Pallas Fell

About Pallas Fell

One of Finland's oldest national parks, established in 1938, expanded in 2005 to include the adjacent Yllästunturi fell. A meteorological station near the summit has operated since 1948, contributing to Arctic climate research. The Pallas-Hetta trail route has Sámi herding origins.

Overview Pallas Fell — Pallastunturi — is the dominant peak of the Pallas-Yllästunturi National Park in northwestern Finnish Lapland, a chain of connected fells rising to 807 metres and providing the kind of open treeline landscape that defines the Finnish Arctic imagination. The national park is one of Finland's oldest and most visited, covering 1,020 square kilometres of fell, birch forest, and wetland. The Pallas-Hetta trail — a 55-kilometre route from the fell to the village of Hetta — is one of Finland's most celebrated walking routes.

The Story Behind It The Pallas-Ounastunturi National Park was established in 1938, making it Finland's third oldest national park. The fell chain runs roughly north-south, and the traditional trail connecting Pallas to Hetta follows a route used by Sámi herders for centuries, traversing fell tops and valley floors through some of Lapland's most varied terrain. The Pallas-Yllästunturi park was created by merging the original Pallas park with the adjacent Yllästunturi fell area in 2005. A meteorological research station has operated near the Pallas summit since 1948, conducting long-term atmospheric monitoring that has contributed to understanding of Arctic climate change.

What You'll Experience The Pallas-Hetta trail takes four to five days at a moderate pace, with wilderness huts at intervals allowing hiking without a tent. The open fell sections above the tree line provide long sightlines across the Lapland landscape; the valley sections pass through birch forest and wetland that hold significant birdlife in summer. The ruska autumn color on the fells in September — orange dwarf birch, red lingonberry, yellow lichen — is among the most intense in Finland. In winter, the national park is a cross-country skiing area with marked routes and hut-to-hut skiing on well-prepared tracks.

Getting There Kittilä Airport is the nearest gateway, served by domestic flights from Helsinki and seasonal international flights. The fell base area is about 45 kilometres from Kittilä. In winter, bus connections from Kittilä reach the park; a rental car is more practical for summer trail access from multiple points.

The Experience

Walk the four-to-five-day Pallas-Hetta trail through fell tops and birch valleys using wilderness huts, watch the ruska autumn color transform the landscape in September, and use the winter cross-country ski network for hut-to-hut skiing in the Nordic tradition.

Why It Matters

One of Finland's oldest and most ecologically significant national parks, with a fell-top walking trail that represents the Finnish long-distance hiking tradition at its most authentic.

Why Visit

The Pallas-Hetta trail covers terrain that changes continuously — open fell plateau, valley birch forest, wetland — in a way that keeps a multi-day walk genuinely varied. The ruska timing in September makes it one of the visually finest long walks in Scandinavia.