Mikkeli

2.4 h of paddling. Short stage on purpose: today the clock on land rules, not the one on the water. Count the 1.1 km detour from the beach back to the track. If you are catching a train or a shower, work backwards from the time, not forwards from the start.

310 m after setting off, the bistro's jetty: 0.67 km of paddling from the track and ZERO walking — you tie up at the door —, i.e. 1.34 km there and back, a good half hour. Order at leisure: today there is time to spare. 213 m on foot, the Kyyhkylän kartano (32-room hotel, lakeside sauna, Ravintola Armas with kotiruokaa on weekdays), and 662 m away the Mikkeli line stop. ⚠ UNCONFIRMED: Rantakyyhky advertises itself as a SUMMER café and no source publishes when it closes; its website does not respond from home. One call to 044 020 3320 covers the bistro, Armas and the hotel — make it before you leave, not here.

Threshold between Kyyhkylänselkä and Annilanselkä: three islands that break the fetch and serve as a course reference. Real shelter if the wind blows.

Urban edge of the ringed seal's range: marginal presence, but the duty not to disturb applies all year. ≥200 m, steady course. It is your last chance to see one.

The trip's last stretch of open water. MEASURED with strict mask and effective fetch between km 74.9 and 78.4: maximum 1.2 km, from the S. Genuinely low exposure, but with wind keep close to the shore it is BLOWING FROM, windward: there the water is flat. After that it is urban shelter to the finish.

Shore laavu ~470 m from the track, E bank, 2.7 km from the finish. In LIPAS it belongs to the forestry college and is NOT listed as free to use; the neighbouring Salosaari laavu has a track with a barrier and key. It is good for getting out of the water and waiting — if you arrive with hours to spare for the train, this is a better place to wait than the ramp —, not for sleeping without asking.

VERY narrow neck (~10 m of water) through which you enter Savilahti. Nothing is crossed here: you PASS, one at a time. Look and listen before entering, go through in one go keeping to starboard and don't stop inside. In your favour, MEASURED: from here to the finish it is a 5 km/h zone with jet skis banned, so whatever comes, comes slowly. Past the bridge you are in the town.

Former parsonage at the water's edge (starboard), 774 m from the ramp: café and shop, from 14-Sep to 16-Nov Tue-Sat 10-16 and SUNDAY AND MONDAY CLOSED (lounas 11-15). Before it, 100 m from the water, the Kirkonvarkaus café (km 77.1) and RAVINTOLA GREENERI (km 78.9, 0.2 km round trip, Mon-Fri 11-14 · Sat 11-16 · Sun 12-16). In the background the Naisvuori observation tower (1911-12), 709 m from the finish: ⚠ ITS CAFÉ CLOSES ON 31 AUGUST — the tower stays, the café doesn't.

TRAIN: station 205 m from the ramp, 5 a day to Helsinki — the flexible terminal of the trip, which is why it is at the end. SHOWER: Naisvuoren uimahalli, Mon-Thu 14:15-20:00 and Fri 13:30-20:00, with early-morning swims Mon/Wed/Fri 06:00-08:15 (perfect before the 10:03 train). ⚠ SATURDAY CLOSED until 1 October and SUNDAY CLOSED: if you arrive at the weekend, there is no shower. Supermarket (S-market Stella / K-Supermarket) and pharmacy 5-10 min on foot.

Harbour ramp, Laiturikatu 4. 80.5 km from Savitaipale by packraft, solo: you carried round Kärnäkoski, crossed Yövesi, went through the two 1877 channels and saw Astuvansalmi. Onnittelut. And here is the beauty of doing it in this direction: EVERYTHING is within 800 m — station 205 m, Naisvuori lookout 709 m, Kenkävero 774 m, Päämajamuseo 799 m.

Seven stages, 80.5 km, one day less than the 2018 route because the Toijola peninsula is crossed through the inside. You held out against the wind on open water and respected the seal. Kiitos.