Our luck with Finnish summer weather ran out the day we planned to visit the wooden church in Petajavesi. It was pouring when we got into our rental car, and we almost decided to skip the 1.5-hour drive north from Tampere. But you have to show stamina when collecting WHS, so off we went!

The church turned out to be very conveniently located next to the big road between Keuruu and Jyvaskala. You can't miss it, because it's rather large and has a romantic setting next to lake Päijänne. The exterior is not unlike the Urnes Stave Church that I visited a few years ago. Both are wonderful buildings in a spectacular natural environment, so I wouldn't prefer one above the other.

We arrived at 10 on Sunday morning and received a friendly welcome. A ceremony in front of about 20 locals had just started. A solemn protestant service it was. That gave us time to glance at the sturdy wooden interior design of this church. We didn't stay too long however and quickly headed to the other side of the street for a warm cappuccino in the gas station annex bar/restaurant.

My second visit (in 2013) fortunately was in much better weather. I was surprised by the quality of the church, it really is eye-catching when you walk to it. I now had the chance to have a better look at the church's interior, with its wooden pulpit as the shining star. The colourful carvings depicting the apostles and angels have a somewhat naive expression.

The site has become a popular tourist attraction for sure. I arrived at the opening hour of 10 a.m., and I had to share space already with a busload full of American students and some other individual travellers. There's an entrance fee charged: 5 EUR.

 

After Petäjävesi I drove on to look for some more "Wooden Churches of Central Finland". I visited two other very pretty 18th century examples: the Old Church of Keuruu and the Pihlajavesi Wilderness Church.