Day 2 & 3 Kirkenes

My bike is now rebuilt and supplies got – excluding bear spray. I’m told that, although they are plentiful in number and move in large groups across Norway, Finland and Russia, they don’t bother humans much. I guess I’ll find out!

Seasons change very fast here. A few weeks ago, people were travelling around on snowmobiles, then the snow “disappeared overnight”. I arrived on 18 May to bare trees and a colourless landscape. 2 days later and the trees are half in leaf and the primroses are out. And it’s warm – a very nice, sunny 16C.

Being isolated from Norway further south, the region has a closeness to its immediate neighbours. Being close to the Russian border, the communities are intermingled – they share a common history and have a strong presence in the town, local industries are interdependent on one another.

With the Ukrainian war and Norway applying to join NATO, I was interested to learn what had changed. Of the people I spoke to, the answer was – nothing much. They want to stay as neutral as they can.

They have Russian friends or work for or are dependent on Russian trade. For example, a large local big employer who repairs mainly Russia ships. The loss of such a business would be devastating for the area.