Vaikkojoki River is a long river, which is in provinces of Northern Karelia and Northern Savonia. The waters of Vaikkojoki River flows from Lake Vaikkojärvi to Lake

Kaavinjärvi Kaavinjärvi is a lake in eastern Finland. The surface area of the lake is approximately 21 square kilometres (8 sq mi).Juuka to municipality of Kaavi. The elevation difference of the river is more than . There are 27 rapids in Vaikkojoki River. The total length of the rapids is approximately . Lake Kärenjärvi, Lake Vihtajärvi, Lake Saarijärvi and Lake Retunen are the largest lakes in the area of Vaikkojoki River. The total length of Vaikkojoki Canoeing Route is about .

Tourism

Vaikkojoki River is a versatile recreational and leisure area offering outdoor activities round the year. Most of the tourism enterprises of the area are located in Kaavi, Northern Savonia. The tourism enterprises of Vaikkojoki area offer accommodation services which include holiday villages,

cottage A cottage, during Feudalism in England, England's feudal period, was the holding by a cottager (known as a Cotter (farmer), cotter or ''bordar'') of a small house with enough garden to feed a family and in return for the cottage, the cottager ...

s and camping sites. The transportation services and hiring services (equipments for canoeing, fishing and skiing) are also available. The program services include many kinds of activities:

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

biking Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

boating Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether Motorboat, powerboats, Sailing, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sp ...

canoeing Canoeing is an activity which involves paddling a canoe with a single-bladed paddle. Common meanings of the term are limited to when the canoeing is the central purpose of the activity. Broader meanings include when it is combined with other acti ...

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing where skiers rely on their own locomotion to move across snow-covered terrain, rather than using ski lifts or other forms of assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreation ...

, fishing,

winter fishing Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice fishers may fish in the open or in heated enclosures, some with bunks and amenities. Shelters Lo ...

, hiking, horse riding,

berry picking A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, rasp ...

, mushroom picking, sauna, shooting the rapids and walking with snowshoes. The local tourism enterprises sell the fishing permissions too.

Shooting the rapids

In Kaavi it is possible to shoot the rapids on Vaikkojoki River in the spring and early summer. The expeditions, covering , are done in a purpose-made boat steered by a professional helmsman.

Canoeing Route

The total length of the Canoeing Route of Vaikkojoki River is circa . There are landing sites near Lake Lietukka, Makkarasärkkä, Kusiaiskoski Rapid, Rakkinekoski Rapid and Multivääränkoski Rapid. Some of the campfire sites are covered. Vaikkojoki Information, 2014

Fishing

Species

The natural catch species of the rapids of Vaikkojoki River are the

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a European species of salmonid fish that has been widely introduced into suitable environments globally. It includes purely freshwater populations, referred to as the riverine ecotype, ''Salmo trutta'' morph ...

(Salmo trutta), the

grayling Grayling or Greyling may refer to: Animals Fish * Grayling, generically, any fish of the genus ''Thymallus'' in the family Salmonidae ** European grayling (''Thymallus thymallus''), the European species of the genus ''Thymallus'' ** Arctic grayli ...

(Thymallus thymallus) and the ide (Leuciscus idus). Stocked catch species are the

rainbow trout The rainbow trout (''Oncorhynchus mykiss'') is a species of trout native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead (sometimes called "steelhead trout") is an anadromous (sea-run) form of the coasta ...

(Oncorhynchus mykiss) and the

. The northern pike (Esox lucius) is also a catch species.

Fishing permits

A fishing permit for Vaikkojoki River can be obtained e.g. from the local tourist enterprises. A fisherman 18 to 64 years old has to purchase also personal National fishing management fee (''Valtion kalastuksenhoitomaksu'' in Finnish). The child under the age of 12 is allowed to fish with the same fishing permit of an accompanied adult. The special fishing permits for school groups are available. The fisherman may purchase a fishing permit for a day, week or for the whole season. One of the fishing permits covers the whole area from Lake Vaikkojärvi, Juuka of Northern Karelia down to Sivinvirta Rapid, Kaavi of Northern Savonia. Usually the permit covers also the lakes of the area. Some fishing permits cover only certain part of the river. Allowed fishing methods in the rapids are

spin fishing Spin fishing is an angling technique where a spinnerbait, a type of hybrid fishing lure with at least one freely rotating blade, is used to entice the fish to bite. When the fishing line, line is fishing reel, reeled back, the spinnerbait blades w ...

and

fly fishing Fly fishing is an angling method that uses a light-weight lure—called an artificial fly—to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. The light weight requires casting techniques significantly diffe ...

