Paanajarvi National Park, Karelia: description, sights and interesting facts

A compact nature conservation area of exceptional value with amazingly picturesque landscapes is the Paanajarvi National Park. Its borders almost completely coincide with the Olanga catchment area, a river that flows through two national parks - Karelian and Finnish. The real pearl that surrounds the Paanajarvi park is the lake of the same name, and the entire park area is 104 473 hectares.

General form

It is impossible to write about landscapes without a high style, such beauty here. Mountain peaks are separated by the deepest steep canyons. A huge number of mountain lakes, a variety of marshes, rivers are turbulent, breaking about the huge rapids and spilling noisy waterfalls ... Park "Paanayarvi" is very diverse. On the slopes of the mountains and in the valleys of the rivers stood virgin, unchanged forests, mostly pointed spruce forests. But if you climb to a height of more than half a kilometer, the forest thinens, and spruce interspersed with birches. Even higher fir trees disappear, birches become curves from the winds and eventually give way to tundra vegetation.

The deep lake, surrounded by mountains, and therefore similar to the fjord, is so beautiful that even the famous park "Paanajarvi" bears his name. Here, the lands of the northern coast are warmed up perfectly, and that is why they have been inhabited since time immemorial. The soils are very fertile, the climate is favorable, the waters are rich in fish, and the forests are game. A truly heavenly place, which was first discovered by the Karelians, and in the eighteenth century they were pressed by the Finns. Both of them lived in harmony with nature, and it was impossible otherwise in such blessed places.

A park

Paanajarvi (Karelia) is a unique natural lake, and no less unique is the river Olanga flowing here. There are very few such places on the planet, and therefore every inch should be used for scientific, educational, recreational, environmental purposes. Without the creation of a national park, this was impossible to do. Perhaps, even to preserve this natural wealth would not have been possible. And now, from the first moment of the creation of the nat. Paanajärvi Park, the strictest protection of available biological diversity is provided throughout the territory. And this requires constant financial support.

Strangely enough, tourism helps to maintain the natural and cultural heritage. Park Paanajarvi prices do not inflate to the skies, but the economy in the area not only does not decline, but also develops due to attention to this industry. The development of tourism here solves several problems at once: the protected wild nature is learned, which interests not only the Russian, but also the foreign tourist. The management of the park supports a policy that not only attracts a huge number of visitors, but also provides them with a very cognitive and interesting stay that does not cause the ecosystem the slightest harm.

History

Since previously all the shores of the lake were inhabited very densely, the creation of a reserve was not possible. When the Oulanka National Park was planned, this area was not included in its border. Only in 1926 was drafted by Professor Lincol project of the guard zone. The Government of Finland considered and approved it with a bill, on the basis of which a park with a border a little west of the village of Paanajarvi was established. The road then went here only - from the south, it was built in 1906 from Vuotunka. It was narrow and uncomfortable, suitable only for driving wagons.

By the middle of the twenties, it was expanded, the cars began to actively ply, and therefore the economic activity was significantly revived. In Paanajarvi, shops, a medical center and even a bank branch opened. In the thirties, land surveying continued, in Paanajarvi alone there were more than sixty households. And in 1934 the second road came here - from the north, and along with it, and a through route for tourists, which was called "Bear corner". Then there was a war, and all ties with Paanajarvi were interrupted. This was the name of the hiking trail in the Oulanka National Park.

Borderlands

Paanajärvi before the war was a very prosperous village, the best in the Kuusamo community, as it was a tourist center that hosted more than a thousand tourists in one season. In addition, there were almost always naturalists searching for rare plants on the western border of the taiga. Here relic flora, in other parts of Finland, many species are absent.

When the Finnish war was over and the peace treaty was signed, the border ran through other territories, much to the east, so traditional trade ties were interrupted. The village was completely destroyed by war, all buildings were burnt. For half a century these blessed places were not accessible to tourists - only border guards lived here. Both for Finns and Karelians, Lake Paanajärvi was now inaccessible, because the border strip was very wide and guarded rigidly.

Restructuring

In the late eighties this area again began to be discussed, as on a lake the hydroaccumulative power station was planned, and on the highest in Karelia mountain Nuorunen - the mountain-skiing center. It was these two names that constantly sounded in the TV programs, the situation with them was covered in the pages of very many newspapers and magazines. Nuorunen and Paanajarvi quickly became symbols of Karelia, which demanded their protection in connection with the unique features of the region.

