Lieksa

A short experience post on my trip to Lieksa.

The best time to explore places, towns and cities in Finland is clearly spring until autumn. My visit in the middle of September, was a cloudy and rainy day. Luckily, not too rainy for being able to walk around and explore.

About Lieksa

Founded in 1973, the region has an interesting history. The former Karelian village named Lieksa, at the beginning of the 16th century, was controlled and run by the Russians until it went over to the Swedes at the end of the century. In 1653 it was renamed to Brahea because of Finland’s Governor General Per Brahe. It was destroyed by the end of the 17th century and found its nowadays shape in 1973.

The town of Lieksa is hardly larger populated than Nurmes. It has around 11,000 inhabitants.

Lieksa is located South-East of Nurmes with a distance of around 54 km and a distance of 95 km to Joensuu.
A regional train (Nurmes-Joensuu) goes twice a day to Lieksa.

Fun Fact: For people from Nurmes, Lieksa is the closest destination for shopping at Lidl.

Recommendations

* Pielisen Museo, is an open-air museum of buildings and former life from Lieksa region, including Paateri museum (wooden sculptures) around 30 km away from the Pielisen Museo.
* Lutheran Church
* Library of Lieksa
* Bird Watching Tower

Sightseeing:

* All around Lieksa you can see memorials, sculptures, paintings and arts, just keep your eyes open

Nature:

* Ruuna Outdoor Centre
* Koli National Park
* Patvinsuo National Park

More ideas

Tripadvisor
Lieksa.fi
Visitkarelia.fi

To be honest, Lieksa is not a touristic centre to spend a lot of time at. But is is a nice town offering a couple more shops and a nice atmosphere outside Nurmes. BUT! Going by car offers you many more opportunities to see the stunning nature sight of Lieksa region.