From: walvdrk_r@research.ptt.nl (Kees van der Wal)
Subject: Re: Biking in the Kuusamo area, Finland
Organization: PTT Research, The Netherlands
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 11:46:11 GMT

In article <1993Jan25.113423.4181@ghost.dsi.unimi.it>,
savigni@ghost.dsi.unimi.it (Mad Andy) writes: 

> I'd like some information about biking in the Kuusamo area.
> I'm planning a trip there next summer, around end of July
> to August.
> I'd like to know something about weather, road conditions,
> campsites or youth hostels.

Temperature might be anything below 10C to 25C (at noon), depending on the 
weather. Be prepared for some rain. 

The larger roads are covered with asphalt and no problem to drive. The 
"highway" that passes Kuusamo South to North is too busy to be fun to drive 
(lots of campers and caravans). Smaller roads are gravel-type but mostly very 
good to drive, even with my 1.25" tyres. With a mountain bike you could try the 
tracks for pedestrians and backpackers but those can be quite muddy to "swampy".

Camp sites are less than a days drive apart but rather expensive. 
There are more than the avarage number of campings around Kuusamo. There is a
tendency to charge an all-in (family) tarif, even if you're on your own with a
small tent. Two years ago those campings charged me FMk50 to 60. 

Free camping is allowed an there's ample opportunity to do so.

Kuusamo has a youth hostel. I haven't been there but the quality of JH's in the 
Nordic countries is excellent.


> I'd also like to know if there are villages in the area,
> so that I can buy food and perhaps find a bicycle repair
> in case something goes wrong. I have a good mountain
> bike, so I won't mind about rough roads or tracks.

There may be a few tens of kilometers between villages with shopping
facilities. Some gasoline stations also provide coffee, cakes, snacks and some 
basic food items (crisp bread, packaged cheese etc). On the maps (road map of 
Finland, 1:200000 or 1:400000 for the Northern parts) campings and Post Offices 
are indicated. To my experience a Post Office means in 99% of the cases there's 
also some kind of foodshop in the area.

Bicycle shops are very scarce over there. Kuusamo itself is big enough to have 
one. The most common bicycle parts are available in larger stores; next to food 
these shops have a "sports" corner with fishing-, camping gear and bicycle 
parts. 


> Also, do you know how I can ship my bike up to there?
> I think the nearest train station is in Rovaniemi, which
> is about 200 km away from Kuusamo: can I bring my bike
> with me on the train from Helsinki, or should I ship it?
> Can I ship it straight from home to Rovaniemi?

In Finland you can take the bike on the same train if it's a direct train. The 
personel takes care of loading & unloading. Helsinki to Rovaniemi is a direct 
connection; you could even try Kemij"arvi (85 km more east) or Salla. The
nearest railway station is probably Taivalkoski (90 km SW of Kuusamo), but I
doubt there is a direct connection from Helsinki. 

If there's no railway, there's always a bus, either a commercial line or a 
postbus. The postbus has facilities to carry luggage, including bikes unless 
you arrive with an entire group at once.


> How about the language? Is English spoken there?

Kuusamo is a tourist centre and English is spoken there. In the country side 
you'll have to look for young people to speak English. It helps a lot if you 
know a few words for basic food items etc. The pronounciation is not too 
difficult. Spelling is phonetical and the stress is always at the first 
syllable.



> P.S.: I believe that area is flat:am I right?

Though Finland in general is not very high, it goes up and down all the time. 
Kuusamo is a ski resort and has a real hill: Rukatunturi (462m). I needed my
28x28 gear to get around (with luggage). 

Have fun over there, and bring/buy something against mosquitoes,

<kees>

Kees  van der Wal                      e-mail: J.C.vanderWal@research.ptt.nl
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
PTT Research Neher Laboratories	                                 Room: LE130
Sint Paulusstraat 4                                      Fax: +31 70 3326477
2264 XZ  Leidschendam  The Netherlands                 Phone: +31 70 3326295
============================================================================
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.rides,rec.bicycles.misc