The White Sea

[ovenpaa]

Has anybody been up to the White Sea? I think it could be quite nice end of May/June time and is just a spit away - I was thinking specifically of Kristiansand to Northcape to Murmansk and then heading down towards Archangel and then home - my only vague concern would be the white Sea is full of Submarine bases and they may not be overly friendly towards tourists.

So does anyone know the area?

Cheers

 

[Mzokk]

Haven't done it but fancy it! Might be a bit awkward taking photo's

 

[SilverBobGS]

White Sea

I am currently researching this sort of tour for my retirement trip. 6 weeks 6000 miles across europe and up to Murmansk then North Cape and back home down through Scandinavia. All I have read about the area is that you should be prepared for the unexpected. Roads may be missing if you go off the beaten track. NO turning right at Musmansk towards the military bases as even the locals are not allowed there. The road from Murmansk to Finland was closed to tourists a couple of years back but is open now. Apparantly the Americans think that the Ruskies used nuclear weapons to blast the ore out of the mountains up there near the town of Nikel. Make sure you fuel well up and keep going on that stretch is the best advice I have found. Prior to Murmansk the people are friendly and activly encourage tourism. After there is not many people but lots of wolves bears and wolverines that get attracted to the road due to the higher temp. I believe that this is an area that is well worth seeing and I hope that you can post something when (if)you get back.
Good Luck
Bob

 

[Wicker]

I did the Bergen to North Cape run in June this year. Still quite a lot of snow beside the higher level roads and cool enough for thermals below bike jacket for 80% of the trip then the sun came out and it went to mid 70 degrees.

Once above Trondheim the E6 just seems to go on forever. Trondheim to Narvik is signed as 900km. You get to Narvik and Northcape is still another 700km. 24 hour daylight meant sleeping in a tent required a blindfold. Campsite mini cabins (hytters) offered a dry space on the wet days @ £20 / £35 per night; take your own sleeping bag. Anything Norwegian seemed to cost the earth; accommodation, food, petrol compared to elsewhere in Europe. I had been warned abotu this but it was still a surprse to pay the equivalent of £10 for a burger, chips & drink in a cafe.

The Norwegian coastal route is spectacular. Roads generally well surfaced although watch out for reindeer in the far north (above Narvik) as they have no road sense and will just stand in the carriageway.

The last 100km up to Northcape were beautiful; the sun was out; porpoises in the water and my lots of reindeer. Northcape itself was a disappointment 190 Krona entry after already paying a 68 Krona (each way) tunnel toll to get on & off the island. Gift shop and food also overpriced. Guess they rely on everyone having travelled so far feeling they must get that Northcape photo next to the globe !

From Northcape I swung down to Kaamanen and Ivalo in Finland. Away from the coast (northern Finland & Sweden) are heavily forested (not too much scenery apart from trees) and roads straight and boring. If you stop there are millions of flies & mosquitos so sitting outside the tent was bit of a trial. For these reason, I would not rush back to Finnmark and Lappland.

Speed limits higher in Sweden / Finland than Norway (not that there were many police) but limited by your ability to stop when a reindeer bounds into the road. I went up to the Russian border at Raja Jooseppi (250km to Murmansk) but was turned back as no visas. If you fancy riding on dirt roads try the 955 from Inari to Pokka; tarmac ran out and did not start again for 50 miles. Some of the northern Swedish roads were in a noticeably worn condition due to heavy vehicle traffic but generally all were better than the UK equivalent.

For me the best part of the trip was roads around Geiranger Fjord, Trollstigen Jotunheimen, Svartisen and Lofoten Islands rather than the far north.

 

[Cole]

Has anybody been up to the White Sea? I think it could be quite nice end of May/June time and is just a spit away - I was thinking specifically of Kristiansand to Northcape to Murmansk and then heading down towards Archangel and then home - my only vague concern would be the white Sea is full of Submarine bases and they may not be overly friendly towards tourists.

So does anyone know the area?

Cheers

I have been thinking of the same thing actually for 2007 ... up to Kirkenes, across to Murmansk, down thru Karelia to St Pete, then back thru Eesti, Latvia, Litland and Poland. Would like to see Kaliningrad too.

How long were you thinking of taking? I had about 3-4 weeks in mind

 

[ovenpaa]

I have been thinking of the same thing actually for 2007 ... up to Kirkenes, across to Murmansk, down thru Karelia to St Pete, then back thru Eesti, Latvia, Litland and Poland. Would like to see Kaliningrad too.

How long were you thinking of taking? I had about 3-4 weeks in mind

We are thinking 3 weeks, rides for us are normally big miles with stops only for fuel but this time we have both agreed that it would be nice to have a slower paced ride and see the local points of interest as well. We will head in through DK and just head North, then East and round - it should be fun