For route facts, winter grooming as a ski track, and what you see at the mine, Metsähallitus publishes a compact Prospektori brochure. The Municipality of Inari summarises Saariselkä as a trail and gold-history gateway next to Urho Kekkonen National Park. Aarne Hagman’s walk report from September 2023 adds ground...
Metsähallitus – Prospektori trail brochure (PDF)+
Description
For route facts, winter grooming as a ski track, and what you see at the mine, Metsähallitus publishes a compact Prospektori brochure. The Municipality of Inari summarises Saariselkä as a trail and gold-history gateway next to Urho Kekkonen National Park. Aarne Hagman’s walk report from September 2023 adds grounded detail on forest character, easy grades, and gray jays at lunch. Lapponia Tours visitor notes place the mine relative to Laanila and Saariselkä village for anyone combining a short walk with the hut.
The trail on our map is about 7.8 km as a point-to-point line in the Saariselkä area, Inari, Lapland. Metsähallitus describes the full themed Prospektori route as about 9 km from the Saariselkä departure point or about 7.4 km from Laanila; treat our distance as the line length you see on the map, with official figures describing the standard staged layouts from those two trailheads. The corridor is classed as an easy thematic day route beside the national park: crushed-surfaced, mostly flat walking with modest height change, one short duckboarded wet patch, and room to walk side by side on much of the tread. In winter the same line is maintained as a ski trail.
Starting from Saariselkä parking, the first kilometres pass Aurora päivätupa - tapahtumatupa, Aurora tulentekopaikka, Kelo-ojan kota, and Karvaselän Kummituskämppä clustered near the trailhead—useful breaks before the path eases into forest. About a kilometre in, Mettabaari offers a café stop beside the line. Near the route midpoint you pass Jääseidan Curling Center, then the corridor reaches Prospektorin kaivoskämppä and Prospektorin Tulipaikka. The hut sits over the old Prospektori mine shaft; Metsähallitus notes a dry toilet and woodshed in the mine yard and invites you to peek into the shaft with an audio scene of historic work. Outdoor toilets are also available in the Aurora servicing area without needing to name each structure.
The same trailhead sector links onward to Saariselän maastopyöräilyreitit for cyclists and to Taajoslaavun kesäreitti for longer fell-country hiking in summer; Latu Välimaa-Vahtamapää follows the prepared ski line in the cold season. Read closure and national-park boundary rules on Luontoon.fi for Urho Kekkonen National Park before you set out.
Length & route
The trail is about 7.8 km on our map as one continuous line. Metsähallitus gives the classic staged distances as about 9 km from the Saariselkä starting gate and about 7.4 km from Laanila, with roughly 40 m of elevation gain on the full layout, an easy difficulty grade, crushed surfacing except for one duckboarded wet spot, and prepared grooming as a ski track in winter. Allow about three to four hours from Saariselkä or about two to three hours from Laanila when planning the full brochure version at an easy pace.
Getting there
Metsähallitus lists the official departure points as the Saariselkä starting gate or Laanila. On our map the line begins beside Saariselkä parking; use Saariselkä Parkkipaikka or Saariselkä Parkkipaikka 2 and follow signs toward the Prospektori corridor and Aurora services. Lapponia Tours notes the mine hut roughly one kilometre from Laanilan Savottakahvila and about five kilometres on foot from central Saariselkä if you treat the attraction as a there-and-back stroll.
Good to know
In winter expect shared ski use—give way to faster skiers and confirm track conditions on Luontoon.fi for Urho Kekkonen National Park. Summer visitors should keep dogs and campfires within the rules summarised on Luontoon.fi for Urho Kekkonen National Park. Independent walkers mention scattered geocaches along the forest leg.
History
The name comes from the Swedish mining company Aktiebolaget Prospektor, which assembled roughly 470 claims between Kaunispää and Kakslauttanen during the Lapland gold rush. The company drove roads, built structures, and sank the deepest shaft—the Lutto or Prospektori mine—in 1902. No payable gold appeared and operations stopped the same year. Metsähallitus ties the thematic trail to that episode and notes that the largest Finnish gold nugget on record, found in 1935 by Eevert Kiviniemi and weighing 392.9 grams, comes from this valley system; a replica is shown at Tankavaara Gold Museum.
Metsähallitus plans the route from either Saariselkä or Laanila; you may walk in either direction along the published corridor.
Route direction
National Park
Area
Recreation Area
Recreation Area
River
River
Winter Maintenance
Winter Maintenance
Marked Route
Route Signs
Open / Good Condition
Open / Good Condition
Metsähallitus – Prospektori trail brochure (PDF)
Activities allowed
Ski
Activity
Hike / Walk
Activity
Terrain & conditions
7.8 km
Distance
About 2–3 hours at an easy pace for the 7.8 km line on our map; Metsähallitus budgets roughly 3–4 hours from Saariselkä or 2–3 hours from Laanila for the full 9 km / 7.4 km brochure layouts.
Est. Time
Metsähallitus describes the tread as crushed aggregate, smooth and free of stones overall, with one boardwalk section through a wetland.
