Keitele Canal
Keitele Canal is water route in Central Finland. It is about 45 km long. The canal consists of six lakes and five self-service locks.[1]
The canal connects two biggest lakes in Central Finland, Lake Päijänne and Lake Keitele,[2] thus forming a water route of altogether ca. 400 km from the City of Lahti in the southern end to the municipality of Pielavesi in the North.
History[edit]
The canal was first proposed at the end of the 19th century. Concrete plans were made in 1962[3][4] and again in 1981. Finally the canal was built in 1990-1993 as part of the Finnish-Soviet trade.[5] The Soviet Union owed Finland and paid its debt by building the locks. The project cost 245M Finnish marks.[6]
Originally the canal was intended for the benefit of the wood industry in the region.[7] However, the timber rafting ended in 2002. Since then the canal has been used by private and cruise boats only.
Tourism[edit]
There are several companies offering canal and lake cruises in the area,[8][9] and in some areas there are boat and canoe rentals available. Good navigation skill is required as the waters in Central Finland are rocky.
At Vaajakoski Lock there is a restaurant, an art gallery and a swimming beach. At Kuusa Lock there is also accommodation and a theatre. Near the Kapeenkoski Lock are fireplaces, lean-tos and hiking paths in the Kapeenniemi recreational area. The Paatela Lock: has a cafe and cruises.
Locks[edit]
The locks on the canal are designed to accept vessels of a maximum draw of 2.4m, a maximum length of 110m and a maximum width of 11.8m. The locks are self-service locks, and are open from May to September (part-time or by order in October). They can also be controlled remotely.[10]
Locks from south to north:
- Vaajakoski: length 250m, height difference 2,50-2.65m, mast height 5.5m
- Kuhankoski: length 750m, height difference 4-4.10m, mast height 3.5m
- Kuusa: length 350m, height difference 3.90-4.10m, mast height 3.5m
- Kapeenkoski: length 300m, height difference 2.70-3m, mast height 3.5m
- Paatela: length 500 m, height difference 7.40-7.85m, mast height 3.5m
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Standardization of Ships and Inland Waterways for River/sea Navigation. PIANC. 1996. pp. 25–. ISBN 978-2-87223-074-7.
- ^ Great Britain. Foreign Office. Historical Section (1920). Handbooks Prepared Under the Direction of the Historical Section of the Foreign Office: Poland and Finland, no. 43-48. H.M. Stationery Office. p. 67.
- ^ Finlands Flottareföreningen (1964). Arsbok. p. 60.
- ^ Kansallis-Osake-Pankki (1961). Economic Review. p. 65.
- ^ Heidrun Mollenkopf (1 January 2004). Ageing and Outdoor Mobility: A European Study. IOS Press. pp. 36–. ISBN 978-1-58603-401-6.
- ^ Paul Harding; Jennifer Brewer (2003). Finland. Lonely Planet. pp. 147–. ISBN 978-1-74059-076-1.
- ^ A survey of transportation in Finland: main report: annexes. 1965. pp. V–18.
- ^ Andy Symington; Carolyn Bain; Cristian Bonetto; Mark Elliott; Anthony Ham; Becky Ohlsen; Fran Parnell; Simon Richmond (1 March 2012). Lonely Planet Scandinavia. Lonely Planet. pp. 229–. ISBN 978-1-74220-678-3.
- ^ Andy Symington; George Dunford (2009). Finland. Lonely Planet. pp. 150–. ISBN 978-1-74104-771-4.
- ^ The Waterways Journal. D. T. Wright. 2000. p. 34.
External links[edit]
- Myllykylä Turkka: Suomen kanavien historia. Helsinki 1991.
- http://portal.liikennevirasto.fi/sivu/www/f/liikenneverkko/vesivaylat_kanavat/kanavat/kymijoen_vesisto#.VSPfoTWvWBs Archived 2015-09-30 at the Wayback Machine
- https://web.archive.org/web/20110712092007/http://portal.liikennevirasto.fi/sivu/www/e/transport_network/nautical_charts/editions/inland