Palovaaran Memorial Site

Palovaara never saw fighting in the Winter and Continuation Wars, but it is assumed that an artillery fire control post was operational at Palovaara in August 1944.

Their barrels of 122-millimeter Putilov howitzers point at the site of the famous Vellivaara pocket.

Memorial site to units that fought in Ilomantsi

The memorial site commands a view of famous battlegrounds and locations where enemy forces became encircled. The high terrain around Ilaja, Lehmivaara and Vellivaara can be discerned at the horizon. The site contains several memorial plaques, and an information board gives an excellent overview of the events. Of particular interest is a presentation of the changes in the nominal strength of Finnish and Russian combat units between 1939 and 1944.

Two 122-millimeter Putilov howitzers captured from the enemy in the late summer of 1944 are also on display. Their barrels point at the site of the famous Vellivaara pocket.

Because of its location, the memorial site is a popular place of remembrance, and wreaths and floral tributes are brought there every year. In the midwinter, a thick layer of snow blocks easy access to the immediate vicinity of the memorials, but they can be viewed from the adjacent road.