boreal wildlife centre

Stayed here for 2 nights in the main hide after visiting Martinselkonnen hoping for wolf or wolverine. Unlucky with both this time but the bear sightings were excellent. We didn't see as many as at MS and they didn't stay around as long but it somehow felt a more natural experience. The bears that turned up were more alert and wary as you would expect of a wild animal. Both centres were great but it is definitely worth visiting both if you can.

I stayed 3 nights in BWC in May 2014 and really enjoyed the experience. Coming from Martinselkonen where the bear experience is unbeatable anywhere else, the idea was to concentrate (in agreement with mother Nature) on other wildlife subjects. So our first night was in a hide to catch a glimpse of a capercaillie which is a very charismatic bird. The sightings we were able to get of this bird where really fabulous! The display started at 3AM and lasted until 8AM giving us a lot of great opportunities for photography. We were fortunate enough to sleep in a hide because it was very cold that night (-7°C) which -even unheated- is still better than sleeping in a tent. The only thing I have regretted was to have missed the opportunity to see the black grouse when they were fighting with other males. Next 2 nights we were in a small hide close to a plain / marsh. We saw 5 bears on the first night and only 2 (but 2 times) on the second night. But on that night, we were "compensated" by the great sighting of a white wolf. We were expecting wolverine but this is not a common sighting so this was already great (not mentioning a very nice black kite on the first night). Everybody was very nice with us at the center, the room OK although the bathroom a bit cold but nothing major. All in all BWC is one of the few places to go for great wildlife experiences and bear watching. Do not expect bear galore but many sightings are rather common on a single night. Wolves and wolverines are possible but this also depends of many factors and I thought Arctic Media to be better in that area (although it might just be a question of pure luck and that a single stay is probably then not enough to assess this properly).

We plan to stay initially for 3 nights in the hides. First night it was in a small hide at the main place. Then we stayed one night at the pond, then another night in forest. We finally decided to extend for two other nights at the main place.Hides are... hides. When you are used to stay whole nights in forest you will find it pretty comfortable. If you are not used to it you may find it tough.It doesn't always look natural, but there are plenty of opportunities to take good photos of bears, wolverines and wild tailed eagle in a natural environnment.I don't recommand the big hide. It looks more like a shooting place than a wild place in the middle of nowhere.Rooms were cleaned. Staff was friendly.

The aim of this trip was to photograph wolverines.We had booked the gorge hide over the internet but we were told nothing there, so were sent to the main hide. Although similar to the hide in Martinselkonen it is not good for wildlife photography, as you are not able to turn the big lense freely. The toilet was below standard,no sawdust, wipes to clean hands were dry; the smell at the end of the night was unbearable.The scenery is not natural looking, ropes , old gloves, breeze block. This hide is for bear viewing more than serious amateur photographers. We did see 8 bears, which most people in the hide were pleased about.The second night it was suggested that we try the pond hide as a wolverine had been seen in this area. A carcass was set by the pond in front of the hide, but although we saw a wolverine in the distance, on the other side of the pond it never came near us, nothing else all night, but that's wildlife. My main gripe is the state of the hide, rubbish had not been cleared by previous visitors, the stench of pee was unbearable as it was very hot. some kind of blue powder was all over the hide and was static, it was all over our clothes and worse over our very expensive cameras and lenses. We could not bring ourselves to eat or use the toilet tub for 14 hours.I also got bitten by something and the bites got infected very badly.I cannot comment on the accomodation as we were travelling in our motorhome.

This has it all (except lots of sleep)From the hide window -on an average night - we saw 7 bears close too , a female wolf rather more distant , black kites wheeling above and a hobby soaring and swooping Plus lots of other birds.It's only a hundred yards or so from Russia and a rich profusion of animals move across the border .The hide is very comfortable and has drinks and food and bunks etc. Long hours of daylight in the summer make it possible to watch throughout the night . And the bears come throughout the night.The guide is excellent and transport is great. It's not cheap but it's splendid value .And in a world where we hear of the disappearance of so much wildlife , here it is returning and flourishing Well done the Finnish government for imposing quotas on shooting . Now local people can make a living from tourists like us -and the predators flourish - and we had an amazing weekend Will be back Hope to see wolverine next time

One word to sum this place up, superb, The people , the food, the scenery, the wildlife were out of this world, a big thankyou to all concerned ,

Little sleep, but worth the effort. Lots of photos of bears, a fox and a golden eagle.

the people were great, the accomodation was great and the birds and wildlife were brilliant!i can't wait to go again, next time would go for longer and would go with my wife.i went with two mates and booked through naturetrek.

c'est une superbe destination , les chambres sont propres , les affûts de circonstances , les ours présents .. des fois , mais pas toujours , le marais est un carnage , parfait pour tourner un film d'horreur sans aucunes déco supplémentaire , le lac parfait pour le glouton , le pygargue présent des fois mais souvent pas .... bref une bonne destination , les gérants sont sympa ,la nourriture ... finlandaise , mais on n'y vient pas pour sa gastronomie