How should one behave in day-use huts and open wilderness huts to ensure safety and comfort for all? Hut etiquette provides instructions for all self-guided hikers on how to use huts and behave in huts. Additionally, most huts have a hut folder containing useful practical information and instructions related to that specific hut.
Due to a camping stove explosion in the Karhunjuomalampi day-use hut in autumn 2024, Metsähallitus has updated the hut etiquette guidelines regarding the use of camping stoves and the handling of ashes. For fire safety reasons, the use of camping stoves is not allowed inside huts. Please use your camping stove only outdoors, following manufacturer’s instructions carefully. Familiarize yourself with your stove and its instructions, especially if you haven’t used it for a long time.
“It is advisable to familiarize yourself with the instructions for your camping stove well in advance of your trip so that you know how to use it in the field. Learn how the stove works properly and what type of gas or fuel it uses. Stoves are not completely maintenance-free. Especially before a longer trip, it is worth checking the condition of the device. In winter, boiling water or cooking food with a camping stove takes significantly more time than in summer. For short trips, you can bring hot water in a thermos and pack your snacks in a way that they do not freeze in the cold,” recommends Erkki Ollila, a special expert in recreational use at Metsähallitus’ Nature Services.
Safety and Comfort on Winter Hikes: Tips for Using Wilderness Huts
Even dry firewood reserved in the wood sheds or inside the huts at rest stops, especially in mountainous areas, can get damp in the changing winter conditions, and the firewood does not easily ignite in the stove or at the rest stop. If necessary, bring kindling or carve shavings to ensure the fire starts.
In the winter cold, the walls and structures of the huts accumulate moisture, and heating must be done moderately. The hut does not warm up quickly in winter. Familiarise yourself with the hut heating stove and its features before lighting the fire. Load a reasonable amount of firewood into the stove at a time.
When hiking, do not dry damp or rain-soaked clothes or gear directly on top of or too close to the stove. Clothes can fall onto the stove and start a fire.
Always burn candles on a non-flammable and flat surface, and extinguish the candle before going to bed.
If you plan to stay overnight in the hut, bring your own 9-volt battery for the smoke detector.
Open wilderness huts or day-use huts must not be used as overnight accommodation for business activities.
Ash is a Safety Hazard
Hut safety also involves the handling of ash produced from burning wood. Metsähallitus’ huts are maintained by their own staff and maintenance contractors, who empty the ashes from the stove during their maintenance visits. The guideline is: do not empty the ash from the stove unless it is absolutely necessary (instagram.com, in Finnish). Ash should only be handled when it has cooled down, and it should be emptied into an appropriate container, such as a metal bucket, and taken outside to the designated place. Ash can smolder for up to a week and can unexpectedly ignite.
A brief summary of hut etiquette:
- Follow the rules: Familiarize yourself with the hut’s rules and respect the rights of other hikers. Use the hut’s equipment and facilities responsibly, ensuring your own and others’ safety.
- Keep the hut clean: tidy up after yourself and take your trash with you. Smoking is prohibited. Bring firewood inside for the next users. Do not leave any food in the hut – it might attract pests.
- Respect others’ peace: Give others space. Avoid spreading your belongings all over the hut. Keep noise to a minimum and avoid arriving late at night.
More information
- Senior Specialist, Recreational Amenities Erkki Ollila, Metsähallituksen Luontopalvelut, puh. 040 527 0069
- Hut Etiquette (luontoon.fi)
- Rental and shared rental huts (eraluvat.fi)