UTSJOKI POSTAL TRAIL

The postal trail running through Kenesvaara is part of a route from Inari to Utsjoki that has been known since the 18th century, and it runs through the nationally valuable landscape area of Utsjokilaakso. The approximately six kilometer museum road section of the trail starts in Kenestupa and ends at the northern end of Kenesjärvi. The foundation of the path and a bridge structure are still visible.

The trail served as an official postal transportation route from the late 1800s until the 1950s. Along the route, there were state-built post cabins intended as overnight stops for the mail carriers, and Kenestupa was one of them. On October 1, 1888, Lapland received four new post stations, one of which was Utsjoki. The mail was transported from Kaamanen to Utsjoki on foot, by boat, horseback, reindeer, or skiing. The 103-kilometer-long route was initially traveled every other week, and later, with the help of three mail carriers, three times a week in both directions. Boats were available for the water sections. The weight of the mailbag, according to the agreed tariff, was 18kg, and the mail carrier received separate compensation for any additional weight. Legend has it that the first bricks of the Utsjoki municipal building were carried by the mail carriers, perhaps two or three at a time. In the summer of 1940, the path was renovated for cycling. The road was completed to Syysjärvi in 1938 and to Utsjoki in 1958, when regular postal service began on the route. From the beginning, other travelers have also been able to stay overnight in the hut, following the unwritten law regarding the old Lapland desert hut: "when it's full, those who came first must give way, so that the last ones can fit inside".

NAME HISTORY

Kenestupa is a direct translation of the hut's original Sámi name Cannesstophu. The name probably originated from a mountain elf appearing in Sámi mythology, who was originally thought to live in a cave on the shore of Lake Kenesjärvi (Canesjavri). Generally, the Guardian of the Canes Mountain has been regarded as a benevolent earthy being who, when angered, may have caused various harms to those who provoked him. Today's travelers are also expected to respect this old belief with their behavior and to behave with great respect for nature in all their activities.