Lahdenpokhya is a city in Ladoga Karelia on the shore of the Yakimvar
Bay of Lake Ladoga, two dozen kilometers from the border with Finland.
The administrative center of the Lakhdenpokhsky district of the republic
and was once a large base of the Finnish and Soviet Ladoga flotillas.
The city of Lakhdenpokhya has been known since the 17th century
under the name Sieklahti. In 1924 it was given its current name.
Lahdenpohja consists of 3 parts: Lahdenpohja itself, Yakkima and
Huuhkanmäki, which until recently were separate settlements. At the same
time, Jakkima (Finnish: Jaakkima) until recently was larger than its
coastal neighbor: the village was the center of a Lutheran parish, in
1851 a church was built there, which still retains the status of one of
the largest in Russia.
The city's main sources of income are
tourism and logging. The city has a timber industry enterprise, a
logging station, a sawmill and a plywood mill, as well as a large number
of guest houses and hotel complexes. Since 2003, the Aalto distillery
began operating in the city on the territory of a former dairy plant,
the most famous product of which is Karelian balsam, made from local
herbs. There is also a bakery.
Most of the buildings of the Finnish era, and indeed interesting
objects in Lakhdenpohja, are concentrated along Lenin Street, which
connects the Yakkima area with one of the piers on the Yakkimvaara Bay
and was the “core” of urban development before the war. In general,
having walked along this street, you can say that you have seen the city
and move on, although, of course, the attractions are not limited to
this.
1 Kirch in Yakkima, st. Lenina, 56A. The church was built
according to the design of the Finnish architect of Swedish origin Carl
Ludwig Engel, consecrated in 1851 and was one of the largest in all of
Finland. In 1977, the church burned down almost to the ground; since
then, only brick walls in the form of a huge cross have remained on the
hill above the road. In the fall of 2021, the building is slowly being
restored by enthusiasts who organized a “city of angels” there - that’s
what they called the arrangement of several silhouettes depicting angels
around the church. Various events are also held within the walls of the
church.
2 Post station building, St. Lenina, 19. A wooden building
built in the Finnish national style, one of the oldest in the city. The
appearance is slightly spoiled by signs of the Russian Post and shops.
3 House of Culture of Lakhdenpokh district, st. Busalova, 6 (from the
intersection of Lenin St. and Busalov St., a concrete staircase leads up
the mountain, ending at the recreation center). A monument of late
modernism, built in 1982 on a hill overlooking the bay. It has a design
that is uncharacteristic for the outback - the massive canopy above the
entrance is decorated with a bas-relief, the style leaning towards
brutalism. In 2002 it stopped working and was sold, then abandoned and
looted. Now you can visit the building freely, but you should be
careful: in some places the plaster in the building is crumbling and, in
general, walking through abandoned houses is not very safe.
4 Restaurant building with a hotel, st. Lenin 13. A monument to Finnish
functionalism, built in the late 1930s. Since 1958, the neat building
with laconic forms has housed a children's cardiological sanatorium. A
major renovation was carried out in 2020-2021.
5 Cooperative store
building, st. Lenin 17. Another monument to functionalism of the late
1930s. Unlike its neighbor, it has retained its function - today the
Pyaterochka store is located here. Underwent a major renovation in the
2010s.
6 Kalevala Alley, Krasnoarmeyskaya st. (between Lenin St. and
Ladoga Flotilla St.). In 2019, a woodcarving competition was held on
Krasnoarmeyskaya Street Boulevard. The theme of the competition was the
Karelian national epic “Kalevala”, the contestants created sculptures of
various characters. After the festival, they were all donated to the
city and remained on the boulevard.
7 Train station Yakkima, Leningradskoe sh., 90. Wooden building,
built in 1893.
8 Yakkima Locomotive Depot, Leningradskoye Highway,
78A. Brick roundhouse for 3 locomotives with a water tower.
9 Koivumäki Manor.
10 Museum complex “Mount Owl”, Lakhdenpokhya,
st. Suvorova, 8. 500 rubles. Educational and entertainment complex with
a military-historical focus. The central and most interesting part is
the Finnish bunker, built inside a rock mass in 1930-1940. Well
camouflaged on the ground and possessing a high degree of autonomy, it
was intended to house a command post for Finnish troops here. In 1944,
the territory along with the bunker was transferred to the Soviet Union.
In the 2010s, the bunker was transferred to private ownership; the new
owners restored all life support systems and organized a museum here.
