Photo: Timo Veijalainen
Timo Veijalainen
Cyclists got some good news at the end of last summer: Cycling in the Pallas-Yllästunturi national park is now allowed on all the officially marked summer trails (with a few exceptions). So all in all, there are now about 900 kilometres of interconnected MTB trails in Fell Lapland.
Janne-Juhani Haarma, managing director of Visit Ylläs, believes that this will give a tremendous boost to summer tourism in the area as a Mecca for cyclists.
“Taking global markets into account, cycling is in a class of its own, and is much bigger than cross-country and downhill skiing. For example Scotland, with about the same population as Finland and slightly less surface area, was visited by 1.3 million mountain bikers in 2009.”
Several years passed before the decision to allow cycling on national park trails was approved. Decisive impetus came from the Ministry of Environment, after its decision to grant equal status to cycling and hiking.
“We began to study the issue from the viewpoint of why should cycling be forbidden when hiking is permitted,” park director Pekka Sulkava explains.
Once the park’s trail and maintenance facilities had been updated to meet the Ministry’s requirements, a veritable paradise opened up for cyclists. However,
“Approval is not the same as an official recommendation,” Sulkava emphasises.
“Even if a trail is approved, it doesn’t mean that cyclists could be directed there. The trails that we manage have to be safe to ride along. “
You can find the recommended trails on the Ylläs summer trail map.
Both the tourism sector and Metsähallitus (Finnish forest administration) are monitoring the effects of cycling in the national park. That is to say, everything related to an environmentally sustainable national park.
“Now it’s the cyclists’ turn. National park regulations must be respected, and both cyclists and hikers have to stay on the trails.”
Cycling’s rapid growth in popularity is clearly visible in the Ylläs villages, both in winter and in summer. Official statistics, however, are harder to come by.
“Obviously the park’s visitor counters can’t distinguish a cyclist from a hiker, but we estimate that increased movement along certain trails is due to more cyclists. Of course it’s easier to count downhill mountain bikers, as they buy lift tickets,” Janne-Juhani Haarma explains.
Haarma is convinced that cycling does a lot of good.
“This is an incredible opportunity. Cycling is an all-year-round concept that connects the Ylläs villages to each other.”
Need to rent a bike?
Sporting equipment shops in the Ylläs area rent out all kinds of bikes. Definitely the most popular at the moment are the fat-tyred fatbikes, which roll effortlessly over the terrain. Both adult and child-size fatbikes are available.
Why not try riding an electric fatbike if you’d prefer some gentle exercise. On an electric fatbike, you can easily cruise up to the top of, say, Kukastunturi fell, right in the heart of the magnificent fell landscapes. Don’t forget to check that your bike is working properly before setting out.
No-go zones
For environmental and safety reasons, cycling is not permitted at Varkaankuru, Palkaskero, Tuomikuru, Pirunkuru or Kellostapulinkuru. For more information, please check the following websites: yllas.fi, luontoon.fi and the Pallas-Ylläs MTB Trails’ Facebook page.
Retkivinkit Katso mihin Ylläksellä ja lähistöllä kannatta suunnata retkeilemään. Parhaat vinkit ja ohjeet jokaiselle vuodenajalle
Näytä lisää
Ylläksen palvelut Katso miltä palveluita Ylläksellä on auki tällä hetkellä, hae palveluita sijainnin mukaan
Ylläksen retkivinkit Katso mihin Ylläksellä ja lähistöllä kannatta suunnata retkeilemään. Parhaat vinkit ja ohjeet jokaiselle vuodenajalle
Ylläksen bussiyhteydet Katso lentokenttäbussien, junabussien ja skibussinaikataulut kätevästi Kuukkelista.
Ylläksen sää Katso sääennuste tälle päivälle tai tulevalle viikolle kätevästi Kuukkelin sivuilta ja lue samalla lisää artikkeleita Ylläksen säästä.