On the other side of the border, too, various proposals were voiced regarding the preservation of this corner in inviolability. The resistance of business people, primarily loggers, was very strong. But the nature protection forces won, and in May 1992 the government of the Russian Federation signed a corresponding decree on the creation of a national park four times larger than Oulanka. So there was a park "Paanayarvi", reviews about which tourists leave the most enthusiastic. They still have memories for life.

Climate

The climate here is considered to be very harsh, but this only applies to the Oulanka-Paanajarvi area. Here there are always fifteen degrees of average temperature - both in winter and in summer, respectively, with minus and plus signs. The average annual temperature is therefore about zero. If it were not for the Gulf Stream, it would be the same here as in Siberia, where there are always forty degrees - both in winter and in summer. It should be borne in mind that the terrain is crossed, and - strongly, but because the microclimatic conditions differ from each other, and often - strikingly.

In the valley of Oulanka warmer, in the summer the sun strongly heats the southern slopes, giving life to plants that do not occur in these latitudes. Naturally, in the depths of valleys where there is wind protection, it is much warmer than on mountain peaks. The crevices are always damp and cool, only the northernmost plants grow here. But in winter it is much colder in the valleys, because cold air from the mountains flows there.

Where did the spruce

Spruce has already dominated the valleys of local rivers for six thousand years, at which time the biological diversity of this region was formed. Judging by the latitude and climate characteristic of the northern circumpolar taiga, the tree-forming vegetation in these places is rather meager: there are only spruce, birch and pine. However, where soils are richer and the slopes are protected from piercing winds, there are quite a few aspens. What bright fiery-red spots in the middle of coniferous greenery can be seen here in autumn!

In the rivers and streams their willow branches bathe; Alder, but more bushy, is also common. There are a lot of mountain ash and juniper in swamps, from which one can draw a conclusion about the richness of local soils. Almost all the rivers and streams are decorated with cherry, filling with light and smell their current along the entire length. And the slopes of the mountains show a strict vertical zoning of the forest cover. Many trees on the shores of the lake and along the river - mostly conifers - for more than four hundred years, and there are specimens, which are six hundred each.

Exclusiveness

Eka is not seen - pine, spruce, birch, alder! What is exceptional about it? Our whole sixth part of the land is covered with such trees. And, nevertheless, this natural complex is unique and has a value of world importance. Here are preserved many species of both plant and animal life, which completely disappeared after logging in other places. Botanists have literally lived in these places for more than a hundred years, because on the sunny slopes there are plants of the southernmost latitudes, and on the shaded ones - relic Arctic.

There are only a lot of botanical rarities. Only higher vascular plants on the territory of the national park revealed more than six hundred species, and more than twenty of them are not found in any region of Karelia. There are many southern species (lily of the valley, strawberry, for example) growing side by side with the most northern ones. Also, many aliens from the eastern edges - the Siberian aster, the Baltic honeysuckle and others, and from the western lands are no less. More than seventy species of plants, widely grown here, are listed in the Red Book.

Fauna

And the Paanayarvi Park is rich in wildlife. The reviews of tourists speak of many representatives of the taiga zone that were met here: not only lynxes, elks and bears came across, but also wolverine and ermine. Scientists present a much longer list: wolves, martens, foxes, rabbits, squirrels, mink, caresses, otters and dozens of rodents. The northern reindeer is also spoken and written, although it spread only around the Finnish border. Mink, muskrat, beaver are adjacent to arctic fox and lemmings. More than one hundred and fifty species of birds nest in this region - both southern and northern. Specially vulnerable species are located here: the swan swan, the gray crane and many others. There are Red Book predators - the osprey, the white-tailed eagle, the golden eagle, and more than eighteen species of rare and endangered birds have chosen these places.

And the reservoirs here are unique. In the lakes and rivers of the Paanayarvi Park, salmon, whitefish, as well as ordinary burbot, pike, perch and roach live. The main thing - in large numbers. All the ponds in this area are very deep, with pure spring water. They are isolated from each other by high waterfalls. From relict fishes live smelt here, and colorful gobies and minnow are a good fodder for valuable fish. The queen is among all the trout, which corrodes here to a weight of more than ten kilograms. This is a valuable trophy for visitors to the park! Those who are lucky, necessarily write a review about the national park "Paanayarvi." And luck, judging by the reviews, many!

How to get there

For those who want to visit the Paanajärvi National Park, contacts are attached. In the village of Piaozersky there is a visit-center, this is in Louhi region of the Republic of Karelia. In the village itself you can come from the west, south and east along a dirt road (about sixty kilometers). From St. Petersburg, Moscow and Petrozavodsk will lead the route St. Petersburg - Murmansk. You can arrive by train to the Louhi station, then - by bus to the settlement Piaozersky.