residential area behind Konijänkä and circles around to Seitapirtti. At Hotel Seitapirtti, cross the main road and ski back to Karila via Riemuliiteri. The route is easy, behind Konijänkä the view opens up to the fell village from a new direction. There are a few road crossings, but Karilantie and Mellatie are smaller roads that can usually be crossed on skis later in the spring. The total length of the dog track is about five and a half kilometers.
All outdoor trails and the current condition of the trails can be found on the Yllas.fi website.
