LEMMENJOKI Nature has always been one of the most popular attractions in Finland and the Lemmenjoki National Park is no exception. The most impressive and also the most comfortable way to travel through the park is by boat as the scenery is, in the main, totally natural and thus has few marked paths. Vast pine forests form part of the natural scenery in Lemmenjoki and in the southern sections of the park, birch trees and spruces are part of its indigenous flora. For many years today's park was the sole domain of the Sami, Scandinavia's original inhabitants, and was used by them as a traditional hunting ground and also as a grazing land for their reindeer. Archaeological discoveries revealed that the Sami survived by hunting as well as trading in reindeer, much as they do today. The park is covered with snow for seven months of the year. It is then that the temperature falls below freezing point and on average is between minus 8 and minus 18 degrees! As the largest national park in Europe, the Lemmenjoki Nature Reserve is unique. With its enormous and unspoiled areas of wilderness this remarkable park highlights the captivating beauty of Scandinavia's natural landscape.