. The amount of catch is limited. Fishing is not permitted in Kajoonkoski Rapid.

Protection status

Vaikkojoki River has been designated the status of a protected area enlisted in the

Natura 2000 Natura 2000 is a network of nature protection areas in the territory of the European Union. It is made up of Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas designated under the Habitats Directive and the Birds Directive, respectively ...

ecological network of the E.U.

Habitat types

Vaikkojoki River is situated in Boreal Biogeographic Region. Protected area covers 258 hectares. The most typical habitat types are

coniferous woodland A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

(50% of the area), Western taïga (31%),

Fennoscandia __NOTOC__ Fennoscandia (Finnish language, Finnish, Swedish language, Swedish and no, Fennoskandia, nocat=1; russian: Фенноскандия, Fennoskandiya) or the Fennoscandian Peninsula is the geographical peninsula in Europe, which includes ...

n natural rivers (25%) and

bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; a ...

woodland (19%). The other habitats of Vaikkojoki Natura 2000 Site are natural dystrophic lakes and ponds, active raised bogs, transition mires and

quaking bog A bog or bogland is a wetland that accumulates peat as a deposit of dead plant materials often mosses, typically sphagnum moss. It is one of the four main types of wetlands. Other names for bogs include mire, mosses, quagmire, and muskeg; ...

s. The minimum elevation of Vaikkojoki Natura 2000 Site is . The maximum is , and the mean is .

Bird species

Black woodpecker The black woodpecker (''Dryocopus martius'') is a large woodpecker that lives in mature forests across the northern Palearctic. It is the sole representative of its genus in that region. Its range is expanding. The black woodpecker is easily the ...

(''Dryocopus martius''), common crane (''Grus grus'') and

western capercaillie The western capercaillie (''Tetrao urogallus''), also known as the Eurasian capercaillie, wood grouse, heather cock, cock-of-the-woods, or simply capercaillie , is a heavy member of the grouse family and the largest of all extant grouse species. ...

(''Tetrao urogallus'') are the biggest birds in the area of Vaikkojoki. The green sandpiper (''Tringa ochropus'') and the common gull (''Larus canus'') are typical freshwater birds in the river habitat. Other bird species include the common chaffinch (''Fringilla coelebs''), the

willow warbler The willow warbler (''Phylloscopus trochilus'') is a very common and widespread leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and the Palearctic, from Ireland east to the Anadyr River basin in eastern Siberia. It is strongly ...

(''Phylloscopus trochilus''), the tree pipit (''Anthus trivialis''), the common redpoll (''Carduelis flammea''), the great tit (''Parus major''), the spotted flycatcher (''Muscicapa striata''), the

red crossbill The red crossbill or common crossbill (''Loxia curvirostra'') is a small passerine bird in the finch family Fringillidae. Crossbills have distinctive mandibles, crossed at the tips, which enable them to extract seeds from conifer cones and other ...

(''Loxia curvirostra''), the Eurasian treecreeper (''Certhia familiaris''), the wood warbler (''Phylloscopus sibilatrix''), the

greenish warbler The greenish warbler (''Phylloscopus trochiloides'') is a widespread leaf warbler with a breeding range in northeastern Europe, and temperate to subtropical continental Asia. This warbler is strongly migratory and winters in India. It is not un ...

(''Phylloscopus trochiloides'') and the goldcrest (''Regulus regulus'').

References

{{reflist Rivers of Finland Landforms of North Savo Tourist attractions in North Savo Landforms of North Karelia Tourist attractions in North Karelia Natura 2000 in Finland Juuka Kaavi