Pikkarala Ferry is a single-operator cable-guided ferry

Cable ferry

A cable ferry is guided and in many cases propelled across a river or other larger body of water by cables connected to both shores. They are also called chain ferries, floating bridges, or punts....

 operating across Oulujoki

Oulujoki

Oulujoki is a river in Oulu province, Finland.Its origin is Oulujärvi and, its watershed area covers a significant part of Kainuu region....

 river between Pikkarala and Lapinkangas. The ferry route is a part of Pikkarala private road. The ferry operates between 08:00—17:00 from Monday to Friday and 08:00—15:00 on Saturdays when traffic so requires. Typically the operating season starts at about mid-May and lasts until about mid-October.

The ferry is operated under the funding from the City of Oulu

Oulu

Oulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....

 and the State of Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

. Approximately one-fifth of the funding comes from the city, the rest comes from the state. The annual costs are approximately 25.000 euro

Euro

The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...

s.

The ferry service began in 1930s when a man-powered ferry was taken in service, and there has been a ferry at the very same location every year since. The man-powered ferry was replaced with a ferry equipped a boat engine. The current ferry was taken in service in 1992. Originally the current ferry served as a "Sanki Ferry" only a few miles downstream, but it was discontinued when the Sanki Bridge was built.