South by Cycle: Ring G

Ring G can be ridden as a slow ramble or a faster-paced overnighter or a long day ride. Here, a trail notes from a relaxedly paced weekeder.

Day 1, Vuosaari–Ängesböle campsite (36 km, elevation gain 670 m)

The trail starts at the eastern terminus of Finland’s only metro line in Vuosaari with a detour to the Uutela recreational area, which will slow down your pulse accelerated by the metropolitan area with its sea breeze and islets continuing all the way to the horizon. From there, the trail continues north literally on the edge of the city. In many places, you will have the angular concrete blocks of the suburbs on one side and spacious field landscapes on the other.

The trail zigzags between suburban green areas and through manor areas along gravel hiking trails to Kuusijärvi, the oasis of the capital region. After bathing in the smoke sauna and deep-cleansing guaranteed by the cooling forest lake, there are two alternative directions for those considering where to spend the night: under sheets in a hotel in Tikkurila or the Ängesböle camping area in the Sipoonkorpi National Park. The latter adds 13 km to the trail in both directions, but the reward is spending a night in a tent in the shade of a conserved forest.

Day 2, Ängesböle campsite–Hynkänlampi campsite (66 km, elevation gain 880 m)

The theme of the second day of cycling is largely water, now in a flowing form. From Kuusijärvi, the trail soon reaches the shore of the Keravanjoki River, after which you will follow the river downstream along smooth gravel roads to where the Vantaanjoki and Keravanjoki Rivers meet. From there starts a theoretical uphill trip upstream the Vantaanjoki River to Pitkäkoski and the Pitkäkoski hiking lodge. Overnight bikepackers will turn south to a trail across the Helsinki Central Park from here, while those with a two-nights-strategy will continue towards Espoo along the Route 2000. We are now following the last mentioned option.

When going deeper into the forest along hiking trails, the elevation gains increase and the hills become steeper: over a distance of a little over 30 kilometres, the elevation gain is up to 450 metres, which is a lot in Finland. Fortunately, the hills are short and there are also a couple of lean-tos offering opportunities for taking a break, if necessary. At the Luukki recreational area, there is a beach and Restaurant Laguna.

After the Luukki recreation area, there are two wet and technical single track sections, which are easy to go around via Nettaa and Pakankylä. The sections are marked on map for clarity. Recommended unless you don’t mind a little hike-a-biking and possibly wet feet!

If the charm of the coast does not lure the cyclist back to the coast metro line to the endpoint of the trail in Matinkylä, there are several accommodation options for the second night. Hotel options are available all the way from northern Espoo to the coast, depending on your pace and preferences. For those wishing to stay in nature for the night, the best experience will be offered by the Hynkänlampi campsite in the Pirttimäki recreational area.

Day 3, Hynkänlampi campsite–Matinkylä metro station (20 km, elevation gain 210 m)

The third day of cycling is a short but pleasant downhill ride from the Nuuksio Lake Uplands back to the coast and Matinkylä metro station, where Ring G ends. The rolling spruce and boreal forests of Pirttimäki escort the bikepacker from the Hynkänlampi ravine lake back to civilisation; the trail takes the smoke-smelling bikepacker inside Ring Road III next to American fast food delicacies and a Swedish furniture wonder. The Kasavuori nature conservation area and Espoo Central Park in particular offer the last doses of immaterial Finnish elixir of happiness before a short metro ride back to the centre of Helsinki.