Turku Saturday morning walk (30.08.2025)

© Helwig Hauser

© Helwig Hauser

Note that this track has been created from memory, i.e., it was not recorded automatically.

Trip Summary

I had a few morning hours on this Saturday before heading back to Bergen, which I wished to use for a walk to see a bit of Turku. I started by crossing the Aura river at Kirjastosilta, heading to the Samppalinnanvuori vantage point for a first view across the city. From there, my next goal was the hill-top Luolavuori, hoping for some additional views from up there. While stepping up there, I also looked at the enormous water tower not far from the hill-top. On my way down from Luolavuori, I then passed by an impressive boulder, right north of the water tower, that apparently a glacier left there a long time ago. My next goal was then to cross the Aura river using the small ferry Föri, but when I got there, I learned that it was not operated, unfortunately. I thus decided to walk around (via Martinsilta). On the other side of Aura, I then stepped up to another small hill, passing by hotel Kakola (which, if I'm not mistaken, was a prison earlier). A bit further to the southwest, I then walked through a rather large complex at Kakola, which also hosts a spa (clearly noticable by the odor of chlorin! :-)). From the top of Kakola Funicular I could then watch it being operated towards the lower levels in the vicinity of Föri. I then headed further in southwestern direction with the goal to look at Åbo slott. While first getting a tiny bit stuck on the top of a cliff with no immediate way down, I quickly found a detour to continue my walk. Before eventually getting to Åbo slott, I passed by Marine Forum with quite a few interesting exhibits. Since I got closer to the time when I thought that I would have to head back, I thus just made a short visit to Åbo slott, before starting my walk back along the Aura river. This route back, on the northwestern side of Aura, was then very nice, offering a number of additional views. It did not takk to long, before I arrived at the train station to catch my train to the airport in Helsinki. Altogether a nice walk through some parts of Turku, which clearly gave my some impression of the town.

Photos

Selected photos are available as Google photo album.

Useful Resources

See also the related FB-page Hiking around Bergen, Norway.