Hundred years of nature conservation in Syöte – The environmental history of Syöte National Park

Nature conservation in Syöte began in the 1910s, when the summit of Iso-Syöte was protected from forestry use. The reason for this protection was not primarily ecological, but rather a concern that the forests on the summit would not regenerate after logging.

In 1926, the protection was extended to the surrounding areas of Iso-Syöte, which were designated as a primeval forest area by a decision of Metsähallitus (the Finnish Forest Administration).

The idea of establishing a national park in the Syöte area was first proposed by a national park committee in the 1970s. However, strong local opposition at the time prevented the plan from moving forward.

During the 1980s, the development of tourism and the opening of ski slopes began to shift public opinion in favor of conservation. As a result, the Iso-Syöte Hiking Area was established in 1985.

In the early 1990s, conservation efforts gained new momentum with the creation of the Jaaskamo Nature Reserve. In 1996, Metsähallitus convened the Syöte Working Group, which brought together municipalities, businesses, and regional stakeholders. The group’s work led to a proposal for the establishment of Syöte National Park.

Stone Age and Sámi settlements were based on hunting and gathering

Humans arrived in the Syöte region after the Ice Age, following game and fish. Early settlements were established mainly along waterways, which served as natural travel routes through the area.

In the beginning, the population was sparse. It has been estimated that 100 square kilometers of northern natural forest could support only about two hunter-gatherers. This means that the area now covered by Syöte National Park could have sustained around six people.

In the centuries following the beginning of the Common Era, a forest Sámi population and culture emerged in the Syöte region. Their way of life was based on diverse hunting, gathering, and fishing practices, as well as seasonal migration between different dwelling sites.

Many of today’s place names in Syöte, such as Kouva and Naamanka, are remnants of this Sámi settlement.

The Savonians brought the smoke of slash-and-burn cultivation with them

A major shift in settlement occurred in the Syöte region during the 16th century, when people from what is now the Savonia region began moving up the Iijoki River. The earlier Sámi population was either pushed northward or gradually assimilated into the new culture.

By the 1640s, the border between Sámi and Finnish settlement—known as the Lapland border—ran along the present-day boundary between Taivalkoski and Kuusamo. This means that the Syöte area had become predominantly Savonian within just over a century. From that point on, the number of farms and inhabitants steadily increased, although wars and crises often caused temporary declines.

One particularly harsh period was during the early 1700s, known as the Great Wrath, when Finland was occupied by Russian forces. Place names like Sotivaara (“War Hill”) and Sotisuo (“War Bog”) in Syöte date back to this era. According to oral tradition, residents executed Russian soldiers on Sotivaara in retaliation. A cross carved into a spruce tree is said to still mark the site.

With the arrival of new settlers and culture, land use also changed significantly. Unlike the Sámi, the Savonian culture was based not on hunting but on slash-and-burn agriculture. The spruce-covered hills of Syöte, safe from frost, were well suited for this practice.

In Syöte, a specific method called huhtakaski was used—slash-and-burn cultivation developed especially for spruce forests. This method gave its name to the month of huhtikuu (April), when the trees were felled.

The process was slow: after falling, the trees were left to dry over the summer. The following summer, they were burned for the first time, and any unburned wood was burned again in the third summer. Only then was the field sown with rye, which was harvested in the autumn of the fourth year. After harvest, the field became a pasture for livestock and gradually turned back into a forest. A new burn could be made on the same site only after about 60 years.

Because huhtakaski yielded only one harvest, new areas had to be cleared constantly. In the early stages, this led to the depletion of previously untouched old-growth spruce forests. As the pastures turned into deciduous forests, they could be burned and cultivated multiple times, which reduced pressure on the remaining forests.

The legacy of slash-and-burn agriculture is still visible in Syöte’s forests today. If you come across a particularly deciduous-dominated forest on a hill, it’s likely that a burn once took place there.

