The Vanhankaupunginlahti bay area is a good or decent place almost any time of the year and at any time of the day. Winter time (nov-feb) is of course the quietest time, but even then you might want to search for woodpeckers (Lesser spotted, Black, White-backed) or overwintering owls in the forests. There are several bird feeders winter time too, so you can usually find a nice setting of overwintering passerines (tits, some thrushes, some finches) and Red squirrels at them. Northern gosehawks are found year around in the area.
The migration period starts usually around the end of February-beginning of March. The bay is often still frozen, but on the fields of Etu-Viikki you can start finding geese (Canada, Barnacle, Greater white-fronted, Bean, Greylag), Whooper swans, Lapwings and Sky larks. Sometimes also rarer species, like Snow buntings and Lapland longspurs, stay for a while.
Spring migration is at its best from middle of April to the beginning of July. This is when you may find some rarer predators or interesting waders visiting the bay area. Local ducks (Tufted, Northern shovelers etc.) and passerines (Wagtails, Common rosefinches...) arrive and start their breeding. Caspian terns do not breed in the bay, but they are very frequent visitors. In the beginning of July a lot of night singing passerines, like Thrush nightingales and Acrocephalus-warblers, arrive and start the choir in the reeds, alongside different rail-species. This is a good time for a nightly trip to the bay.
For waders the autumn migration starts around middle of July, but it continues all the way to the end of September. Autumn migrating waders are best found at the end of June-start of September. Other birds start their migration too, in late August-end of September it's possible to see e.g. Honey buzzards, Pallid harriers and other migrating predators. Later in Sept-Nov Rough-legged buzzards arrive and are quite often seen here.
The bay area is pretty much closed for civilian traffic, so the only means to move around there is by foot or by bike. Because of this you will probably need at least 2-3 hours, in order to have time to visit one of the towers and have some time to look around without a hurry. The area is large, so you can spend a whole day (or several!) if you wish to. It's possible to walk around the bay area within a day. The roads and paths are generally in good shape. During spring, autumn and winter there might be high water, which can make some of the wetter areas harder to pass through. In winter watch out for ice accumulation on the roads and paths, and be careful on skiing routes. Note that certain areas have limitations on where and when you are allowed to walk! During growth season (March-November) it's forbidden to walk on the fields and the wetland area (reeds, wet meadows), year around it's forbidden to walk outside the marked paths in the forest of Pornaistenniemi.
Some recommended routes might be in May-July take the nature path in Pornaistenniemi and then from there take the board walk to the Lammassaari island. Year around you can walk through the fields on the northern side to the bird watching towers in Keinumäki, Hakala and Purolahti (i.e. Keinumäen lintutorni, Hakalan lintutorni and Purolahden lintutorni). You can either return back same way or go all the way through to Herttoniemi metro station. This gives you a good overview of the different habitats in the area and you get the best views over the bay area. The southern end of the bay, with Fastholma and Kivinokka, are also fine for year around trips. They might be best enjoyed though in autumn and winter, when the possibility for rearer woodpeckers and owls increases.
The Vanhankaupunginlahti bay area is a good or decent place almost any time of the year and at any time of the day. Winter time (nov-feb) is of course the quietest time, but even then you might want to search for woodpeckers (Lesser spotted, Black, White-backed) or overwintering owls in the forests. There are several bird feeders winter time too, so you can usually find a nice setting of overwintering passerines (tits, some thrushes, some finches) and Red squirrels at them.
them. Northern gosehawks are found year around in the area.
The migration period starts usually around the end of February-beginning of March. The bay is often still frozen, but on the fields of Etu-Viikki you can start finding geese (Canada, Barnacle, Greater white-fronted, Bean, Greylag), Whooper swans, Lapwings and Sky larks. Sometimes also rarer species, like Snow buntings and Lapland longspurs, stay for a while.
Spring migration is at its best from middle of April to the beginning of July. This is when you may find some rarer predators or interesting waders visiting the bay area. Local ducks (Tufted, Northern shovelers etc.) and passerines (Wagtails, Common rosefinches...) arrive and start their breeding. Caspian terns do not breed in the bay, but they are very frequent visitors. In the beginning of July a lot of night singing passerines, like Thrush nightingales and Acrocephalus-warblers, arrive and start the choir in the reeds, alongside different rail-species. This is a good time for a nightly trip to the bay.
For waders the autumn migration starts around middle of July, but it continues all the way to the end of September. Autumn migrating waders are best found at the end of June-start of September. Other birds start their migration too, in late August-end of September it's possible to see e.g. Honey buzzards, Pallid harriers and other migrating predators. Later in Sept-Nov Rough-legged buzzards arrive and are quite often seen here.
