Lakkala Rental Hut

Location

• Eastern Finland, North Karelia Region, Municipality of Lieksa, Koli National Park
• Lakkala, coordinates: Euref-Fin (~ WGS84) lat: 63° 00.7955' lon: 29° 55.5296'  ETRS-TM35FIN: N: 6990436 E: 648078
• Herajärven rantatie 37b, 81260 Ahveninen

Hiking

Lakkala Rental Hut is located in the southern part of Koli National Park, on the Herajärven kierros Trail.

Driving Instructions

Via Koli village: First drive to Koli Harbour along the Meriläntie road towards Loma-Koli for roughly 1 km, then turn right onto Rantatie and continue for another 1 km until you reach the harbour. After the harbour, continue south along Rantatie and Kaunislahdentie for roughly 18 km until you reach the Herajoki stream. Just before the Herajoki bridge, turn right onto Herajärventie road. See the rest from below*.
 
Via Ahveninen: Driving along the Romppalantie road, take the Herajoentie road (road sign reads "Herajoki"). After roughly 9 km, turn left onto Kaunislahdentie road at the first crossroads (to the right, the road continues as Vaaralahdentie). Immediately after the Herajoki bridge, some 700 metres from the previous crossroads, turn left onto Herajärventie road.

*The distance from Herajärventie to Lakkala is 6 km. Take the next right turn onto Herajärvenrantatie road. After the Seppälä parking area (on the right-hand side of the road), take the next left turn by the mail boxes. The road deteriorates after this, running through the yard of a house, across a field and onto a wooded ridge. The road leads down slightly, and there is a small trailhead for parking on the right side of the road for 1–2 cars. It is reserved for those who have booked the hut. The parking area is situated about 100 metres away from the Lakkala Rental Hut. You can also leave your car at the Seppälä parking area, from where it is about a 900 m walk to Lakkala farm. However, please do not drive into the yard of Seppälä rental hut, because it is only allowed for people that are renting the Seppälä hut.

Maps

• Koli National Park map
• Excursionmap.fi
• Outdoor and servicemap of Koli 1:20 000 / 1:50 000
• Terrain map P532, 1:50 000

Price

2023
1st day 85 €
2nd–7th day 76 €

2024
1st day 100 €
2nd–7th day 85 € 

Rental time 14:00–12:00.
No reservations longer than one week at a time.

Keys

Keys to the rental hut are placed in the key box next to the door of the hut. The key box opens with a 4-digit key combination. As soon as you have booked the hut, you will receive a booking confirmation in your email. Check the confirmation's attached files, in which you will find the 4-digit key code and additional information (please also check your spam folder). Keep the information with you until the end of the reservation. If you have not gotten the key combination at least two weekdays before the beginning of your reservation, please contact Koli Nature Centre Ukko. 
 
When you arrive at the hut, enter the code in the box by rotating the numbers in the key box. Take the key from the box, unlock the hut, and put the key back in the box. Roll the numbers back to zero again. Always keep the keys inside the key box, so they won’t get lost or locked inside the hut. At the end of the reservation, leave the keys in the same box.

Facilities

• Drinking water must be brought along or drawn from the Seppälä Hut well (located 800 m away, the water must be boiled). It is also possible to borrow water containers and get clean drinking water from the Koli Nature Centre Ukko.
• Lodging for 3–4 persons, bunk bed (70 x 190 cm), bed (120 x 200 cm), mattresses, pillows and blankets but no linen.
• A traditional wood-burning baking oven, electric lights, an electric stove, a refrigerator, microwave oven, coffee maker, electric water boiler, vacuum cleaner, tableware and cutlery for four. Please note that in rainy weather and during low pressure, smoke will not exit the fireplaces properly. The fireplace may then smoke up the hut. It is a good idea to preheat the fireplace so that smoke exits properly. Check the heating instructions in the hut folder.
• Koli National Park services, the Lakkala campfire site and the camping site are situated in the immediate vicinity of this hut. They are also used by other hikers.
• The yard includes a separate dry toilet, a chimneyless smoke sauna and a rowboat on the shore. For the biowaste, there is a composter at the hut.
• Dishwashing liquid, spices, fire-making equipment and toilet paper are not included.

Notices

• Please check Koli National Park's What's New before arrival.
• Please leave no litter or other traces of your visit. There are no waste collection containers at the hut, and visitors are required to take their waste away from the terrain. You  can put biodegradable waste in the composter.
• Please do not use the lake water or swim in it, if you see marks of blue-green algae blooming (thl.fi). Metsähallitus is not held responsible for possible blue-green algae blooming.
• Do not wash up or wash yourself directly in a lake or a river or on top of a well, because this will cause water pollution, eutrophication and e.g. blue-green algae blooming. Use only biodegradable detergents and pour your washing water into the ground at a sufficient distance from the water body.
• There are no accessible services in the hut.
• Pets are permitted in the hut.
• In the summertime it's recommended to bring a mosquito net with you to quarantee a good night's sleep.
• Metsähallitus is not to be held responsible for possible disconnections in electricity network during storms.

• Safety on hiking

Maintenance and Management

General customer service, customer feedback and maintenance: 
Metsähallitus, Parks & Wildlife Finland,  
Koli Nature Centre Ukko, tel. int. +358 40 7732442.

Booking, payments, and cancellations: 
Eräluvat.fi Customer Service (verkkokauppa.eraluvat.fi)