Savonlinna rises out of the water in the middle of Finland's Lake Saimaa, a town of just over twenty-seven thousand built across islands and narrow straits, with the great stone castle of Olavinlinna holding the centre. The fortress was founded in 1475 by Erik Axelsson Tott, a Swedish-Finnish knight, to guard the eastern border against Novgorod and Russia, and it has been bashed about by wars ever since. Today it hosts the Savonlinna Opera Festival each July, when thousands of people sit in the courtyard to hear arias echo off medieval walls. It is one of the odder pleasures of the Nordic summer.
The landscape here is lakes and more lakes, with forested islands, eskers and thin ridges, all left behind by the retreating ice sheet. Saimaa has its own population of ringed seals, one of the rarest in the world, and in the long Finnish summer light the water seems to glow late into the night. Locals eat vendace, small fried muikku, and a sweet pastry called lörtsy, filled with meat or jam, is a Savonlinna speciality you can try at a lakeside kiosk.
As for riding, the roads here are quiet, smooth and relaxed. The famous Punkaharju ridge road to the east runs along a narrow esker with water on both sides, lined with tall pines, and it feels like riding along the top of a wall. Corners are gentle, speeds are enforced strictly, and the main hazards are elk and reindeer at dusk, plus the occasional lorry carrying timber. Kerimäki, about twenty kilometres east, has a huge wooden church, said to be the largest of its kind in the world, whose scale seems out of proportion to the village.
Savonlinna itself has all the services you would need. Fuel stations are easy to find, the market square by the harbour has coffee and pastries, and there are plenty of spots for a longer lunch. In summer the town is busy, particularly during the opera weeks, so book accommodation ahead. The best times to ride are June to August, and mornings are cool and calm. In September the birch leaves turn yellow, and the roads empty.