Inland of Finland Proper

The Inland of Finland Proper is a mostly rural region, with the large lake Pyhäjärvi (of Säkylä, not to be confused with Pyhäjärvi of Tampere or any other of its namesakes) in the north. This part of Finland Proper can be a nice sidetrip from Turku, e.g. for hiking or activities such as canoeing or horseback riding. The St. Henrik pilgrimage route leads through the region. The main destination is Kurjenrahka National Park.

Municipalities
Loimaa is the only city. The old parish villages – or the station settlements that became main centres due to the railway of 1876 – are towns of a thousand or so inhabitants. There have been quite some mergers, so a municipality may have several centres.


 * (including Alastaro and Mellilä)
 * (S:t Mårtens)
 * (Koskis), also covered in the article
 * (Nousis) — had the bishop seat of Finland until 1229 or 1249
 * (Pöytis with parish village by Riihikoski; including Karinainen, with the current municipal centre Kyrö, and Yläne)
 * , also covered by the article — the centre is one of the bigger towns
 * , also covered by the article — the centre is one of the bigger towns

Other destinations




Understand
This is mostly an agricultural region, with much of the Finnish grain crop. Most of the villages are quite small, with some hundred to some thousand inhabitants in the centres and parish villages.

The river Aurajoki has its sources in the north-east, and in the east part of the region the fields are mostly concentrated by it and its tributaries. West of the river valley and until E8, the region is mostly forest, with houses along some of the roads and the odd minor village, and a number of bogs.

Loimaa is the only town in the region. Towns in the vicinity include Turku (Finland's third biggest city) in the south-west, Uusikaupunki in the north-west and Somero and Salo in the south-east.

In contrast to the southern coast, the region is monolingually Finnish. English is spoken as elsewhere in Finland.

The climate resembles that of southern Finland in general, but is somewhat more continental than on the coast, with more reliable snow cover in winter.

The region borders (clockwise) Satakunta in the north, Tavastia Proper in the east, and Salo, Turku and the Vakka-Suomi region (with Uusikaupunki) of Finland Proper.

By train
Loimaa has a station on the Turku–Tampere railway, with a train most hours in daytime (the other stations here are defunct), and Highway 9 leads from there to Turku through the region. Salo is on the Helsinki–Turku railway, with similar services. These cities can be good starting points for a visit.

By bus
Coaches to Turku from Tampere, Hämeenlinna, Pori and Uusikaupunki pass through the region, which means it has quite good connections. From Helsinki, you mostly have to transfer in Turku (Salo works for some destinations). Many of these buses are express services, mainly stopping at junctions to the main villages. There are also some other services. See Matkahuolto for the coach connections.

The Föli buses to Tortinmäki (in summer and in shoulder season weekends onwards to the Kuhankuono stop) can get bikers reasonably close to e.g. Aura, Riihikoski or Yläne.

By car
National road 8 (E8) passes through Masku, Nousiainen and Mynämäki, continuing through Vakka-Suomi towards Rauma, Pori and Vaasa. Highway 9 (E63) between Turku and Tampere passes by Lieto and through Aura, Kyrö, Mellilä and Loimaa. Highway 10 between Turku and Hämeenlinna passes through Lieto, by Tarvasjoki and through Marttila and Koski. The Hämeen Härkätie, partly following the same route, was along with the King's Road by the southern coast the main road of medieval Finland, with some of its history preserved.

National road 2 between Helsinki and Pori passes north of Loimaa.

Other important roads include national road 41 from Aura via Riihikoski (of Pöytyä) and Oripää towards Virttaa and Huittinen, regional road 204 from Lieto via Kurjenrahka national park and Yläne towards Säkylä and Eura, regional road 213 from highway 10 and Ypäjä via Loimaa and Alastaro to Säkylä, and road 192 (Kustavintie) via Lemu and Mietoinen to Kustavi, with a fork to Askainen.

Get around
Most thoroughfares ray out from Turku, with other connections being along smaller roads.

Coaches travel along the main roads and sparsely along some other roads. A few roads are served by the Föli buses, see above. The main villages are decently served, but many places rely on own car, bike, taxi or school buses.

By bicycle
The thoroughfares are seldom good for biking (sometimes heavy traffic in 100 km/h, with a narrow shoulder for you), but there are often parallel older roads, in decent condition but with much less traffic (and usually more interesting surroundings). Also some connecting roads offer similar connections. Thus reaching points of interest by bike is often easy, if you have a decent map. Hämeen Härkätie is one such recommended route, the road along Aurajoki (from Turku via Lieto to Aura and on, via Riihikoski to Oripää) may be another one.

