Fisherman Toivo Pylväläinen (1894–1979) lived as a hermit on the island of Koreakoivu in lake Päijänne, which were his landscape for more than four decades. The small Koreakoivu (500 x 150 m) is specially located on the border of three municipalities - Kuhmoinen, Padasjoki and Sysmä.
Toivo was not a solitary soul, even though he lived as a hermit. According to the story, he fled to the island for child support payments. A cook at a construction site had become pregnant and Toivo was suspected of having been involved. He gladly welcomed guests to his island and told them great stories about his life.
Toivo fished and fish was also his food day after day. There was a small vegetable garden in the yard of the cottage, so he was quite self-sufficient when it came to potatoes, carrots and onions. However, certain goods and foods forced him to row sometimes also to Suopelto, where there was an Osuuskauppa in the premises of the current Ilola Inn. Rowing took several hours. The trips to Suopelto always took a lot of time - there was enough conversation and of course a bottle of pilsner to be enjoyed on the steps of the shop.
Along with the shopping trips, the laundry and Toivo's own washing were also taken care of at Iivari Leiviskä's house next door, where he also delivered fish and guided him in fishing. On one of his trips to Suopelto, Toivo had landed on a small islet for his needs, when the badly secured boat with its purchases was able to escape. A week passed until the neighbors from their boat noticed Toivo's winking and picked him up. "The intestines were cleaned effectively", was Toivo's comment in that situation. Sometimes Toivo even rowed to the bus to Pulkkilanharju - heading for a trip to sell fish in the market place of Lahti.
Toivo has a big meaning for fishing. He sculpted and developed lures, which Lauri Rapala himself tested - Rapala's lures, which have gained world fame, are therefore originally Toivo's idea. The world's demand for them exploded when Life magazine - in an widely distributed issue due to Marilyn Monroe's death - had an article about Rapala lures. Today, Rapala is the world's largest fishing equipment group. I guess neither Toivo nor Lauri had any idea what Toivo's carving in Koreakoivu would lead to.
Toivo Pylväläinen spent the last two years of his life in the Kuhmoinen nursing home, and even in that period one shocking event was recorded - he once tried to run away from there and return to the island of Koreakoivu that he loved.