Metsähallitus extinguished the smoke

All things come to an end—and so did the era of free slash-and-burn cultivation. The winds of change began to blow in the 19th century, when the land consolidation reform (isojako) reached the Pudasjärvi region. Under this system, each farm was allocated its own fields, replacing the previously shared common lands. The surplus lands were claimed by the state.

The state began to take more active control over its lands. Forests, which had previously been used with relative freedom and little concern, suddenly gained new importance. By the mid-1800s, mainland Europe had largely depleted its own forests, giving rise to a new phenomenon: the trees of Syöte now held monetary value, not just practical use.

This shift marked the end of the slash-and-burn economy. The state’s new “green gold” was no longer to be burned for one-time fields—it was to be preserved and cultivated more sustainably.

In 1859, Metsähallitus (the Finnish Forest Administration) was established to oversee state forests. In the Syöte region, this was a challenging task, as many crofts had been established on state land, and their livelihoods depended almost entirely on slash-and-burn farming. The practice was curbed through bans and by imposing field-clearing obligations on crofters. In practice, this led to a culture of secret, illegal burning.

Ultimately, it was not banned but the rise of forestry that offered more effective alternatives. Around the turn of the 20th century, forestry became a labor-intensive industry that drew crofters away from their fields to logging camps and timber floating operations.

Clear-cutting was not yet practiced during these early logging operations. Only the largest and most valuable pine trees were harvested, typically from easily accessible areas. The spruce forests growing on the steep hillsides far from floatable rivers were harder to exploit. Logging was also done in winter, when spruces could be burdened with up to 3,000 kilograms of snow, making it extremely difficult to fell with a saw and axe.

The legacy of this forestry era is still visible in Syöte’s nature today. Old spruce forests remain, but very old pine stands are rare. Naturally, spruce is more common than pine in Syöte, which further emphasized this difference.

Signs of past forestry are easy to spot while hiking in Syöte. The wilderness huts at Toraslampi, Lomavaara, and the rental hut at Isoniemi are all former logging camp saunas. Nearby—and elsewhere in the terrain—you can still find the ruins of the original logging cabins.

Massive, tall, saw-off stumps also tell the story of past logging. They reveal just how enormous the trees in Syöte were over a hundred years ago. A keen observer might even spot an old marking from a timber axe on the trunk of an ancient pine that, for some reason, was never fell.

Cattle herding gave rise to meadow culture

The ban on slash-and-burn cultivation had another consequence: it increased livestock farming. In many crofts, clearing enough fields to produce sufficient grain for survival proved to be an impossible task. Instead of focusing on grain cultivation, people began to keep more livestock and grow fodder for them.

In practice, this meant converting mires into meadows. While there were also dryland meadows, the largest hayfields were located on wetlands. The main challenge was the moss that naturally grows on mires, which suppresses grass growth. To improve hay production, people began to flood the mires by damming streams. This drowned the moss and enhanced grass growth.

Another method was to lower the water levels of lakes and ponds to create more meadowland. For example, the water level of Lake Vaara-Salminen in the Salmitunturi area was lowered in the early 1900s to make room for a hay meadow.

In earlier times, hay meadows were freely available for use, but in the 19th century, farms and crofts were granted established rights to specific mire meadows. These meadows could be located far from the actual homestead, which meant that people often stayed there for weeks during the haymaking season in July. During this time, they lived in special meadow saunas built for the purpose—one of which is featured in the emblem of Syöte National Park. An authentic restored meadow sauna and the traditional meadow culture can be explored along the Rytivaara Trail.

Another structure left behind by meadow culture is the hay barn. Remnants of these barns can still be seen throughout the national park. They were used to store hay harvested from the meadows until winter, when it was transported by horse to feed the livestock.

The mechanization of agriculture and forestry brought an end to the old logging camps and meadow culture in Syöte during the decades following World War II. Forest crofts and logging cabins fell silent, becoming part of the cultural heritage that tells the story of the historical relationship between people and nature. Preserving this heritage is also one of the missions of Syöte National Park.