There is some traffic also by the minor roads and speeds are sometimes quite high, so you mostly need to keep to the right, and not all of these roads are suitable for biking with children, who might have difficulties with that. Some of the roads are gravel, so don't count on high speeds. The town centres have quiet streets and some even have cycleways.

Nousiainen in the west has a cycleway more or less along E8 between Turku and Mynämäki. The EuroVelo cycling route comes in to Mynämäki from the coast to the west and to Turku from Helsinki.

Paattinen, reasonably close to Kurjenrahka National Park, also has cycleways from Turku. You don't want to use Säkyläntie (road 204), so take a detour west after Paattinen centre, either by Laukolantie (which is suitable also for Vahto–Valpperi) or the smaller Kiimassuontie, then via Lavamäki.

There is a terrain bike route from Turku to the national park, more or less along the corresponding hiking trail – much harder than going via Paattinen, but you have the choice.

By taxi

 * Valopilkku (national app by Taxi Helsinki)
 * 02 Taksi (national app)
 * 02 Taksi (national app)

See


The main sights are the old churches, the cultural landscapes and local history museums – and some natural sights. As you'd guess, Nousiainen's church is an important example of Finnish medieval church architecture. Most other (former or current) parish villages have their own old church. Most of these villages also have their local history museums, with different focuses. Some old mills, for grain or industrial purposes, are museums, for some the surroundings may be interesting even if the mills themselves are no more.

The churches and museums may be open only in season, at special events (for churches: services) or by request.

Do


The Kurjenrahka National Park is the main natural attraction. The article describes also the Vaskijärvi nature reserve. Also some other bogs, such as Kontolanrahka of Pöytyä, are important sites.

The Kuhankuono hiking trail network covers the national park and Vaskijärvi, and includes a trail via them from Turku to Elijärvi in Yläne. Another trail network is found in Marttila. The right to access allows your also finding your own routes through the woods.

Canoeing is possible at least along Aurajoki, Paimionjoki (in Marttila) and Yläneenjoki. There are some businesses that can provide canoes and guiding.

Pöytyä has several lakes, some of them with beaches, including Pyhäjärvi and Elijärvi. For Savojärvi, partly in the national park, Rantapiha of Nousiainen offers a beach with sauna and rowing boats for rent.

Some fishing is allowed according to the right to access, including winter fishing through a hole. As regulations on allowed species and sizes vary, and you need to mind ice safety in the winter, you should probably discuss with a tourist business or the relevant authorities. Fishing with a reel (except for the special winter fishing equipment) requires paying the national management fee. For rapids of Aurajoki you may need specific permits.

With some timing and luck you could join a group ice fishing with a huge dragnet (seine) under the ice of Pyhäjärvi, traditionally with the help of horses, now tractors.

The Saint Henry's Way pilgrimage between Köyliö, the church of Nousiainen and Turku cathedral leads through the region.

Two of the main dancing venues of Finland Proper are here in the inland: Valasranta by Pyhäjärvi has weekly dances in summer, daily during the dance camp in July, and Auran nuortentalo has weekly dances in the winter season. In summer, also Pappisten lava by Loimaa is an option, and perhaps the one in Tortinmäki, both likewise with weekly dances in summer.

You may also find some agritourism business. At least some farms sell their produce locally.

Some stables offer lessons or horse riding tours in the terrain. You might want to try Icelandic horses or Finnhorses if they offer the opportunity – both breeds are popular for terrain riding as they are reasonably calm and sure-footed, while still riding horse breeds (for the Finnhourses: as one trait).

Eat and drink
Few proper restaurants. Most food is found at lodgings, check whether advance booking is needed. In the towns, lunch is available in weekdays. Some catering businesses also run restaurants or serve meals on advance request. Also fuel stations by the main roads can be used.

Sleep
One of the regions where variants of bed and breakfast, cottages and camping are the main options. Wild camping according to the right to access is possible, but look for a little bigger woods, where you are unlikely to be seen by passers-by – or better yet: use the designated sites at hiking trails.

Connect
Most libraries offer Wi-Fi and perhaps a computer, scanner etc. Hours are limited, though.

Stay safe
The area is safe. For wildlife, normal advice applies; wildlife has not been acquainted to hikers' food.