Icelandic Horses

Horseback riding with Icelandic horses at Kuusamo’s beautiful nature!

Trail riding stable Old Raatesalmi is located in the middle of beautiful nature on the shore of Lake Kuusamo, just 10 minutes drive from the city center. We are the only stable in Kuusamo, that is specialized in Icelandic horses. We breed Icelandics on a small scale and we have our own breeding stallion, the gorgeous Kasper frá Skálafelli. At Raatesalmi you are serviced by experienced guides, who are educated in Icelandic horses, their different gaits and guiding trail riding tours.

We offer trail riding tours in different levels with our tölting sweet Icelandics. The trails go through spectacular Nordic forests. Our routes travel in versatile ground with uphills and downhills, slower parts in the forest and faster parts where we try tölt, canter and gallop. The forest is also alive with animals, such as reindeer, grouses, Siberian Jays and other animals. 

We have all four seasons here, and they are all beautiful. Winters in northern Finland are as real as they get. We have plenty of snow and you are able to experience the darkness of arctic nights, see the aurora borealis and millions of stars.  It’s truly magical to ride and trust your horse in the dark forest while enjoying the clean air. Spring is short but pretty, as the nature comes alive once again after the long winter. Summer is all about the midnight sun, that doesn’t set at all for awhile, making riding during night a real fairytale experience. Autumn is the season of colours everywhere. The trees turn yellow and orange, the forest floor burgundy. This is the season to admire all that nature has to show us.

You’re welcome to ride with us whether you are an experienced rider or climbing on a horse for the first time. We always customise our tours to fit the rider’s level and liking. We try to keep our group sizes small, so it’s easier for the guide to direct everyone individually: after all the horses are also different from each other. At Old Raatesalmi you get to experience some special things with horses, such as Arctic Night trail ridings in the darkness, lake ridings in the summer and sauna and excellent food after the riding tour.

We also offer riding classes, different kind of riding courses and camps. We cooperate with some of Finland’s most experienced Icelandic horse coaches and have a couple of seminars throughout the year. These are mainly for our Finnish customers, but if you are interested ask for more details! 

If you are looking for a beautiful place to relax and enjoy the nature in a historic scene, you have found what you are looking for. Welcome to Old Raatesalmi!