Day 1-3 Oulu to Kussamo
Nearly two year since our last trip and after some mixed success in Lapland we decided on a return trip to try and find some bits we missed out on during our last visit. We decided to revisit some areas from our last trip and also take in a few new areas. The first new area to explore with Oulu. This was where we were going to start our trip. We flew from London Heathrow to Helsinki and after a short stop off and the most expensive Burger King we caught a connecting flight to Oulu. Of course we enjoyed our complimentary Blueberry juice on both flights.
We arrived in Oulu late afternoon and after picking up the hire car from the airport we were off for our first stop which was a former Timber yard pool on the in Oulu. The car we hired this year was a Nissan Quashi which was perfect for our party of 3 and all our luggage. It was an automatic which I always find useful when driving abroad. Car hire isn't cheap in Scandinavia so be prepared to brake the bank.
Our trip wheels
We arrived at the first planned stop which is meant to be a reliable stop for one of Finland rarest breeding birds the Terek Sandpiper. Its said 1-2 pairs breed in the Oulu area so we knew our chances of connecting were small. We arrived at the site which looked like it had recently been developed with a new building appearing next to the small pond these birds breed by. The pond a former timber pond also looked a lot smaller than I expected and we didn't hold out much hope of finding anything on this tiny patch of water. A few swallows flew past and a White Wagtail was seen on the surrounding fence. There was also plenty of Redwings and Fieldfares singing in the nearby trees. A Wood Sandpiper was in and out of the reeds but nothing else of note was seen or heard. I have seen numerous pictures of the Tereks on the nearby street lights but unfortunately we saw nothing, and to be honest we weren't sure if we were in the right spot.
Terek Sandpiper nest site, Oulu, Finland, June 2025
We had seen a small car park 100m up the road which looked over the bay we parked here and watched numerous Common Terns and Black-headed Gull flying around. Adrian and Ricky took a short walk to the back of the Timber ponds and it wasn't long before they were heading back with news that a Terek Sandpiper was resting on some rocks. I gathered my camera gear and headed over. Boom there it was a Terek Sandpiper in all its glory asleep on some rocks. In Finland this bird is right on the edge of its breeding range and its said only a few pairs breed here. I worry that with the development in the area the few pairs breeding here won't be here for much longer. We only saw the one bird here today which on closer inspection was rung. Im unsure if this was rung here or elsewhere. Also in the area was a Wheatear and a very noisy pair of Oystercatcher.
Terek Sandpiper, Oulu, June 2025
Terek Sandpiper, Oulu, June 2025
Terek Sandpiper, Oulu, June 2025
Terek Sandpiper nest site, Oulu, Finland, June 2025
After a few sat nav difficulties we eventually found our accommodation for the night which was the Best Western Apollo hotel. The rooms were clean and tidy and even had a sauna in each room. The only downside was the wifi wasn't strong enough to get a decent internet connection to watch the Bristol v Bath Premiership rugby playoff semi final game. Attached to the hotel was apparently Finlands first kairokei bar. We went in for beer which was probably the worst and most expensive beer I have ever had. I think the water from the timber ponds would have tasted better. After a full days travel we took an early night ready for a few long days ahead.
Saturday 7th June 2025
The following morning I planned to take in the Oulu Parkrun. A Parkrun is a free, weekly timed 5Km (3.1 - mile) running event that's places in parks and open spaces around the world. It is open to walkers, joggers, runners, and volunteers of all ages and abilities. As an avid Parkrunner I couldn't resist the temptation of doing the most northerly Parkrun in the world. It was situated in the Pokkinen park which looked good for a spot of birding. Adrian and Ricky although tempted by the Parkrun decided to have a look around the park instead. It was a beautiful location and supposedly a good spot for Rosefinch. Speaking to one of the volunteers I found out that this Parkrun only gets cancelled if the temp drops below -15 can't imagine many UK Parkruns operating at this temperature. I did a short warm up before the main event and saw a pair of Slavonian Grebe on a small lake (these ended up being the only ones of the trip), I also sawplenty of Redwings and Fieldfares some had fledged chicks.
Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025 - the lake the Slav Grebes were nesting on
Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
I got a nice mention before the start of the run as they always like to call out any Parkrun tourists. I wasn't the only person from the UK another young lady had come over to take in this Parkrun. I completed the run a little slower than I hoped in 22min 33 but loved it. One of my favourite parkruns to date. I managed to tick a few birds on the run round including, Swallows, Swifts, Martins, Mallard, Tuffed Duck, RB Mergansers, Whooper Swan, Wigeon, BH Gull, and Arctic tern. We also saw a Tree Sparrow on the walk back to the hotel.
