February is usually the coldest month in Finland. The weather might vary from cold (-5°C) to very cold (-25°C) during the Winter School. Students should be prepared to have appropriate clothing for cold and partly wet weather, waterproof clothing with proper boots. We can have up to 40 cm snow in Central Finland so the best boots extend well above the ankle. Please bring plenty of layers and warm clothes with you. There is a possibility to do laundry in Konnevesi Research Station (washing machine and dryer available). Please bring your own washing powder for doing laundry. In winter, there is not much daylight in Central Finland (in February about 8.5 hours), so it is a good idea to take your own headlamp (preferably led one) with you.
You can check the local weather forecast for instance on the website of the Finnish Meteorological Institute.
Konnevesi Research Station has wireless internet connection so it is possible to use your own laptop computer at the station. The guest log-in and password for the wifi can be found on the message board of the Research Station. There are also computers with internet access available at Konnevesi Research Station. A user name and password to the guest net or a JYU user account is required to access the computers.
There are two restaurants and a supermarket in Konnevesi village (4 km distance). It is also possible to cook in the dormitory kitchen.
Students participating in the course Boreal Winter Ecology will have an excursion to the . Finnish students and students living in Jyväskylä should bring skis (preferably wide forest skis) to the course with them. The Winter School will provide skis to the foreign students but they should have their own boots. The skis available at the research station are forest skis, which will be attached with straps to your own boots. So for these skis specific cross-country skiing boots are not needed, it is enough to have normal, sturdy and warm winter boots. Also binoculars as well as bird and mammal track guides are recommended.
