Trail Running
|Lieksa
Neitijärvi Loop, 22.5 km
If you're looking for a varied, long hike, the Neitijärvi Loop is a great choice. It takes you past rapids, to large anthills, to a rowboat, to a suspension bridge, and to an observation tower offering views of the lake.
Directions
You can park your car in the parking lot at the Ruunaa Hiking Center (restaurant services available during the summer) or at the Neitikoski parking area.
After about 4 km, you’ll reach Korpiniemi. From there, you’ll set off through an old primeval forest. On this leg of the trail, you can marvel at the exceptionally large anthills!
The first particularly memorable landmark is Haapavitja (6 km from the start), a long and, especially during high water, impressively magnificent rapid. The best vantage points for viewing the rapids are from the suspension bridge crossing the stream.
After the bridge, you’ll come to a trail junction where the path branching off to the left would take you on the 130-kilometer Karhunpolku trail
On the east bank of the river, you’ll walk along a trail and road for about 4.5 kilometers, close to the current, before turning off the road back onto the trail. Now ahead of you is the climb up Huuhkajavaara and—if you’re not afraid of heights—to the top of the observation tower waiting there. From the tower and through the gaps in the treetops, a beautiful view opens up over Lake Neitijärvi.
After the steep descent from Huuhkajavaara, you’ll find the Saunaniemi lean-to in a lovely spot on the shore, and 800 meters from there, a place to swim at the Neitijärvi parking area (no official swimming beach).
After the Onkisuo marsh section, the trail turns right and continues for over 3 km through Kattilaniemi to the Airovirta waterway crossing.
There is one boat on each bank at the crossing point. First, you row from the north bank to the south bank. From the south bank, you take the boat that has been waiting there in tow and row back to the north bank. On the north bank, you leave one of the boats for the next person to use and row back to the south bank.
It’s a good idea to set aside about half an hour for these three crossings (each about 120 meters).
After the crossing, climb up to the Naukuniemi ridge, along which you’ll proceed for about 1.5 km before descending and circling around the head of Naukulahti Bay back to the starting point.