Päijänne

Where is Päijänne?

Countries on its shores: Finland.

Middle of the lake: 61.58° N, 25.50° E

The story behind it

At its deepest point Päijänne is about 95 metres deep, deeper than any other lake in Finland. It also holds more water than any other Finnish lake. More than a million people in and around Helsinki drink water from Päijänne. It travels there through the Päijänne Water Tunnel, which is 120 km long and runs through solid rock, 30 to 100 metres underground. It is one of the longest tunnels in the world. At the northern end of the lake lies Jyväskylä, the biggest town on its shores. The lake's water flows out through the Kymi River to the Gulf of Finland. Ships can travel on about 380 km of waterways, and canals link Päijänne to other lakes. About 16 000 holiday cottages stand along the shores, and people go boating, canoeing and sailing. Päijänne National Park protects about 50 islands with no houses on them.

Find it on the globe

Päijänne is there as a small blue dot with its name, right on the water. From far away the planet is only a blue ball; detail arrives as you zoom in, and this one appears once you are close enough. Open it on the globe.

It sits at its real coordinates, not near them — the same numbers listed in the facts above. Switch off the layer for this kind of place and it disappears again; the buttons for that are down the right-hand edge.