Karijoki: Wooden Church, Susiluola and Nature Trails

Karijoki offers starting points for a trip where local history and landscapes provide different focal points. Highlights include the wooden church, the local heritage museum and Susiluola; outdoors, Iso-Kakkori, Paarmanninvuori and a longer route beckon, suitable for hiking or cross-country skiing depending on the season. If you’re looking for a hotel in Karijoki, these interests can help guide your travel planning.

Church and local heritage

Karijoki’s wooden church is an asymmetrical cross-shaped church. Salomon Köhlström, formerly Köykkä, designed it between 1808 and 1812; it was consecrated on January 12, 1812. It is also known as Helena’s Church. According to local tradition, twelve-year-old Helena Kullas put out a fire that Cossacks had started beside the sacristy wall by bringing water in her wooden shoe, which she had taken off. The consecration is part of the church’s building history, while the story is expressly passed down as local tradition.

Karijoki’s local heritage museum stands on Marttusen Hill, in a bend of the river, at Punnintie 12. It presents homes, everyday life, objects and working methods from a period spanning more than a century up to the present day. The museum grounds also include a luti dating from 1841 and a riihi, a traditional drying barn. The museum thus offers a way to explore everyday life and historic buildings as distinct aspects of local heritage.

Susiluola and its special features

Susiluola lies on the border between Karijoki and Kristiinankaupunki and is part of the Lauhanvuori-Hämeenkangas UNESCO Global Geopark. The cave is considered Finland’s oldest known settlement site. As a unique attraction, it has no comparable example in the Nordic countries. Its significance connects local history with a place whose importance is described as extending beyond the boundaries of the municipality.

A trail about 500 metres long leads to Susiluola. Along the way are a stone park, a Bronze Age grave and a field of stones. These stops make the route itself part of the visit: in addition to the cave, you can also take in the natural and historical traces along the way.

Trails, hills and lakeshores

At 145 metres above sea level, Iso-Kakkori is the highest mountain in Karijoki. Its rocky summit offers views over forests and fields towards Karijoki; there is also a kota hut with firewood. The easier trail to the summit starts at the hunting cabin at Luovankyläntie 202. From there, it follows a forestry road on the Muinaisvuorten route for about 1.5 kilometres, before a path about 500 metres long branches off towards the summit.

A longer option is the approximately 12-kilometre Karijoki–Peurajärvi–Kakkori–Sivi route. In summer it is suitable for hiking, and in winter, when there is snow, for cross-country skiing; it can also be started at Karijoki School. The routes thus differ not only by season: for Iso-Kakkori, the sections of the trail to the summit are specified, while the longer route is described as a roughly twelve-kilometre trail.

Paarmanninvuori has trails and routes for walking, as well as a lit fitness trail. It is also home to the Paarmannin hut, maintained by Karijoki Tappara and offering recreational activities, as well as a ski jump and dance pavilion, also maintained by the association. Compared with the hiking and cross-country skiing routes described above, the hill offers further ways to plan active pursuits and leisure time in Karijoki.

Nearby, about five kilometres from the centre of Karijoki, is Peurajärvi, a lake covering around six hectares. The lake is surrounded by Peuraneva and is described as a lake with water lilies. The lakeshore and mire landscape thus complement the local history and the trails at Iso-Kakkori and Paarmanninvuori as other possible focuses for your stay.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Kurikka, Kuortane, Lapua, Soini, Kätkänjoki, Närvijoki, Peräseinäjoki, Ähtäri.

For the regional travel overview: South Ostrobothnia.