The main "living" area of the bunker consists of two large rooms. The
first housed an exhibition dedicated to military conflicts with Finland:
historical information, maps, weapons and elements of military
equipment, mini-dioramas with reconstructions of various situations. The
second hall is more peaceful and contains a good collection of minerals
and information about the geological structure of Karelia. The price of
visiting the museum includes an excursion - a very lively and detailed
story about the history of the bunker, as well as the complex
relationship between the Russian Empire, and later the USSR, with
Finland. In addition, there is also an outdoor exhibition of equipment
with a small collection of tanks and artillery installations. As
additional entertainment, it is proposed to climb and take pictures with
equipment, shoot at a shooting range (the work schedule requires
clarification), and eat in the “army” canteen (reviews are extremely
contradictory).
11 Rauhala Estate.
Sports complex "Dynamo" named after. V. G. Chuikina, Leningradskoe highway
By train
The Kuznechnoye-Suoyarvi railway line runs near the city.
Passengers traveling to Lahdenpohja should get off at Huhojamäki
station, located in the village of Huuhkanmäki, or at Yakkima station,
in the Lahdenpohja district of the same name. Suburban trains on the
Kuznechnoye - Sortavala route and passenger trains on the St. Petersburg
- Kostomuksha route, passing through Sosnovo, Priozersk and Suoyarvi,
stop at the stations.
1 Yakkima station, Yakkima, Leningradskoe
highway. 90. ☎ +7 (81450) 22-2-02. Station with track development and a
historical wooden station in the national Finnish style, built in 1893.
On the other side of the tracks there is an abandoned circular
locomotive depot with a water tower, and after a little searching, you
can find a red-brick house on one of the summer cottages, which was once
part of the station buildings.
2 Stop point Huhojamäki.
By bus
From St. Petersburg: from the 2 (Moscow-Petrogradskaya) Ozerki
line, the bus departs at 14.00, arriving in Lakhdenpokhya at 18.30.
There is also a daily bus service to Petrozavodsk via Sortavala and
Pitkyaranta.
By car
The A121 highway from St. Petersburg
through Sortavala to Pryazha passes through Lakhdenpokhya from north to
south, where it connects with the federal highway P21 Kola. The route
was mostly built from scratch in the 2000-2010s; between Lahdenpokhya
and Lyaskelya the road surface was also updated, but the road has many
sharp turns, ascents and descents, so it is necessary to adhere to the
speed limit, especially in case of rain or ice.
3 Gas station
“Lukoil”, Yakkima, Leningradskoe highway. 58a. ☎ +7 (81450) 2-26-26. The
only gas station in the city, there is a small store. It is located a
little away from the road, closer to the railway tracks.
On the
ship
There are no regular ship flights from Lakhdenpokhya. Private
flights to Valaam and walks along the Ladoga skerries are carried out.
4 Old Port. Boat rental is available.
5 New port.
The city has 3 bus routes connecting three main points of the city: Jakkima Station, Center and Huuhkanmäki Station.
Cheap
1 Shop-cafe “Yakkima”, Leningradskoye Shosse, 49A. ☎ +7
(921) 452-19-11. Mon–Thu 11:00–20:00, Fri–Sat 11:00–01:00. Reminds me of
a dining room. Good feedback.
Average cost
2 Cafe
“Runduchok”, st. Lenina, 2A. 10:00–22:00.
3 Summer cafe,
Huuhkanmaki, museum complex “Owl Mountain”.
In the city
1 Hotel complex “Yakkimvaara”, Naberezhnaya st., 2. ☎
+7 (81450) 2-24-55; +7 (81450) 2-27-41; +7 (921) 013-72-03. Several
cottages on the shore of Jakkimvaara Bay.
2 Guest house “Eco”,
Naberezhnaya st., 1A. ☎ +7 (964) 377-25-87.
3 Recreation center
“Float”. ☎ +7 (911) 404-94-99; +7 (921) 622-60-88.
4 Hotel
“Annikka”, st. Lenina, 2. ☎ +7 (81450) 2-27-41; +7 (921) 013-72-03.
5 Hotel “Karlen”, Embankment st., 2a. ☎ +7 (81450) 2-21-35; +7 (81450)
2-28-76.
6 Holiday Home, Polevaya st., 1. ☎ +7 (921) 052-84-96.
Guest House.
7 Hotel “Chaika”, Sovetskaya st., 8. ☎ +7 (81450)
2-22-34.
8 Guest house “Ladoga-Marina” , Zavodskaya st., 24. ☎ +7
(921) 465-37-36.
9 Hotel complex “Yakkimaa”, st. Malinovsky, 2A. ☎
+7 (931) 981-43-45; +7 (921) 453-49-46. Hotel complex in Huuhkanmäki, on
the shore of Lake Paikjärvi.
10 Cottage “Filina Gora”, Tikhaya st.,
13. ☎ +7 (921) 586-01-51.