After more than 12 hours’ driving, plus an overnight camping stop on route, my daughter and I finally arrived at the small remote harbor of Veskoniemi on the southern shore of Lake Inari—our cruising ground for the next four days. Lake Inari is the third largest lake in Finland and lies above the Arctic Circle in Northern Lapland. Its 420 square miles stretch from the village of Inari in the west to the Russian border in the east, and to the Vätskär wilderness reserve 43 miles northeast of Veskoniemi. The lake is dotted with more than 3,000 islands and has several wide-open stretches of water that can be hazardous for small vessels in strong winds.I had visited the lake by myself once before, when my daughter and namesake of the lake, Inari, was three years old. I had vowed to return with a suitable sailboat and to bring Inari with me so she could experience for herself the beauty, size, and untamed wilderness of the lake. The water is clear and drinkable with a healthy fish stock; the islands and shores are austere and unspoiled. We set sail from Veskoniemi in the late afternoon after a 12-hour drive. It was the perfect weather for our departure, and even though it was already after 5 p.m. there would be about six more hours of sunlight.
Photographs by the author
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Thanks for sharing this marvelous adventure. It must be heavenly to cruise where wild cloudberry can be gathered for a snack!
Thank you for taking the time to read it. It takes some effort to reach Inari lake, but it is worth the drive.
Mats,
Your adventures with Inari are an inspiration. It is a welcome reminder to get my Caledonia Yawl out on the water, with my own daughter, Fiona, now 20.
Thank you, you have chosen an able vessel for your own adventures.
For Finnish readers, there is an interesting book ‘Isoa Inaria kiertämässä’ written by Antti Tuuri and Erno Paasilinna. They had a slightly smaller wooden one-masted boat and recalcitrant outboard. The book has some history, description of landscapes etc, and they have a longer route through the lake——it hasn’t been translated into any other language from Finnish.
I am married to a native Finn from Kuhmoinen, and I love boating on the lakes of Central Finland. This adventure on Lake Inari seems wonderful. The boat is beautiful and reflects the Finnish inherent love of wood. Kiitos.