Kuikka – the base camp
Our base camp Kuikka is a former forest workers' residence close to the border to Russia. It is situated in the municipality of Kuhmo on a headland, surrounded by the Kuikka lake and boreal forest. The building is a traditional rural Finnish log house. The accommodation is homely and our relationship to our customers is warm and welcoming. The general atmosphere in Kuikka can be compared to that of a big family rather than to that of a hotel. Your children and your pets are also welcome here. Our customers often feel free to join us in the kitchen and have a chat while we are preparing dinner or to give Lassi or Sami a hand when they are putting out food for our animals. Although the Articmedia family-team does not live in Kuikka, we all feel at home here.
Equipment
There is running drinkable water, electricity, W-lan and Ethernet cable connection, satellite TV, a projector, a copier and a printer. Slide shows or workshops are often held in our auditorium / dining room. You do not need to bring your own sheets or towels, since you will receive those from us. In case of wet weather, there are two dryers at the back entrance leading to room 4. It is also possible to use our laundry machine. There are three entrances to the main building, but the entrance leading to the kitchen is reserved for our staff. We kindly request you to take off your shoes before entering the main building. There are tree toilets and four showers, a lakeside sauna with a wooden stove and a smoke sauna (see the room plan also ). We keep a small souvenir shop in the dining room.
The Surroundings of Kuikka
Kuikka is surrounded by a fabulous lake with the typical Finnish clear brown water. Next to the sauna, there is a camp-fire place, where we usually sit around the fire during a sauna evening, grill sausages and enjoy a can of beer. There are three rowing boats at your free disposal. A boat trip on our lake is a worthwhile experience and the view is extraordinary. By boat, you can reach a beaver nest. On the headland around Kuikka, there are several nest boxes for birds and a lot of berries and mushrooms.
If you bring your own camper van or tent, there is a large parking area close to the buildings for the van and soft forest ground for your tent.
Food
Usually, breakfast is at 9 a.m. We offer a large breakfast buffet. After breakfast, our guests catch up on sleep. However, if you start to feel a bit bit peckish during the day, you can always find some coffee, tea, and something small to snack on on the buffet table in the dining room.
Dinner is usually at 4 p.m. We usually serve a three course meal that you can choose from. Unfortunately, we are not allowed to sell any alcohol. In Finland there are alcohol shops called Alko and our driver can take you there on your way from the airport to Kuikka if you request it.
NB: In case of any allergies or special diets, let us know in advance, since we might not have the ingredients for special meals in stock. The closest grocery shop is 60 kilometers away.
Rooms
There are 7 rooms for our guests, with cabin beds (see room plan). Due to the origin of the house, there are no single or double rooms as such. Often, friends and couples or families live in one room. However, if you have any particular wishes concerning your privacy, let us know. The rooms ‘Tavi’ and ‘Telkkä’ are separate from the rest of the house, and have a separate toilet. All in all, there is one toilet, two toilets with shower, a big sauna with two showers, and a smoke sauna in addition. The room ‘Sotka’ is spacious and separated from the main building. There is no running water in this room, but there is a water tank as well as a stove/small kitchen. Rooms 2 and 4 are also spacious, and the beds can be separated by curtains in order to guarantee your privacy.
Smoke sauna
The smoke sauna is a very old and highly valued Finnish tradition. In the old times, the Finnish smoke sauna was heated on Saturdays. The heating was usually done by the family’s father, assisted by the children. As is common in Finland, also our sauna is placed in a separate log hut next to our Kuikka lake, so that the cooling lake water is nearby. Your visit to the smoke sauna will be a special experience! We heat up a cubic big stone oven for about five to seven hours. The sauna will be extremely hot, when we remove all ash and ember from the oven. Inside, the sauna is totally black, since there is no chimney in this sort of sauna and only small windows for fresh air. Before the sauna is ready, we release all the smoke, wash the soot away from the benches and let the sauna cool down a bit. Then we have the traditional sauna beer – and enjoy the special atmosphere in the dark warmth and get sweaty in the soft steam, before we cool down in the fresh lake water.