Excursions
All the excursions were guided by archaeologists, who have studied the sites.
Sun 22 August Excursion to the South: the Raahe area.
This trip took us to the Stone Age ruins of Kastelli in Pattijoki. Kastelli is the most representative example of giant’s churches, which are the largest Neolithic structures found in the Nordic countries. The trip then continued to a Late Stone Age settlement and cemetery in Kettukangas, Raahe, where we had the opportunity to explore structures pertaining to the production of train oil, among other things. In addition, stopped at two Iron Age sites on the way. Tervakangas, still in Raahe, contains burial mounds dating back to the Late Iron Age, while the site in Kaakkuri, Oulu, is a coastal cemetery containing a variety of graves from the Roman Age. We also visited the lovely 19th century wooden part of Raahe known as Old Raahe and its main attraction, the oldest local museum in Finland, situated by the seashore. The city of Raahe treated us a delicious lunch, for which we are thankful.
The participants of the Raahe excursion in front of the Raahe museum.
Mon 23 August Excursion to the North: the Kemi-Tornio region.
The excursion began with a visit to Keminmaa Kiimamaa, an Early Metal Age settlement and cemetery. We also made a stop at the medieval church in Keminmaa, in the vicinity of which researchers have found relics of its wooden predecessors. From Keminmaa we headed towards the town of Tornio to see Rakanmäki, which is one of the largest Roman Age settlement and burial sites in the North. Another interesting location well worth a visit was the town of Tornio, which was founded in 1621, although it was known as an international trading post well before its official establishment. Recently, excavations in the town have produced significant archaeological findings. Finally, we visited Törmävaara, Tervola, a widely studied Late Stone Age site containing about 300 hut floors, mainly of terrace houses. We thank the city of Tornio for treating us a delicious meal.
Participants of the excursion at the Kiimamaa site
Sun 22 – Mon 23 August Excursion to the East: Kuusamo and Suomussalmi.
This two-day trip was recommended to those interested in rock paintings and prehistoric relics found in the wilderness. On Sunday, we stopped at the Keskimmäinen giant´s church in Ylikiiminki. In the Kuusamo wilderness we acquainted ourselves with the Oivanki Stone Age settlement. We also visited Taivalkoski Koitijärvi site and Kalmosärkkä i Suomussalmi, where relics from the Stone Age as well as memories from the war can be seen. In the evening it was possible to see the beautiful Kiutaköngäs rapids at the river Oulanka. On Monday, we walked to see the rock paintings in Värikallio. We also got to know a few sites around the Lake Kiantajärvi, along whose shores prehistoric findings are discovered almost annually. In addition, we learned about the Finnish Winter War in the Raatteenportti museum. The Suomussalmi municipality treated us lunch, for which we thank them.
