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Hidden nature gem in the rural country side

This place is a hidden gem in the Askola country side: about 20 big and small giant's kettles in... read more

Reviewed 14 October 2018
l5antti
,
Helsinki, Finland
Glacial Potholes in Porvoonjoki Valley

Just a short drive from Porvoo, in Askola, there's 20 giant's kettles scattered around a steep... read more

Reviewed 10 September 2018
antilsa
,
Helsinki, Finland
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Reviewed 14 October 2018

This place is a hidden gem in the Askola country side: about 20 big and small giant's kettles in one place. There's a small parking lot just by the road with proper sign. Winding path leads to forest, up to steep cliff there potholes are located. View is also nice from up. Terrain is quite hard to move especially when it is wet and slippery. Stair and rails are good though.

Potholes are just impressive and there are lot of them in small area. There is also some info signs but area is almost unspoilt forest nature. You can take short trail around the rock but this was quite boring. There are some qeocaches also.

This is must see free attraction and worth longer trip also.

Date of experience: September 2018
Thank l5antti
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 11 September 2018

Just a short drive from Porvoo, in Askola, there's 20 giant's kettles scattered around a steep hill. Biggest one is 10 meters deep. From the parking place, it's few hundred steps up a granite hill and through forest. Great place to see what glaciers did around 10,000 years ago.

From Porvoo take road 55 to Askola (to Mäntsälä). At Monninkylä turn to road 1635 and continue for few kilometres.

Date of experience: September 2018
1  Thank antilsa
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 15 June 2018

A nice way to see some Finnish nature. A well maintained area with plenty of information boards explaining the history.

Date of experience: June 2018
2  Thank LindaD3676
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 26 September 2016

A pothole (or a giant's kettle) is a cauldron-like cavity in a bedrock. It was formed during the last Ice Age over 10,000 years ago.Melting masses of eddying water made the loose rocks on the river bed roll and revolve.

The Askola pothole area is situated in the village of Korttia, on the hilly banks of the River Porvoonjoki. The pothole area is clearly marked with traffic signs on the Askola-Pukkila road (road number 1635). The area is easily achievable by bus, too. The route bus Helsinki-Porvoo-Lahti goes by the adjacent parking area usually several times in a day. The area is always open for visitors (24/7). However, there isn't special winter maintenance and so there may be lot of snow there in the winter. You can put the entrance fee (2 euros in 2016) independently in the strongbox.

The Askola pothole area consists of 20 named potholes which are situated close together. The largest pothole is called Jättiläisen Kuhnepytty (The Giant's Bath Tub) is 10.3 meters in depth and 4.2 meters in width. There are only a couple of potholes in the whole world which are larger than this one. The Askola area of 20 potholes is rare even globally.

The walking distance from the parking area to the pothole area is about 500 meters. There are stairs on the way and so it is impossible to use wheelchairs or strollers. There is also an extra scenic route of about 300 meters round the rock. On that route the beautiful scene opens to the valley of the River Porvoonjoki. This is one of the nationally valuable landscapes in Finland.

Our family loved this place. It was almost magical and it was very relaxing to walk in the forest and watch these interesting potholes. We liked the extra scenic route, too.

Date of experience: September 2016
4  Thank JariJK
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed 28 July 2016

In Finnish we call "Hiidenkirnu". I don´t know what is it in English. But, it is the water and small or big rock made hole to the bedrock. It took thousands of the years that those holes are created by the nature. Place, is unique. It might be little bit difficult to go there if you don´t have a car. It is located in the countryside. There is good signs all over in the place. It took from the parking place to walk there about 15 min - 20 min through the Finnish forest.

Date of experience: July 2016
1  Thank Jorex
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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