I was on the edge of the earth: to Northskap and back for 9 000 rubles

This story about a trip from St. Petersburg to the very northernmost point of Europe – Cape Northskap in Norway. We drove more than 2 thousand kilometers to get up on the edge of the earth, on which only the Arctic Ocean. And still all to go back.

Given:

– 3 friends, including one single driver;

– 1 week of free time;

– 10,000 rubles of free money for everyone;

– 1 spacious machine

– Tents, Bedrooms and other hiking

Task:

For a week to get to Northskap and return back. Spend on the road no more than 8 hours a day and not go beyond the budget.

Eventually:

– 4222 km good and not very expensive

– 150 good and so-so photo

– Minus 8 920 rubles from the calculation for each:

• 4500 rubles – fuel;
• 2460 rubles / 3 = 820 rubles – Greencart
• 3000 rubles – food and drinks;
• 600 rubles – 1 night in the hostel

– finally see Norway with his own eyes! ?

Before Northskap we got by car.

At first , For the company of friends is the most budget option. We threw off on Diesel and Greencart for 5 thousand. Would have happened even cheaper, be a bigger company.

Secondly, This is a real auto visit: every day we drove 500-600 kilometers, and in the evening they broke the tent on the shore of the delightful Karelian lake or the Porosham Polar River. On the way, they admired the landscapes of Karelia, the Murmansk region, Northern Norway and Lapland.

Thirdly, It just needed to try. It is not necessary to repeat, but you need to try once in life.

There is I minus – There were only a day to Norway, everything else – a solid road with stops for lunch. But there are many people who find romance in such specifics – to each his own.

The route looked like this:

The first day. Karelia

On the first day we drove less than 500 kilometers. On the way they looked into the Kivach Reserve. Waterfall heard from afar – it is powerful and is considered one of the largest in Europe. Tourists are decent – come by buses, photograph each other against the backdrop of rapid booming waters, and then walk on micro-ardarria. Incasive bloggers manage to take pictures, looking at which and you will not understand that the waterfall for the safety of tourists is obtained by a metal hedge.

Entrance to the territory of the reserve is worth 150 rubles. Pleasures somewhere for an hour, if you do not enter the museum about flora and fauna – everything is quite compact in Kivache.

The first night arranged on the shore of Karelian lake Sandal. Toponym seems indian, is not true? Here, in Karelia, surprisingly such a lot: River Shiva Creech, Lake Padma and Ganesh, Gang River and Gang Lake. How it happened, no one can say exactly: or or Karelia – Praodina Sanskrit, or India – Praodina Karelov, and maybe all this nonsense and coincidence.

Second day. Arctic Circle

The second day is more than 600 kilometers, the intersection of the polar circle and another waterfall.

I heard that there is such a tradition: if someone from travelers find himself for the polar circle for the first time in life, the whole company should be out of the car, drown out the engine and put the car for the invisible parallel. With our own eyes of such rituals on the track of Cola, did not observe, and I learned about the tradition already on arrival.

But the facts perpetuating themselves next to this obelisk will happen every minute.

In North Karelia, the landscape began to change: the rocks and dense coniferous forests on the shift came the swamps and Fierotoundra – wet fields with chucks. And then, behind the polar circle, it became more interesting: sparkling water strokes on the left and right that the forest does not hide. Land – real mountains. More descents and lifting – and from that reviews from the height is spacious and picturesque.

On the way, another waterfall was visited – Warder Padun on the River Lower Beach. You can get to it from the city of Segezha or passing a little further along the highway towards Murmansk.

The waterfall is located next to one of the gateways of the White Sea-Baltic Channel.

Next to the waterfall, we saw old barracks, barbed wire, plates with disartams for photos and so far. Depressing spectacle. And in a pair of hundreds of meters – the spectacle fascinating.

Warder Padun is much further than kivach. Therefore, neither tourists or protection against fearless, nor commerce at the entrance. Came, loved alone, gone. Powerfully and beautiful.

Third day. To Murmansk and on

Behind the windows of the landscapes of the Murmansk region. Marsh of Northern Karelia are replaced by hibins. They are so close and so far. I want to get out of the car and climb, but there is no time. Somehow next time – you need to have time to get another 500 kilometers, not exceeding the permissible speed. This trip is still better not to lay out a week, because there is no time to see other beauty or just slowly take a walk.

By evening, we get to the border cities.

