Dugout sauna in the earth’s embrace: How Noora and Ville cherish a war veteran’s sauna

Stately rows of pines line the sandy road. Suddenly, glimpses of dugouts and a trench appear among the trees: they are part of the Mänkijärvi war heritage site in Southern Ostrobothnia, Finland, built in the 1980s.

But this time, we won’t stop to see the sights; instead, we continue a bit farther to Noora and Ville Kiviniemi’s cottage sauna. Indeed, it is an even more remarkable spot. In the cottage garden, right next to the flowing river, awaits a partially underground dugout sauna.

The partially underground dugout sauna belongs to Noora and Ville Kiviniemi, their children Vili and Nelli, and Väinö the dog, and is located in Lapua, Finland. After writing this article, the family grew to include another son, Venni-Wiljami.

The story of this sauna begins in 1979, when Väinö, who had fought in the First and Second World Wars, built it for himself, inspired by his memories of saunas on the front lines. He adapted a design he knew from the front, using unbarked logs set as far underground as possible to ensure safety.

At first, Väinö built a smoke sauna, but it didn’t work as he had hoped. That’s why he decided to convert it into a regular wood-heated sauna.

When Väinö passed away, the sauna and the adjacent cottage were left to his daughter. When she eventually decided to put this beloved place up for sale, Noora and Ville Kiviniemi went to see it immediately. They already knew and loved the area with its majestic pine heaths.

“Our two-year search for a cottage was about to end, though we hardly dared to hope for it at the time,” Noora says.

Other interested buyers also came to look at the cottage, but Väinö’s daughter chose Noora and Ville’s family. After all, their dog’s name, Väinö, bode well for them.

The river flowing right by the sauna can be heard by those enjoying the sauna. In spring, it roars; later in summer, it only murmurs. In decades past, there was once a sawmill on the riverbank, but now only a dam remains of it, regulating the water flow.

The dressing room bench was here before the current owners. Noora painted it dark. She used the same approach with the interior door and window frames and painted them in deep tones.

The family have avoided major interior renovations thanks to the sauna being in great condition. Noora only treated the benches and railings with black sauna wax.

The new owners’ first impression of Väinö’s sauna wasn’t that enthusiastic, even though the cottage met all of the family’s wishes otherwise. Noora and Ville assumed the sauna would be musty and dim. However, Väinö had put in proper ventilation, and it smelled clean and fresh. Thanks in part to this good ventilation, the partially underground sauna has remained and continues to remain in healthy condition.

As for the gloom, there’s a window behind the benches that does the trick. The walls are in prime shape thanks to Noora treating them with red ochre. Inside, she only needed to use sauna wax.

“The sauna also has electricity, but we often bathe solely by lantern light,” Noora says.

Ville usually handles heating the sauna stove. As the scent of smoke wafts through the cottage scenery, he often heads off fishing with the kids.

Word has it that they’ve caught some sizable pike. Landing some trout is still on their to-do list, even though those are also said to swim here.

“We might land a trout at any moment. Or maybe not until tomorrow,” Vili muses, as Väinö the dog keeps watch to see whether the boy’s line remains taut.

You might need to search the cottage area for a moment to spot the sauna. It is seamlessly integrated into the garden. Thanks in part to the excellent ventilation, the underground sauna has remained and still remains in good condition.

The bathers spend some time on the benches before daring to take the plunge into the cool river.

All ten square meters of the sauna are used efficiently. You enter a tiny dressing room and then step almost directly onto the benches. A bucket and ladle serve as the shower, and you can adjust the water pressure simply by the pace at which you ladle it.

Washing water is carried from the river, and because hauling it by hand naturally limits consumption, the Kiviniemis haven’t needed to install an expensive wastewater treatment system. Ville praises the sauna experience for being both humid and hot at the same time.

“The gentle heat and steam, the crackle of wood in the stove, and the breeze from the open window make each sauna session perfect,” Noora says.

Ville’s favorite spot for thinking is right on the riverbank.

The sauna is first heated in the morning. Noora takes a moment to do yoga by the river, then, sometimes observed by curious ducks.

Between sauna sessions, the family carries inflatable mattresses down to the river, from which everyone can take refreshing dips in the chilly water.

“After the cool water wakes us up, we rush back into the sauna’s warmth and then out again. Our kids especially never want the sauna time to end,” Ville laughs.

They don’t have to compete for the title of most enduring sauna-goer, at least. Ville will stay on the benches even when the rest of the family has already run outside, steam rising from their bodies, to cool off in the water.

When their sauna session is over, the Kiviniemis grill food and enjoy berry pie for dessert, made with berries picked from around their own cottage.

Finally, as dusk settles in, Noora and Vili might play a few tunes on the accordion, and for a moment, even the river falls silent.

After taking a sauna, it feels good to enjoy a small snack and take in the fresh air. The furniture is carried directly into the garden.

Väinö the dog loves being able to run free at the cottage.