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INARI |
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Situated about 230km north of Sodankylä, INARI lies along the
fringes of Inarijärvi, one of Finland's largest lakes, and makes a
rather attractive point from which to base further exploration of this
part of Lapland. The bus stops off outside the helpful tourist office in
Inari House (June-Sept Mon-Fri 9am-7pm, Sat & Sun 10am-3pm; Oct-May Mon-Fri
10am-4pm; tel 016/661666), which provides maps and fishing licences and
can point you in the right direction for guided snow scooter trips in
winter and fishing trips around the lake in summer. Close by is the
recently renovated "Siida", the Sami Museum (June-Sept daily 9am-8pm;
Oct-May Tue-Sun 10am-5pm; ¬5), which is one of the best museums in
Lapland. An excellent outdoor section gives you an idea of how the Sami
survived in Arctic conditions in their tepees, or kota , while the
indoor section has a well-laid-out and easy-to-understand exhibition on
all aspects of life in the arctic.
Towards the northern end of the village, pleasure cruises depart from
under the bridge in summer (about ¬8.50-17). Most of these trips will
take you out to an ancient Sami holy site on an island in the middle of
Inarijärvi at Ukkonkivi , named after Ukko, the Sami equivalent of the
Norse god of thunder, Thor; a plaque marks an ancient site of worship
rumoured to have been a place of sacrifice. The views over the lake are
stunning. If walking's your thing then check out the pretty Pielpajärvi
Wilderness Church , normally a one- to two-hour well-signposted hike
from the village. There was a church on this site as far back as 1646,
and the present one dates from 1754; services are still held during
mid-summer and for special occasions such as weddings.
Accommodation should not be too problematic, though Inari does get very
busy during the summer months. A basic hotel is the Inarin Kultahovi
(tel 016/671221; £30-35/$48-56/¬54-63), which also has a decent
affordable restaurant . About 2km south of the village is the highly
recommended Uruniemi campsite (tel 016/671331; open all year Oct-April,
advanced booking obligatory), set in a lovely location right by the
lake.
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