Hundreds gather to see Hepoköngäs waterfall lit up

Hundreds of people visited the Hepoköngäs waterfall in Puolanka on Saturday evening to see it illuminated with coloured lights, lanterns and torches, Yle reports. The unusually high volume of water made the natural waterfall especially striking.

The lights also illuminated the surrounding forest and rock faces, while hundreds of lanterns and torches lined the path leading to the waterfall. Organisers estimated that about 500 people attended.

Putting on the event deep in the forest required several generators and hundreds of metres of extension cables. Equipment was transported to the site by all-terrain vehicle, and a local camera club helped plan the lighting.

Puolanka municipality’s event coordinator, Sami Haapalainen, said the waterfall usually has only a small trickle in November. Organisers had also hoped for snow, which they thought would add light to the landscape, but there was none.

Hepoköngäs is one of Finland’s highest natural waterfalls. Its height is given as either 18 or 24 metres, depending on the source and measurement method. It is in a nature reserve about 15 kilometres from central Puolanka.

The event had no music performances or other scheduled programme. Organisers wanted visitors to pause and enjoy the illuminated natural landscape. Free buses ran from Puolanka market square because the narrow roads and small parking areas could not accommodate visitors’ cars. The event, organised by Puolanka municipality and its partners, was part of Oulu’s cultural capital year programme.