Vuotos reservoir, planned reservoir in Pelkosenniemi, Finland
The Vuotos reservoir is a planned but never built water storage project in Pelkosenniemi, in the Lapland region of northern Finland, covering an area of forests and peatlands. The terrain is flat and open, with slow-moving waterways, wide boggy expanses, and a sky that seems to go on without end.
Plans for a hydropower dam in the Vuotos area were first drawn up in the 1950s, as part of a broader effort to control flooding along the Kemijoki river. Finnish courts rejected the project in 2002 and again in 2019, ruling that it conflicted with national and European rules protecting wetland habitats.
The name Vuotos refers to the wider area of forests and peatlands that was at the center of one of Finland's longest environmental disputes. People from the surrounding villages still feel a strong connection to this land, which they fought to keep in its natural state.
The area is best reached by car, as there are no services on-site and the nearest towns are some distance away. Visitors should wear sturdy footwear, as the ground can be wet and boggy even in summer.
Despite its name, there is no actual body of water here: the land looks today much as it did before any plans were made. Walking through this area, most visitors do not realize they are standing in a place that spent over 50 years at the center of a legal and environmental dispute.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
