Paltamo Biking Trails

This biking route starts from Paltamo and goes through Kirkonkylä, Melalahti, Hakasuo, Kivesjärvi, and Kivesvaara. Mainly rural landscapes.

Paltamo Melalahti, one of Kainuu's oldest settlements, and Vaarankylä and Kiehimävaara are nationally valuable landscape areas. The cycling route takes visitors through lush fields, pastures, and meadows, with the village of Melalahti and the nearby Lahtela house offering summer cafés.

The cycling route starts at the center of Paltamo and follows country gravel / dirt paths out to Leppikoski hydroelectric power plant. It offers country views but also a little industrial history. The path follows the Kiehimänjoki river. If you look at the map, you will see a spot called "Hóll Tallin ratsastuskenttä" just to the west of the power plant. You can ride Icelandic horses at this location.

Plan this link using the Autioniemi trail pages published by the Municipality of Paltamo and mirrored on Visit Kajaani for travellers heading into the Kajaani–Oulujärvi area(1)(2). The wider Autioniemen kävely- ja maastopyöräilyreitti was built in winter 2022–2023 with support from the ELY Centre’s agricultural fund and Oulujärvi Leader, reusing existing path beds and adding wooden arrow markers, pictorial boards, and blue ribbon markers along with parking and an information board at the trailhead(1)(2). Arctic Lakeland lists it among Paltamo’s varied nature routes between shorelines, esker landscapes, and spruce forests, pointing riders and hikers toward the same official descriptions(3). On our map this riding line is about 1.4 km point-to-point between the Autioniemi forest trail network and Kirkonkylän pururata, the parish-village ski-track corridor used for biking and walking in the snow-free season. It is the short connector the municipality illustrates as “Siirtymäreitti Autioniemestä kirkonkylän pururadalle” with a downloadable overview image linked from the Autioniemi page(1). From Autioniemi Parking you are on the corridor almost immediately; Autioniemen laavu sits off the wider walking and MTB loop a little farther along, useful if you combine the connector with the main Autioniemi circuit or follow the longer Kirkonkylän pururadan maastopyöräilyreitti once you reach the track zone(1). The municipality maintains the shared Autioniemi trails on weekdays in winter whenever snow allows, so expect a groomed or packed feeling on adjacent winter routes while this biking connector remains a narrow forest link rather than a lit stadium loop(1)(2). Ride at an easy pace, watch for walkers where the line approaches multi-use paths, and double-check Paltamo’s outdoor-service bulletins if you are connecting during spring thaw or active maintenance windows around the sports-field and ski-track hub(1).