After a few days of self-catering at the fairly grim supermarkets of Ruka, we began to ask ourselves where the local produce was. As a ski resort, and a base for setting off on the Karhunkierros Trail, it just seemed like the kind of town that had to have a farmer’s market of some sort.

Then, walking into town from our cabin, we stumbled right across it, the Landemarket, a couple of buildings down from the gas station/supermarket, and a highlight of our trip to Ruka.  The young and very friendly owners had just opened the doors three weeks earlier, and were still labeling bottles and building up the assortment, but what was on hand was already exciting.

The home-made wild blueberry jam is excellent – not too sweet, and you could literally taste the forest in it.  I wish we’d bought more.  The selection also includes mustards and other sauces made in-house, as well as smoked fish, reindeer, and a cheese made from the milk of a rare local breed of cow that can cope with winters on the Arctic Circle, and has recently been brought back from the brink of extinction.  Ask to see the photos.  While browsing, you can also have a cup of locally roasted coffee, and baked treats.