Journey: Äijäkoski – Pallustunturi Visitor Centre – Havgajavri – Hetta, Pikefossen Falls (Norway) – Altaelva
In the last two days the temperature has dropped from 33 to 7 degrees C! We have all felt the difference; Ernest snuck into our bed around 3am, and I had buried us under the duvet and didn’t want to come out. Going to have to put the winter duvet on again.
Wrapped up against the elements we headed to Pallustunturi Visitor Centre and did a nice 3k loop trail. The wind and cold does make a difference and I was glad to be back at the van for coffee, I’m not really made for the cold lol. Mark was happy…he much prefers cold over hot. I bought a lovely little book on Sami mythology which has some amazing illustrations. I do love cultural mythology ❤️ On our drive to a second walk in the Pallas Yllästunturin national park at Hietajarvi we saw dozens of reindeer of various ages along the road side.
The landscape is more sandy, raw and has shorter mostly pine trees. Mabel loves rolling about getting dusty and we have a few theories as to why she is rolling about so much:
1. She just loves being filthy
2. It’s a defence mechanism so the big scary new wildlife can’t smell her
3. She wants to smell like said wildlife so she fits in should one pop out of the woods and try to eat the rest of the family
4. She likes testing her dad’s patience for how much dusty dog is allowed in the van
Whatever the reason her dusty self is still with us, filthy and snoring on the sofa, no doubt ready to roll again soon.
Our next stop was Hecca for a lovely Sami museum with photography exhibition and a display of handpainted local birds. Their nomadic way of life has been increasingly restricted and they are losing their language but there is a small resurgence with primary schools once again teaching it.
Dinner was at Pikefossen Falls in Norway! Having crossed the border the scenery got more dramatic and the roads are great. Mainly long and open, windy in places. We drove past lakes, saw stunning views over the valley, horizons that went on for miles and through an epic gorge called Altaelva. We have parked by the river on our way to Alta… tomorrow we just keep driving North
SofaWolves 