The Route

Norway was great the first time I went there, this time however it completely blew me away. Probably the best decision I made was to skip the wet, cold south of the country (except for the Bright Midnight, of course) and start the journey north of the arctic circle in that amazing tow of Bodo. Less to no gain at all did I have from the change in direction that I was going in, this time from the south-west to the north-east to follow the prevalent winds. Unfortunately, what caused the fantastic weather was also the reason for much of the headwind that I experienced regardless: the constant wind from the south-east that was blowing out of Finland and Russia, supplying the region with hot air and driving clouds away. That wind was the most annoying whenever I was going south, e. g. on the high plateaus I crossed betwee Slettnes and Ifjord, or in most of Finland. It could have been worse though, I certainly wouldn't have traded the headwind for bad weather.

Speaking of Finland, I'm glad I had the time to continue all the way down to Turku. Despite the punctures I sustained on account of a worn tire it was a hugely positive experience to get to spend some time in this amazing country and its natives. In fact it was mainly the larger towns that made the Finland leg of this voyage so rewarding. Oulu is still in my top three places I visited in this trip, perhaps even on par with Vardo; Tampere and Turku rank fairly high as well all things considered, with Rovaniemi just behind. And I barely scratched the surface of those places; I would go back to Finland in a heartbeat given the opportunity for a more thorough experience.