One of the adventures of independent travel lies in the impulsive unknown. The freedom to stop or stay anywhere that you like. Take that odd road, where you say to yourself, “Let’s just see where it goes.” Marilynn and I used to do this in the era before cell phone info and navigation. Now, we wonder how we ever managed with only maps and guidebooks, especially in foreign countries where we could not read the language.

Come along, as we ride an eight-hour train from Helsinki north to Rovaniemi, Finland, the official hometown of Santa Claus. We will then drive a rental car north of the Artic Circle and into the farthest reaches of Norway.

Driving further north, Lapland, Finland

We like Rovaniemi right off the bat. Fresh, scentless air surrounds lakes, rivers, and bridges. The rugged beauty here reminds us of Alaska, but without the mountains and glaciers.

Rovaniemi, Finland Waterfront

Art Shot, Rovaniemi, Finland

Bridge Reflection, Rovaniemi, Finland

Every dish on the menu at Gustav’s Kitchen and Bar restaurant comes with a story of the chef’s inspiration. We opt for rye bread, raw herring, cold-smoked trout, grilled goat cheese with strawberries, and a bottle of Cava.

Gustav Kitchen and Bar, Rovaniemi, Finland

The Rovaniemi church was rebuilt in 1950 after being torched by the Nazis during the Lapland War in 1944. The 14-foot fresco on the wall depicts “The Source of Life.”

Rovaniemi Church, Rovaniemi Finland

Inside Rovaniemi Church, Rovaniemi, Finland

Road trip! Love the freedom of renting your own wheels. We drive six-hours north, dodging reindeer and occasional moose along the road to Nuorgam, Finland’s northernmost town.

Reindeer in Lapland, Finland

Imagine a white reindeer with pink antlers. At least our roadside meal of sauteed reindeer atop mashed potatoes and lingonberries looks like dark meat, so he is safe for now.

Pink and White Reindeer, Lapland, Finland

Sauteed Reindeer for Lunch

We are road tripping during one of Finland’s most important holidays. “Midsummer,” which coincides with the solstice, was initially a pagan celebration. Now, most Finns leave the cities and head out of town to celebrate in country cottages. Shops, cafes, and restaurants all close. Who knew? Ah, another one of the “adventures” of independent travel.

Reindeer Crossing, Lapland, Finland

Despite being a major holiday, the road up here in Lapland has little traffic flow. At one point, we veer off the main road enroute to the Russian border, only twenty-eight miles (46Km) away. However, due to current world events, Finland has fortified and closed the border.

Guess we won’t make a stop in Russia

A cabin in Nuorgam awaits our arrival in the land of the Sami, Finland’s original native population. We are not sure what to expect. And then, paradise appears. This shack has a glass wood-burner stove, private wood-fired sauna, and a jacuzzi on the porch along the Teno River bordering Norway.

Midnight sun, Nuorgam, Finland

The sun does not set for seventy-three days up here this time of year.

We do not want to leave. No worries. With a frigid wind blowing outside there is no temptation to explore further. Instead, we spend two days navigating from the fireplace to the sauna, to the jacuzzi, thankful for the wind, which keeps away hordes of mosquitos. Nothing like basking in the afterglow of a good sweat.

Living Large in Nuorgam, Finland

Detox and Retox in Nuorgam, Finland

Hot Tubbing in Nuorgam, Finland

Rise and shine! Playtime is over. Time to check-out and drive to the end of the road in Norway. Turns out to be great timing as the wind has stopped, and the skeeters are starving. We want to drive as far north as the road will take us, to the ghost town of Hamningburg, one of the only towns not destroyed by the Nazi’s during WWII.

Driving along the barrren road dodging sheep and reindeer we marvel at the blue Barents Sea, a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean.

Barents Sea, Norway

Better top off the gas tank, as towns are scarce and far apart. This long straight road has no cover, so we must break a basic rule of human civilization and piss in the wind, roadside.

Driving into Norway

Oops. Every business in each town is closed for the holiday. Including gas stations. