Latokaski’s exercise trail is an easy 2.7km circular route with connections to Espoon Keskus, Vanttila, Kivenlahti, Keskuspuisto and Olari. The circuit is well-lit when needed and a popular exercise station is included along the way. The forest is full of nature and this cache provides you with the opportunity to learn about some of it.
Along the circular route there are ten information boards highlighting different aspects of the woodland. They will be obvious as you move around the trail, but they are marked as waypoints also (note that stops #1 and #2 do exist but they are located off the branch heading toward Vanttila and are therefore not included in this multi). Your task is to visit each of the ten boards on the circular trail and answer the questions below to learn the coordinates of the cache. The answer for (a) can be found at information board 3, the answer for (b) from information board 4, and so forth.
The cache is located at N60 AB.CDE, E24 FG.HIJ.
Edit 20.06.25: A handful of the notice boards have disappeared since publication. Answers for those are supplied in red below.
A (board #3): How are alder seeds dispersed?
- By water (1)
- By insects (0)
- By wind (2)
B (board #4): Approximately how old are the fully grown pines in the forest?
- 100 years (0)
- 150 years (9)
- 200 years (1)
C (board #5): Why were some birches and aspens left standing when the spruce were thinned in 2014?
- To ensure that soil erosion did not occur (3)
- To protect insect food supply (7)
- To make the landscape more interesting (8)
D (board #6): What is the diameter of the pine at chest height?
- 40cm (4)
- 60cm (2)
- 80cm (8)
E (board #7): What type of aspen does the ochroporus tremulae polypore fungus affect?
- Those that already have an infection (6)
- Those that are sufficiently old (1)
- Those that do not have a sufficient supply of nutrients (4)
F (board #8): What thrives in a thinned forest?
- Berries (3)
- Bettles (4)
- Ferns (2)
G (board #9): What legally protects the bog?
- The Nature Reserve Act (6)
- The Forest Act (8)
- The Widlife and Wetlands Act (7)
H (board #10): How long must a dead tree be dried up before it can no longer contain pests that can harm living trees?
- Six months (6)
- A year (3)
- Three years (1)
I (board #11): When does the common hazel yield the most nuts?
- When they have plenty of water (9)
- When they have plenty of nutrients (2)
- When they have plenty of light (7)
J (board #12): How does the goat willow often appear?
- As scattered, solitary individuals (9)
- In large groups or batches (5)
- Next to pines (8)
Please note there are parallel paths to cater to skiers and walkers respectively in the winter for the majority of the loop, but that there is no separate walking path to reach boards 9 - 12. If you attempt this cache in the winter, please bring your skis: do not walk on ski paths.
If your answers are correct, you should be directed to a location very close to one of the waypoints.