The bay area is pretty much closed for civilian traffic, so the only means to move around there is by foot or by bike. Because of this you will probably need at least 2-3 hours, in order to have time to visit one of the towers and have some time to look around without a hurry. The area is large, so you can spend a whole day (or several!) if you wish to. It's possible to walk around the bay area within a day. The roads and paths are generally in good shape. During spring, autumn and winter there might be high water, which can make some of the wetter areas harder to pass through. In winter watch out for ice accumulation on the roads and paths, and be careful on skiing routes. Note that certain areas have limitations on where and when you are allowed to walk! During growth season (March-November) it's forbidden to walk on the fields and the wetland area (reeds, wet meadows), year around it's forbidden to walk outside the marked paths in the forest of Pornaistenniemi.
Some recommended routes might be in May-July take the nature path in Pornaistenniemi and then from there take the board walk to the Lammassaari island. Year around you can walk through the fields on the northern side to the bird watching towers in Keinumäki, Hakala and Purolahti (i.e. Keinumäen lintutorni, Hakalan lintutorni and Purolahden lintutorni). You can either return back same way or go all the way through to Herttoniemi metro station. This gives you a good overview of the different habitats in the area and you get the best views over the bay area. The southern end of the bay, with Fastholma and Kivinokka, are also fine for year around trips. They might be best enjoyed though in autumn and winter, when the possibility for rearer woodpeckers and owls increases.
The Vanhankaupunginlahti bay area is a good or decent place almost any time of the year and at any time of the day. Winter time (nov-feb) is of course the quietest time, but even then you might want to search for woodpeckers (Lesser spotted, Black, White-backed) or overwintering owls in the forests. There are several bird feeders winter time too, so you can usually find a nice setting of overwintering passerines (tits, some thrushes, some finches) and Red squirrels at them.
The migration period starts usually around the end of February-beginning of March. The bay is often still frozen, but on the fields of Etu-Viikki you can start finding geese (Canada, Barnacle, Greater white-fronted, Bean, Greylag), Whooper swans, Lapwings and Sky larks. Sometimes also rarer species, like Snow buntings and Lapland longspurs, stay for a while.
Spring migration is at its best from middle of April to the beginning of July. This is when you may find some rarer predators or interesting waders visiting the bay area. Local ducks (Tufted, Northern shovelers etc.) and passerines (Wagtails, Common rosefinches...) arrive and start their breeding. Caspian terns do not breed in the bay, but they are very frequent visitors. In the beginning of July a lot of night singing passerines, like Thrush nightingales and Acrocephalus-warblers, arrive and start the choir in the reeds, alongside different rail-species. This is a good time for a nightly trip to the bay.
For waders the autumn migration starts around middle of July, but it continues all the way to the end of September. Autumn migrating waders are best found at the end of June-start of September. Other birds start their migration too, in late August-end of September it's possible to see e.g. Honey buzzards, Pallid harriers and other migrating predators. Later in Sept-Nov Rough-legged buzzards arrive and are quite often seen here.
The bay area is pretty much closed for civilian traffic, so the only means to move around there is by foot or by bike. Because of this you will probably need at least 2-3 hours, in order to have time to visit one of the towers and have some time to look around without a hurry. The area is large, so you can spend a whole day (or several!) if you wish to. It's possible to walk around the bay area within a day. The roads and paths are generally in good shape. During spring, autumn and winter there might be high water, which can make some of the wetter areas harder to pass through. In winter watch out for ice accumulation on the roads and paths, and be careful on skiing routes. Note that certain areas have limitations on where and when you are allowed to walk! During growth season (March-November) it's forbidden to walk on the fields and the wetland area (reeds, wet meadows), year around it's forbidden to walk outside the marked paths in the forest of Pornaistenniemi.
Some recommended routes might be in May-July take the nature path in Pornaistenniemi and then from there take the board walk to the Lammassaari island. Year around you can walk through the fields on the northern side to the bird watching towers in Keinumäki, Hakala and Purolahti (i.e. Keinumäen lintutorni, Hakalan lintutorni and Purolahden lintutorni). You can either return back same way or go all the way through to Herttoniemi metro station. This gives you a good overview of the different habitats in the area and you get the best views over the bay area. The southern end of the bay, with Fastholma and Kivinokka, are also fine for year around trips. They might be best enjoyed though in autumn and winter, when the possibility for rearer woodpeckers and owls increases.
The Vanhankaupunginlahti bay area is a good or decent place almost any time of the year and at any time of the day. Winter time (nov-feb) is of course the quietest time, but even then you might want to search for woodpeckers (Lesser spotted, Black, White-backed) or overwintering owls in the forests. There are several bird feeders winter time too, so you can usually find a nice setting of overwintering passerines (tits, some thrushes, some finches) and Red squirrels at them.
The migration period starts usually around the end of February-beginning of March. The bay is often still frozen, but on the fields of Etu-Viikki you can start finding geese (Canada, Barnacle, Greater white-fronted, Bean, Greylag) Whooper Greylag), Whooper swans, Lapwings and Sky larks. Sometimes also rarer species, like Snow buntings and Lapland longspurs, stay for a while.
