To Norway

Since I was so far north in Finland and well inside the Arctic Circle, I decided that I might was well zip into Norway. Not expecting Norway to be much different from Lapland, I was really surprised at the changes in both the natural scenery and the human landscapes. 

Crossing the border at the Neiden River (very close to Russia) the terrain became more rugged and hillier with the vegetation rapidly shrinking from forest down to grasses and very low shrubs. 

Neiden Falls

My destination was the tiny fishing villages of Bugoynes which directly faces the open Barents Sea. This was one of the very few ports along the Norwegian coast spared destruction by the Germans during the Second World War. Sandwiched between a wide sandy beach and a sheltered harbour, Bugoynes is a very pretty little village though it can't have more than a couple of hundred people. And what an isolated place to live - it would take days to get to any place of more than 10,000 people and even in the middle of summer it was cold. I fancied dipping my toes in the Arctic Ocean, but it was a challenge staying outside for any length of time. A splash n the Arctic Ocean will have to wait for another day.

At least here the sea is a proper ocean with substantial tides and the smell of salt and seaweed. The waters around Finland are brackish and barely salty and tides make no impact along the Finnish coast. Norwegian houses seem less substantial and more brightly painted than their Finnish counterparts just to the south. I am betting thought that they are just as cosy in winter! 

After traveling along the Vaggefiojd I then follow the Utsjoki River and slip back into Finland via a striking suspension bridge. .