Pokkinen Parkrun, Oulu, June 2025
Adrian and Ricky had had a good thrash around Pokkinen Park but hadn't found any Rosefinches but had managed to find over 20 active Fieldfare nests. One was positioned en route back to our hotel and was at a height I could climb to. A nice C6 and a good start to the day.
Fieldfare, Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
Fieldfare, Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
Fieldfare, Pokkinen Park, Oulu, June 2025
After a quick shower back at the hotel we were off to our next destination which was Kussamo. We had a few sites to check out here before moving north for the waders. We had hoped to stumble across any of the Owl species that appear in the area but weren't prepared to pay a small fortune to hire guides for the day. Plus we like to find our own stuff and not have it handed on a plate. One day I might go back and pay to the see the Owls but still plenty of time to find our own. We couldn't leave Oulu without taking a picture first of the dodgy signs and establishments around our hotel.
The drive to Kussamo was uneventful and didn't come across any Owls we did stop a few times at small lakes to check out the nest boxes that appear all over Finland. Last time we had some good success with these with x2 occupied Smew nests. First box this year was occupied and this time with another new species a Goldeneye. We also had a Greenshank here a check of the surrounding woods didn't produce anything.
Goldeneye lake, Pintamo, Finland, June 2025
Goldeneye, Pintamo, Finland, June 2025
Goldeneye, Pintamo, Finland, June 2025
Goldeneye, Pintamo, Finland, June 2025
First stop in Kussamo was an area our friend Frank had told us to visit a great area for breeding Little Gull and also a chance of Red-necked Grebe. We parked up and headed to a nearby hide to survey the area. Plenty of calling Little Gulls and Black-headed Gulls around. Also a stunning breeding plumage Spotted Redshank a bird that escaped us on our last trip. It was a beauty but too far away for photos. The gulls were all nesting on the marshy area of the lake and very vocal even more so when a Peregrine went through. A few other ducks were on the lake including, Pintail, Teal and Common Scoter. There was also as expected a nesting Red-necked Grebe. We had a blow up dingy to access the lake and to try and photography some of the nests here. Both Little Gull and Red-necked Grebe would have been new nest for all of us but sadly it was far too windy to safely get out to these. The lake was pretty big and if we got it wrong we could have ended up being blown out into this huge body of water. We decided to maybe try again tomorrow as we weren't staying to far away. So we headed of to check in to our digs for the next 2 night.
Little Gull, Red-necked Grebe nesting site, Kussamo, Finland June 2025
We were staying in Ruka which during the winter is a ski resort. It was a good base as it was near to an area we wanted to visit to see another of Finlands rarest breeding birds the Red-flanked Bluetail. We also had a good chance of Siberian Jay here which would be a lifer for all of us. Our accommodation was simple but did the job surrounded by woodland and of course plenty of calling Willow Warblers. We took a walk around the area but didn't see or hear to much as it was no pretty late in the evening. Cuckooo, Snipe and Blackcap were heard. Over the next day we had pair of Redstarts visiting the garden area which must have been nesting nearby.
Ruka accommodation, Ruka Finland, June 2025
The following morning we were up early for a woodland drive to Konttainen we took the long way round to take in some quiet roads on the chance of seeing some Grouse. Sadly we failed with the Grouse but had some great views of Tree Pipit, Crossbill, Cuckoo and Brambling. We arrived at Konttainen and parked up we checked out the feeders first of all and has some great views of several Northern Bullfinch.
Northern Bullfinch, Konttainen bird feeders, Finland, June 2025
Northern Bullfinch, Konttainen bird feeders, Finland, June 2025
Also here were Siskin, Redpoll, Bramblings, Willow Tits and Red Squirrels. No Siberian Jays were heard or seen we left some bread on the picnic tables to hopefully bring in the Jays. Konttainen has a 2km route marked as a bird trail and this is where we hoped to see the Red-flanked Bluetails. It's a 2km uphill walk which was silently apart from the occasional Goldcrest calling. At the top we had great views across the area. You can see for miles and it's a sea of Millions and Millions of trees, 100s of lakes and the odd ski slope. No sign of any Red-flanked Bluetails. Still a beautiful walk and well worth the effort.
Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
We had a good thrash around but apart from the Redwings, Brambling's and Willow Warblers we heard nothing unusual. We didn't have to much time as we wanted to spend some time around Kussamo looking for Little and Rustic Buntings. We started our decent when I heard something a little different to the Redwings we had heard around the top but it was distant and difficult to work out what it was. I headed a bit further back up the hill when I heard it again!!! Boom a calling Red-flanked Bluetail. We were now joined by a birder for Belgium on the same quest but the bird had stopped calling. We waited for several minutes before it started calling again so I decided to walk through the woods to get a location on it. It sounded a lot closer than it actually was and it took me a fair few minutes to locate it. When I did it was sat out on a tree right at the top again. I was alone and tried to whistle for the others to join I stayed put and fired off a few record shots as I didn't want to disturb it so the others could see it. It wasn't long before we were all watching this incredibly rare Finnish breeding bird. It didn't stay for long and soon disappeared down the hill but we all left happy. Sadly no world beating photos were taken but was an awesome experience.
Red-flanked Bluetail, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Red-flanked Bluetail, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Red-flanked Bluetail, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
When we arrived back at the car the bread was all gone and yet there was still no sign of the Siberian Jays. A Cuckoo was now regularly calling in the nearby woods and we were joined by 2 minibuses of American birders on a naturetrek tour. They asked if we had seen the 2 crowd favourites here which we politely responded to. We cheekily asked if they had seen any Owls to which they responded with a resounding yes. Sadly they wouldn't disclose any locations which was fair enough. They tried tape luring the Cuckoo which failed when it flew over their heads and they all missed it, which the 3 of us found quite funny!! They tried for the Sib Jays with meaty sausages but this also failed. One other nice find here was evidence of the difference in spring times we came across a small puddle which had some frogspawn in. Something we are more use to seeing in March not June.
Frogspawn, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
We left the area without a new tick but we had plans for the afternoon. We headed back to Kussamo to check out a site for Rustic Bunting. Sadly the weather was now against us and it didn't stop raining for a fair few hours. We spend numerous hours in a wet woodland looking for Rustic or Little Buntings and sadly failed we had brief sightings but couldn't tie anything down. Plenty of Redwings, Willow Warblers the occasional Reed Bunting and a White-tailed Eagle was about all we saw. We left the site and headed back to the Red-nedked Grebe site. Sadly still too windy to use the dingy but we did have a stunning male Smew drop in for a few minutes. We had walked another location close to here and again failed to turn anything up apart from a distant Whooper Swan sat on its nest.
Whooper Swan, Kussamo, Finland, June 2025
We tried another area which was a winter ski track that followed a lake. We had great views of feeding Little Gulls and Black headed gulls hawking over the water. There was another distant Whooper Swan sat on its nest and a few ducks on around mainly Goldeneye and Tuffed Ducks. There was plenty of bird life along the track with Singing Brambling's, Willow Warblers, Redwings, Fieldfare, Redstarts, Pied Flycatchers and even a Spotted Flycatcher.
Brambling, Kussamo, Finland, June 2025
We left the track and headed into a damp wooded area it wasn't long before Adrain come across a Redwings nest at the foot of a tree. The parents were very vocal so after a quick pic we moved on further into the woods. I followed a Brambling through the woods and as I had tracked it through the tops of the trees a bird cam up at my feet. It was a male Capercaillie and it certainly made me jump as it took off through the trees. Adrain and Ricky missed it so we pushed towards where I saw it disappear but sadly it wasn't seen again. Whilst looking for the Capercaillie we flushed a male Willow Ptarmigan which was great to see up close. We flushed another one later on as well when crossed the road to check out another similar area.
Redwing nest, Kussamo, Finland, June 2025
Redwing nest, Kussamo, Finland, June 2025
Willow Ptarmigan, Kussamo, Finland, June 2025
We crossed over the road so start the walk back to the car it seemed a lot quieter this side and apart from the Willow Ptarmigan we didn't see much else. There was a small clearing into another lake I caught a brief view of a Marsh Harrier. There was also a few duck nest boxes which we checked and got lucky with one of them with another Goldeneye nest.
Goldeneye nest, Kussamo, Finland, June 2025
It still hadn't stopped raining and so we decided to cut our losses and head back to the car and head back to our digs for the night. The following morning we were up early again and we headed back to the Siberian Jay site for one last try. No sign on arrival so Adrian deployed the bread again. Ricky and I checked out the feeders and it wasn't long before Adrain was calling us over as the Jays had arrived. Bosh my first lifer of the trip a pair of stunning Siberian Jays we had 2 brief visits before they disappeared into the woods never to be seen again. The light was poor so most pictures weren't great but I managed a couple of acceptable ones. We stayed for a while and were entertained by some Red Squirrels and a Willow Tit but were pressed for time so we had to move on as we had a few hours journey across the Arctic Circle to the bogs of Northern Finland.
Siberian Jay, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Siberian Jay, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Willow Tit, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Red Squirrel, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Red Squirrel, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Red Squirrel, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
Red Squirrel, Konttainen bird trail, Finland, June 2025