Today, the village of Pechenga is very sad: one quarter of five-story buildings, empty streets and a little wildly looking on the background of the architecture of the dying village … Runners. Imagine: the road where the midfield comes across a ten minutes, and the men running alone at a distance of 10-15 kilometers from the nearest settlement. Nearby there is nothing. Who are they? Former Polar Servicemen? Or maybe trying to take a lot of free time, which is a lot in rural areas, they reached all and preferred sports vodka?

And this is the northernmost monastery of Europe and the northern Orthodox male monastery of Russia, founded in 1533.

Day four. Finally Norway!

Night a few kilometers from the border with Norway was hot and bright. Hot, because a sleeping bag, calculated by +10, turned out to be too warm. Bright because the sun never went beyond the horizon. All Wine Polar Day, which in these latitudes continues more than two months.

Sunset, sprinkled with the paints of Ivan-Tip fields, we watched a deeply postcard, and then the sky until the very morning it remains to burn scarlet, orange, pink and purple.

The border of Russia and Norway is an amazing place. You seem to be under the sight, but this is just a feeling (I hope). Several tens of kilometers stretched a vintage from pillars wrapped with barbed wire and motion sensors. Very many military units, military bases, several points of inspection of documents, and on the roads, meanwhile there are almost no cars. An unusual spectacle for people who are accustomed to perceive the democratic and friendliness of the Russian-Finnish border. And stand for hours in line for reception to customs officers.

After the border

After passing the northern land border of Russia, the beauty behind the windows of the car began to sharply increase. The sun flooded the fields, played blinding reflections in countless lakes and in the sea. The first amazing fjords appeared.

We specifically chose the road that goes along the coastline. It turned out longer, but the types of divine. Although the column of the thermometer in the sun was close to +30, there was no one in the water, and not a single civilized beach we did not meet. Temperature records for the polar circle apparently happen so rarely, that the Norwegians never occurred to swim in the Barents Sea.

In one place, we still noticed the fragmented group of several people taking sunbathing. But we did not have time for the beach idleness. I quickly went into the sea, it must have been surprisingly surrounding. Despite the heat that standing a few weeks, it was ice, like water in a hole on baptism. And yes, quite salty.

Deer on the road

The first thing was surprised in Norway – this is the crowds of reindeer. They lie at the supermarket doors, impose on the roadway. To run the road before a motorcyclist or not to notice the car, nervously crawling behind His Majesty – the usual thing. Deer and People on these lands have become good friends back in time: SAAM OLENY – Food and Freedom, Deer Saama – Milk, Skin and Taxi Services. Symbiosis, friendship and mutual respect until now.

Closer to midnight, passing nine kilometers on the tunnel connecting the mainland with the island of Magir, we moved through the serpentine – to the uppermost point of the island. Parked the car in six kilometers from Nordkapa, slightly insulated and moved on the edge of the island. We overtook motorcyclists, auto-travelers and excursion buses with tourists from all over the world. Cyclists seemed fearless, desperate and strong. With tents in advance, they drove to Nordsp for several days, and then weeks. But in the north the weather is harsh even in the summer. Meadows in August – the rarest exception.

Why we moved on foot? There is a tricky lifehak: Cassows in the summer work with 7.00 to 01.00, at night On the sights of the entrance is free. As it turned out later, parking in the key zone is also free, but we did not know all the nuances. As a result on three We saved 90 euros. At night and tourists less: most buses left, auto-travelers climbed into trailers and diverged by tents.

There is one minus – a local museum and cinema closed at night.

On the edge of the land!

On Northska, the space and the severity of the northern nature fascinate. Sun, giving the sky the whole palette of warm shades, tone in the Arctic Ocean.

We sat on the edge of the island in front of the endless space, and the next instant the sky, which is five minutes ago, illuminated the beautiful sunset, cut the gray cloud. The cloud was above us and we were in it – outside the two hundred meters visibility disappeared.

Rose terrible wind. I had to go back, resisting the elements, swirling in seconds. Weather We were driven from the place of power, but we managed to see and capture the most important landscapes.

