Norway – arriving in Kirkenes

Kirkenes is located in the extreme northeastern part of Norway. It is the capital of the municipality of Sør-Varanger and borders the Barents Sea, which is a part of the Arctic Ocean. It is about 240 miles (400 kms) north of the Arctic Circle. Actually this is where Norway ends. This area was jointly occupied by Russia and Norway until the borders were set in 1826 between these two countries and Finland. Kirkenes is further east than most of Finland and only 7 kms (4.3 miles) from the Russian border (37 Kms/22 miles from Finland.) It has a frontier feel.



We had left Atlanta in the evening and after a change of plane in Paris we arrived in Norway the following afternoon. We stayed in Oslo that night then early the next morning we boarded a plane on Norwegian airlines and arrived in Kirkenes before lunch. When we left Oslo it was raining and there were heavy dark clouds but as we approached Kirkenes I could see the ground below. It looked very barren with many lakes and no towns. From the air it reminded me of Newfoundland and its unspoiled wilderness. I took some pictures from the aircraft.

Click on pictures to enlarge, then click again on each to bigify

These were taken from the aircraft with my little Olympus Stylus on the “Behind Glass” setting.

Kirkenes is quite a long way from Oslo, about 875 miles. Oslo is closer to Zurich, Switzerland (873 miles) than to this city in the north of Norway. Kirkenes is located in Norwegian Lapland – in the county of Finnmark which is the largest county in Norway. It is larger than Denmark (or about twice the size of Vermont) but has a population of only about 75,000 people.

Postcard of the Sør-Varanger area around Kirkenes

Kirkenes was initially populated by the Sami people, indigenous people of the area (it is derogatory to call them “Lapps” we were told.) I had booked a room in the center of town, at the Barents Frokost Hotell. A 14-room bed and breakfast whose clients are mostly Russians – the TV channels were both in Norwegian and Russian.

Our room was on the second floor, last one of the left

The hotel was centrally located – in front of the main square where a Russian market takes place once a month. I had not realized that there was a day tour to Russia which included a day-visa, to the port of Murmansk. We could have come a day earlier if we had known about it.

The German Marines and Air Force had a base in Kirkenes with 30,000 men during the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany. They were stationed there because of the proximity of Kirkenes to the Soviet port of Murmansk (which was not under Nazi control.) Soviet planes bombed Kirkenes day and night with more than 1000 air raid alarms and more than 320 aerial bombings. In October 1944 Kirkenes was liberated but the retreating Nazi forces burnt it to the ground. As a result, Kirnenes was, after Malta, the most bombed place during the Second World War. In the middle of the square is the War Mother’s Monument which commemorates women’s efforts during the war.



There is also a pretty fountain and a profusion of violets around it.




Russian fishermen come to sell their catch in Kirkenes as prices are much better here than in their ports to the east. Signs in the streets are both in Norwegian and Russian.



Across the square is the large Arctic Hotel where excursions can be booked.




We checked but were too late to go on the “king crab safari.”



The river boat trip on the Pasvik River was also completely booked.



The river boat goes down the river which borders Norway and Russia.




But the “husky hike with local lunch” was available after 2 pm (a late lunch then I guess.) We booked this trip and I shall talk about it in my next post. We then walked to the small harbour and watched fishing vessels, both Norwegian and Russian.





Some Russian fishing trawlers tied to the dock looked like they were antiques and left there to rust. No one was around them; they look deserted and very old.



A guy in a Jeep picked us up to go and visit the husky kennel and when we came back to downtown Kirkenes we walked to the edge of the bay. Even though we were way past the Arctic Circle it was quite nice and I did not need a jacket.



It had been a lovely day, but we were still jet lagged. We went back to our little hotel facing the old church (Lutheran, built in 1862, but there are two Eastern Orthodox churches close by, too) and had a choice of watching TV in Norwegian or Russian...



In winter Kirkenes must be very pretty although from November 21 to January 21 they are in winter darkness (the midnight sun shines from May 17 to July 21.) Many activities are offered in winter like dog-sled trips, ice fishing, snowmobile tours, cross-country skiing and a snow hotel. Since I live in the Deep South this arctic environment in winter might be pretty hard on my system...

Here is a postcard of Kirkenes in winter.