Kellon Kraaseli (officially Kraaseli) is an island in the Finnish sector of the
Bay of Bothnia
The Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia (; ) is the northernmost part of the Gulf of Bothnia, which is in turn the northern part of the Baltic Sea. The land holding the bay is still rising after the weight of ice-age glaciers has been removed, and wit ...
.
Description
Kellon Kraaseli is located off shore from the village of the district in
Oulu.
The name is derived from the Swedish word ''gråsäl'', meaning "gray seals".
Kellon Kraaseli is a low island, with its highest point only a few meters above sea level. The coastline has a total length of about .
The island is almost entirely covered by
deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, ...
vegetation.
It has extensive riparian areas which are often covered by high sea water.
The island is used only for summer cottages and harbor protection.
Kellon Kraaseli was used for common pasturage for cows and sheep until the start of the 1980s.
Today the island is separated from
Rapakari island towards the mainland by an artificial channel built as a recreational waterway with a nominal depth of .
The sea area north of the island is known as
Kellonlahti, and the sea area to the east off the coast of
Pateniemi is called the
Kuivasmeri.
This stretch of water is fairly sheltered, and is used as a common anchorage for fishing boats during stormy weather.
Gallery
File:Kraaseli_in_Kello.JPG, Kraaseli in winter
File:Kuivasmeri in Winter.JPG, Kuivasmeri from Kraaseli, looking towards the east
File:Sudenväylä, Haukipudas.jpg, Sudenväylä (also known as Kraaselin kaivanto) boating channel, Haukipudas, Finland. Seen from a vessel approaching from Kuivasmeri bay towards Kellonlahti bay. The island on the left (south) is Kellon Kraaseli, on the island on the right (north) is Rapakari
References
{{reflist
Finnish islands in the Baltic
Geography of Oulu
Landforms of North Ostrobothnia