Six kilometers to parking lots were not easy: the road was viewed with difficulty, resistance to the lateral wind was already pretty early to the fourth kilometer. Even with great sympathy than each other, we looked at the running from the island of cyclists, motorcyclists, birds, whose attempts to climb the sky to failed, and deer, who had nowhere to hide. And what is here in the fall and in winter is going on, if this cataclysm occurs in the evening? Reaching the car, they decided that it would be safer anywhere to navigate and tumble in it in the same parking lot. By the morning the weather did not become better, but it was necessary to return somehow. It all ended well: we went down from the mountain and the weather changed: the wind verse, the fog dispelled, stopped dried rain. Even though the mainland was no longer warm, as day ago, I didn’t have any speech about what washing the element.

Fifth day. Back through Finland

We returned a little different way: they crossed the border of Norway and Finland (within Schungn, unhindered) and moved through the territory of Lapland. North of Finland is long kilometers without settlements. Forest, endless forest, two small towns on the way and again the forest.

Next – Border of Finland and Russia in the Murmansk Region (MAPP Lotta / Raja-Jooseppi (Paradise-Yözyseppi). Here is an important point: it is not round the clock, it works until 22.00, so it was necessary to hurry.

Russia immediately after the border point met by depressing landscapes. Charming and rusty trees stood on the left and right from the road, and this picture lasted a few kilometers. Sad spectacle. Through the bunk trunks, the lake was far away – trees burned at least to him. Apparently, we learned about the broken forest only when the fire was drunk to Russian border guards and became a threat to customs officers.

The tent broke on the shore of the Porn River Sovna.

Day of the Six. On white sea

Nearby on Northska, apparently was the otkolone cyclone. All day lil rain, and at the expense of the remaining money from the fuel budget, we were able to spend the last night not in the tent and not in the car, but in the hostel. On the way there was a city of Belomorsk – as follows from the name, it stands on the White Sea, and as you can guess, it was an important objects during the construction of the White Sea-Baltic Channel, which wrote above.

Seventh day. Almost at home

In the Hostel of Belomorsk, a tourist from Germany was tested to our room named Fritz, who at that time for three weeks traveled in Poland and Russia. Surprisingly, the Russian north, his harsh climate, an uncompraised tourist infrastructure and long distances from key airports still attracts foreign tourists. Our new acquaintance is a geologist by education, but the nature of Karelia and Murmansk was wondering not only from a professional point of view. Probably in the proximity of the invisible feature, the polar circle, there is some kind of magnet.

In the morning, together with Fritz, we went together to explore the most famous local attraction – Petroglyphs. These are rock paintings that ancient people won on flat rocks and stones: scenes of hunting on deer, birds, seals, battle compositions, boats and even "Kamel Kama Sutra". It is difficult to believe that nature in the open sky has kept art samples that are 6-7 thousand years.

And there was even more surprise when on a forest path leading to petroglyphs, we met another German family. And returning to Belomorsk – the car with Swiss numbers.

P.S.1: what to do on the road

In long trips you need to somehow have fun. Board games in the car are not comfortable, but there are no strength on the parking lot. Valid, for example, "cities", "20 questions" or "who I". The same "cities" during many hours of movements perfectly kills time and has to communicate to a variety of topics: history, plots of films and books, and, of course, your own travel experience. And it is also important not to be silent, because the monotonous road is hard for the driver.

P.S.2: where there is

When we planned a trip, each received tasks. Since we wanted to cut costs, they thought that the dining room was fast, cheap and "angry" (that is, qualitatively). One of us was necessary to make a "travel guide" of Karelia and the Murmansk region, but in practice the idea was facial.

The dining rooms were going on the basis of feedback and stated prices, and that’s what came out: the first turned out to be at the factory, and we were not allowed there on the passage; Second – in college, which in summer on vacation. And at the same time, there were also great difficulties in the place of alternative to these institutions. Third, in Murmansk, we were allowed, but it would be better not to be allowed: our friend so poisoned that the whole day the light was not mil.

Advice: If your path lies through small Russian cities, make food better. It is very convenient to use a portable gas tile with interchangeable cylinders. She takes little space in the car, and cook it is convenient for her like at home (mosquito error).

P.S.3: If you do not want how we: go-go and really not really see

Not exceeding the permissible speed on the track, you will most likely not have time to visit all the beautiful places that you will pass by – for a short time to stop will only get in the most. Therefore, the autocouisure, limited in time, has its own minuses.

If you do not want to waste time on the Morning Watches in the car and the romance of Russian roads does not dress you, add the aircraft to the route. Save time on the road and spend more time in Norway, if you fly, for example, to Murmansk and take a car for rent there. Another option – to land right in the north of Norway . There to rent a car or take an excursion to Northskap.