Outdoor Exercise

Two people are skiing past a lodge

Oulu offers a large amount of free-to-use exercise and leisure activity possibilities for independent exercisers. Some popular activities include fitness tracks, beaches, and ball game fields in the summers, and ski tracks, ice rinks, and ice swimming in the winters. 

There are dozens of sport centres and fields around the city. The fitness and ski track network is wide. There are multiple ice rinks; some of them free-to-use, and some need to be booked. There are official city-managed beaches and a lot of other exercise places for a multitude of sports.

Oulu is known for its cyclists. There are 900 kilometers of cycle lanes in Oulu, that is 4 metres per citizen. For lovers of nature, there are nature paths, rest areas, fishing spots, and excellent boating possibilities. Oulu is currently constructing a cross-country network for cross-country cyclists, hikers, and trail runners. 

Cycling

Beaches & Winter Swimming

Jogging, Cross-Country Skiing, & Hiking

Trails for cross-country skiing and hiking

Oulu has an extensive network of jogging tracks and cross-country skiing trails. In the summer, the jogging tracks throughout the city are used by joggers and walkers alike. In the winter, cross-country trails are laid for skiers.

Information on cross-country skiing trail maintenance is available via the maintenance monitoring system (in Finnish). When the box next to the name of the trail is grey, the trail is not suitable for skiing. A blue box indicates that the trail is in good condition.


Tar Trail in the Oulu River Valley

The Tar Trail is a trail featuring different types of landscape suitable for hiking in the summer and skiing in the winter.

The trail starts in Sankivaara in Oulu, runs through Muhos and Utajärvi, and ends in the hills of Rokua. Total length of the skiing trail is 94 km and that of the hiking trail 100 km.

There are lean-tos and places where you can build a fire on the way. There is also an overnight cabin for hikers in Kallioselkä. The trail is marked with orange guideposts. The municipalities along the trail are responsible for upkeep and maintenance.

Tar Trail info map (the map includes instructions in English as well).
 

Snowmobile trails in the Oulu region

The network of snowmobile trails in the Oulu River Valley covers the municipalities of Oulu, Utajärvi, Muhos, Tyrnävä, and Kempele. A group of local snowmobile associations has been responsible for winter maintenance since the year 2000. The group members comprise five Oulu River Valley municipalities. They also collaborate with the local group in Pudasjärvi.

Total length of the trail network is about 278 km.

Snowmobile trails (retkikartta.fi, In Finnish)

retkikartta web service is maintained by Metsähallitus (Natural Heritage Services)

Sport Centres, Fields, Ice Halls & Ice Rinks