Other activities

There are a lot of ways to be active in Ruokolahti - many of them free of charge! Would you like to try the new Pumptrack maybe? Downhill biking at Saimaa Bikepark? Skiing in the wintertime? Cycling tour round the islands? A round of frisbee golf perhaps, followed by a dip in the lake....?

No end of things to do and ways to be active just near Ruokolahti center, not to mention our wonderful nature trails and water ways.

Cycling

Ruokolahti is one of the most versatile cycling municipalities in South Karelia. Most of our hiking trails are suitable for mountain biking as well as for walking and running. Or you can cycle around the many roads that are never far from a pretty lake.

More here
two cyclists in Törönlahti

Paddling

Rent a canoe / kayak and leasurely paddle on lake Saimaa for example right next to Ruokolahti center.

For the more experienced: get to know Saimaa better on a 110 kilometer long paddling/rowing route. This picturesque route runs along the archipelago, along canals and narrow river sections. The route offers beautiful & varied views of lacustrine Ruokolahti as well as nice, versatile paddling. More below.

Canoe and kayak rental at Saimaa Bikepark, which operates in connection with Freeski ski center.

More info here
Paddling on the lake

Fishing

Saimaa area is an excellent and relaxing fishing destination. You can try to catch fish fish on your own or with a guide from one of the companies mentioned below. Angling (a hook with a worm) and ice fishing are free activities for everyone, but only on the lakes. With other equipment and in rivers written permissions are required. More on permits below.

The most common catch are perch, roach, bream, pike and pike-perch. A 10 kg pike or a 5 kg trout are not uncommon cathces for those in the know...

Read more
fishing on a lake

Sports Center

At the Sports Center you'll find 

  • An athletics field with a Novotan-surface
  • A grass-surfaced soccer field
  • An artificial grass field
  • Two tennis courts covered with artificial sand-grass. The tennis courts double as a hockey rink in the winter
  • A basketball court
  • A bocce court next to the market
  • A new pumptrack behind the athletics field
children starting a running competition

Bird Watching

If ornithology is your game, Kuokkalampi wetland and Torsa river nature trail / bird wetland are places worth visiting. Kuokkalampi is the other Natura site in Ruokolahti, while the other is Haukkavuori [Hawk mountain], of which you'll find more info elsewhere on these pages.

Kuokkalampi belongs to the National Wetland Protection Program and it is classified as a valuable bird wetland also internationally.

More here
bird watching