Linnaistensuo National Park

Today we went to Linnaistensuo, which is a National Park just outside of Lahti in Nastola.

 It is a small area that has been preserved as a national park, because it is rare to find a swampland so near to a city, and in general it is a nice area.

 There is just one main path the goes around the park. Since Finland has had the most rain ever this year, and snow just melted a few days ago, things are really very wet. If you were to walk over to where the informational sign is, you would have sunk down in a good ft of mud. My host mom actually did and the mud went to the very top of her ruber boots and a bit onto her pants.

 I learned that kuusi is a christmas tree (pine or spruce...), and that sammal is moss. There is paljon (much/ a lot) sammal there.

 There is also a lot of algae and different water plants since it is so moist. When we were there, the air was full of moisture, because it has been very foggy the entire day. It was a bit intriguing how trees and different plants would just appear out of no where. Even the sun looked strange. It never really came out today, but at one point you could see it through the haze and it was glowing white, almost like the moon.

 There are wooden planks that go throughout the park so that visitors can actually get around without getting soaked and so that people do not trample all over the land, and ruin the plantlife.

 Parts of the wooden pathway were very slippery and in some places the wood was cracking and falling apart. This picture of one of the areas where the water has actually risen so much, that it covers the planks. The wood wasn't broken, there was just a few inches too much water there so it was forced under. The good thing about having rubber boots is that you don't have to worry about getting wet at all, so we crossed through the water and journeyed on further.

 For some reason, I kept being reminded of the African savana thinking of the grass and some of the trees. I don't think there would be quite so much water though. I really like the contrast in color of all of the little trees that are just now beginning to grow that stand green amond the red grass and algae, and cranberries too.

We were with my host aunt and uncle and their two year old son, so we didn't go all the way to the end of the park, but we walked a great distance and saw a lot. I am always so surprised when I think of swamps and bogs being in Finland. I would really like to come back in the wintertime and see how everything looks and whether or not there is snow or ice covering the water.

I really had a great time at Linnaistensuo and hope to be able to one day return. Nature is one of the main reasons why I wanted to come here to Finland, and I am not disappointed. I love being outside as much as I can. It makes me want to become a ranger when I return to America...we'll just have to see.

Hope you have a good week and try to get outside as much as possible, no matter the weather there is something to see and do.