Our data was researched from Inari, and other trusted sources, in March 2026. Our route / place GPX data comes from Metsähallitus / Lipas, last updated March 2026. Always check their official website for safety-critical updates.
For route facts, winter grooming as a ski track, and what you see at the mine, Metsähallitus publishes a compact Prospektori brochure. The Municipality of Inari summarises Saariselkä as a trail and gold-history gateway next to Urho Kekkonen National Park. Aarne Hagman’s walk report from September 2023 adds ground...
Metsähallitus – Prospektori trail brochure (PDF)+
Description
For route facts, winter grooming as a ski track, and what you see at the mine, Metsähallitus publishes a compact Prospektori brochure. The Municipality of Inari summarises Saariselkä as a trail and gold-history gateway next to Urho Kekkonen National Park. Aarne Hagman’s walk report from September 2023 adds grounded detail on forest character, easy grades, and gray jays at lunch. Lapponia Tours visitor notes place the mine relative to Laanila and Saariselkä village for anyone combining a short walk with the hut.
The trail on our map is about 7.8 km as a point-to-point line in the Saariselkä area, Inari, Lapland. Metsähallitus describes the full themed Prospektori route as about 9 km from the Saariselkä departure point or about 7.4 km from Laanila; treat our distance as the line length you see on the map, with official figures describing the standard staged layouts from those two trailheads. The corridor is classed as an easy thematic day route beside the national park: crushed-surfaced, mostly flat walking with modest height change, one short duckboarded wet patch, and room to walk side by side on much of the tread. In winter the same line is maintained as a ski trail.
Starting from Saariselkä parking, the first kilometres pass Aurora päivätupa - tapahtumatupa, Aurora tulentekopaikka, Kelo-ojan kota, and Karvaselän Kummituskämppä clustered near the trailhead—useful breaks before the path eases into forest. About a kilometre in, Mettabaari offers a café stop beside the line. Near the route midpoint you pass Jääseidan Curling Center, then the corridor reaches Prospektorin kaivoskämppä and Prospektorin Tulipaikka. The hut sits over the old Prospektori mine shaft; Metsähallitus notes a dry toilet and woodshed in the mine yard and invites you to peek into the shaft with an audio scene of historic work. Outdoor toilets are also available in the Aurora servicing area without needing to name each structure.
The same trailhead sector links onward to Saariselän maastopyöräilyreitit for cyclists and to Taajoslaavun kesäreitti for longer fell-country hiking in summer; Latu Välimaa-Vahtamapää follows the prepared ski line in the cold season. Read closure and national-park boundary rules on Luontoon.fi for Urho Kekkonen National Park before you set out.
Length & route
The trail is about 7.8 km on our map as one continuous line. Metsähallitus gives the classic staged distances as about 9 km from the Saariselkä starting gate and about 7.4 km from Laanila, with roughly 40 m of elevation gain on the full layout, an easy difficulty grade, crushed surfacing except for one duckboarded wet spot, and prepared grooming as a ski track in winter. Allow about three to four hours from Saariselkä or about two to three hours from Laanila when planning the full brochure version at an easy pace.
Getting there
Metsähallitus lists the official departure points as the Saariselkä starting gate or Laanila. On our map the line begins beside Saariselkä parking; use Saariselkä Parkkipaikka or Saariselkä Parkkipaikka 2 and follow signs toward the Prospektori corridor and Aurora services. Lapponia Tours notes the mine hut roughly one kilometre from Laanilan Savottakahvila and about five kilometres on foot from central Saariselkä if you treat the attraction as a there-and-back stroll.
Good to know
In winter expect shared ski use—give way to faster skiers and confirm track conditions on Luontoon.fi for Urho Kekkonen National Park. Summer visitors should keep dogs and campfires within the rules summarised on Luontoon.fi for Urho Kekkonen National Park. Independent walkers mention scattered geocaches along the forest leg.
History
The name comes from the Swedish mining company Aktiebolaget Prospektor, which assembled roughly 470 claims between Kaunispää and Kakslauttanen during the Lapland gold rush. The company drove roads, built structures, and sank the deepest shaft—the Lutto or Prospektori mine—in 1902. No payable gold appeared and operations stopped the same year. Metsähallitus ties the thematic trail to that episode and notes that the largest Finnish gold nugget on record, found in 1935 by Eevert Kiviniemi and weighing 392.9 grams, comes from this valley system; a replica is shown at Tankavaara Gold Museum.
About 2–3 hours at an easy pace for the 7.8 km line on our map; Metsähallitus budgets roughly 3–4 hours from Saariselkä or 2–3 hours from Laanila for the full 9 km / 7.4 km brochure layouts.
Est. Time
Metsähallitus describes the tread as crushed aggregate, smooth and free of stones overall, with one boardwalk section through a wetland.
Our data was researched from Inari, and other trusted sources, in March 2026. Our route / place GPX data comes from Metsähallitus / Lipas, last updated March 2026. Always check their official website for safety-critical updates.