Spring migration is at its best from middle of April to the beginning of July. This is when you may find some rarer predators or interesting waders visiting the bay area. Local ducks (Tufted, Northern shovelers etc.) and passerines (Wagtails, Common rosefinches...) arrive and start their breeding. Caspian terns do not breed in the bay, but they are very frequent visitors. In the beginning of July a lot of night singing passerines, like Thrush nightingales and Acrocephalus-warblers, arrive and start the choir in the reeds, alongside different rail-species. This is a good time for a nightly trip to the bay.
For waders the autumn migration starts around middle of July, but it continues all the way to the end of September. Autumn migrating waders are best found at the end of June-start of September. Other birds start their migration too, in late August-end of September it's possible to see e.g. Honey buzzards, Pallid harriers and other migrating predators. Later in Sept-Nov Rough-legged buzzards arrive and are quite often seen here.
The bay area is pretty much closed for civilian traffic, so the only means to move around there is by foot or by bike. Because of this you will probably need at least 2-3 hours, in order to have time to visit one of the towers and have some time to look around without a hurry. The area is large, so you can spend a whole day (or several!) if you wish to. It's possible to walk around the bay area within a day. The roads and paths are generally in good shape. During spring, autumn and winter there might be high water, which can make some of the wetter areas harder to pass through. In winter watch out for ice accumulation on the roads and paths, and be careful on skiing routes. Note that certain areas have limitations on where and when you are allowed to walk! During growth season (March-November) it's forbidden to walk on the fields and the wetland area (reeds, wet meadows), year around it's forbidden to walk outside the marked paths in the forest of Pornaistenniemi.
Some recommended routes might be in May-July take the nature path in Pornaistenniemi and then from there take the board walk to the Lammassaari island. Year around you can walk through the fields on the northern side to the bird watching towers in Keinumäki, Hakala and Purolahti (i.e. Keinumäen lintutorni, Hakalan lintutorni and Purolahden lintutorni). This gives you a good overview of the different habitats in the area and you get the best views over the bay area. The southern end of the bay, with Fastholma and Kivinokka, are also fine for year around trips. They might be best enjoyed though in autumn and winter, when the possibility for rearer woodpeckers and owls increases.
The Vanhankaupunginlahti bay area is a good or decent place almost any time of the year and at any time of the day. Winter time (nov-feb) is of course the quietest time, but even then you might want to search for woodpeckers (Lesser spotted, Black, White-backed) or overwintering owls in the forests. There are several bird feeders winter time too, so you can usually find a nice setting of overwintering passerines (tits, some thrushes, some finches) and Red squirrels at them.
The migration period starts usually around the end of February-beginning of March. The bay is often still frozen, but on the fields of Etu-Viikki you can start finding geese (Canada, Barnacle, Greater white-fronted, Bean, Greylag) Whooper swans, Lapwings and Sky larks. Sometimes also rarer species, like Snow buntings and Lapland longspurs, stay for a while.
Spring migration is at its best from middle of April to the beginning of July. This is when you may find some rarer predators or interesting waders visiting the bay area. Local ducks (Tufted, Northern shovelers etc.) and passerines (Wagtails, Common rosefinches...) arrive and start their breeding. Caspian terns do not breed in the bay, but they are very frequent visitors. In the beginning of July a lot of night singing passerines, like Thrush nightingales and Acrocephalus-warblers, arrive and start the choir in the reeds, alongside different rail-species. This is a good time for a nightly trip to the bay.
For waders the autumn migration starts around middle of July, but it continues all the way to the end of September. Autumn migrating waders are best found at the end of June-start of September. Other birds start their migration too, in late August-end of September it's possible to see e.g. Honey buzzards, Pallid harriers and other migrating predators. Later in Sept-Nov Rough-legged buzzards arrive and are quite often seen here.
The bay area is pretty much closed for civilian traffic, so the only means to move around there is by foot or by bike. Because of this you will probably need at least 2-3 hours, in order to have time to visit one of the towers and have some time to look around without a hurry. The area is large, so you can spend a whole day (or several!) if you wish to. It's possible to walk around the bay area within a day. The roads and paths are generally in good shape. During spring, autumn and winter there might be high water, which can make some of the wetter areas harder to pass through. In winter watch out for ice accumulation on the roads and paths, and be careful on skiing routes. Note that certain areas have limitations on where and when you are allowed to walk! During growth season (March-November) it's forbidden to walk on the fields and the wetland area (reeds, wet meadows), year around it's forbidden to walk outside the marked paths in the forest of Pornaistenniemi.
Some recommended routes might be in May-July take the nature path in Pornaistenniemi and then from there take the board walk to the Lammassaari island. Year around you can walk through the fields on the northern side to the bird watching towers in Keinumäki, Hakala and Purolahti (i.e. Keinumäen lintutorni, Hakalan lintutorni and Purolahden lintutorni). This gives you a good overview of the different habitats in the area and you get the best views over the bay area. The southern end of the bay, with Fastholma and Kivinokka, are also fine for year around trips. They might be best enjoyed though in autumn and winter, when the possibility for rearer woodpeckers and owls increases.
