South of the Arctic Circle again

I have been trying to learn more about the Sami people who settled the Lapland area right after the Ice Ages. They are the famous reindeer herders of the Scandinavian forests. Once upon a time they lived in tepees and were nomadic, sort of like the Plains Indians of America. Here is a picture I got off the internet.

 They may have lived kind of like the Native Americans, but they sure look a whole lot different from American Indians. Here is an example -- This young Sami man talked with me for the longest time and told me a lot about their culture. As you can see, he looks quite European.

My young Sami friend said that nobody is sure where the Sami came from, but most people think they came from the Steppes of  Russia right after the ice ages.

I went to a marvelous Sami museum to learn more.

 Out in front of the museum were some Sami houses that had been moved from their original site. This one was used by a Sami family until just a few years ago.

Here is another shot of it. Notice the smoke coming from the wood stove inside.

It was warm and comfortable inside.

The woman and man in the picture were from Belgium. They were just passing through, like me, and had stopped for a visit. The Sami family who lived here slept on reindeer skins laid over sticks. Sounds kind of uncomfortable, but I think it really wasn't bad at all.

Here is another type of building, but it was more of a work building or a storage building than a dwelling.

After visiting the museum, Odysseus and I headed on south through Sweden. It wasn't long before we came to the Arctic Circle. There was a sign there, but it  did not make for an impressive picture.

This part of Sweden south of the Arctic Circle is beautiful. It is full of mile after mile of trees.

Not long after I took that last picture, I was buzzing along at about 60 miles per hour when a reindeer ran out in front of me. I slammed on the brakes, and missed him by about 10 feet (3 meters). I don't know who was more scared, him or me. I will never forget the startled eyes on that critter. I wish I could have taken a picture. Reindeer, by the way, are cousins to the Caribou of North America, but there are some differences.

I have been gradually working my way toward the mountains that separate Norway and Sweden. I want to get back into Norway again and work my way down toward Oslo. I think that will be the best path for me, and also the most interesting.

Sweden is pretty flat, and it has a lot of lakes. The mountains tend to be in Norway.

I decided to stop for the night while still in Sweden because hotel rooms are about one third as expensive as in Norway. I am only a few miles from the Norwegian border.

As you can see from this last picture, the sky has kind of cleared up.  I hope it stays that way because now that I am south of the Arctic Circle there should be a little bit of dark night. There won't be more than an hour or so of true darkness, but solar flares are predicted for the next few days, so maybe I will be able to see the Northern Lights. That would be worth getting out of bed for.

This map will give you a general idea of where I am. Look for the red dot.

I hope the weather is clear for my Norwegian mountain riding tomorrow.

Ron

Nordkapp (North Cape) Norway

I was up and at it early, leaving my Bed and Breakfast in Finland and riding up toward the North Cape. I knew it was going to be a long ride. Everywhere along the route there were reindeer:

This part of Finland is called Lapland. It is the home of the Sami people who herd reindeer. There is a lot of them to herd. They eat them and make clothes from them and use them to pull sleighs in the Winter. This area has a lot of lakes, although not as many as in southern Finland. After about three hours of riding I came to the Barents Sea. Had to stop to take a picture:

I was just getting ready to get back on my motorcycle when Peter and Esther pulled in behind me. They were out exploring and were going the other way, and they just happened to see me parked there. Small world. I had not seen them in days.

They were on their way to Alta, Norway. It turns out that is my destination tonight too. But first, I want to get up to the North Cape (Nordkapp in Norwegian). Peter and Esther had already been there, but I had a long way to go before I was there. Time to get back on the road. And a bleak road it is. I am in the great Northern Tundra now.

It seemed like I had been riding for hours when I saw the sign for the North Cape.

There are very few gas stations up here, but the road is nice, much nicer than the road from the Arctic Circle to the Arctic Ocean in Alaska.

Nordkapp must be very popular because there were a lot of motorcycles, cars and tour buses there. The big visitors center has some movies to watch about changing seasons, and some displays about World War II activities, but the big thing to do is get your picture taken at the globe of the world.

I was at the North Cape for a couple of hours. When it was time to leave the sky was turning dark and I could tell I was going to be riding in the rain soon. I have two hours to go before I will be at the hotel in Alta, Norway. I didn't much like the idea of riding in the rain. Thank goodness for the Midnight Sun. I could see okay, but I was worried about the herds of reindeer that seem to be everywhere up here. Maybe the rain will keep them off the roads.

I was absolutely exhausted when I got to my hotel. It turned out to be deep in the Norwegian woods; much farther from the town of Alta than I had thought it would be. You never know what you are going to get when you book on-line. It was a nice place, though, and I was glad to have a warm and dry room.

A nice meal of Reindeer stew and a shower, and I was ready for bed. Tomorrow I plan to ride south along the mountain chain that splits Norway and Sweden -- that is if the weather is nice.

Goodnight.
Ron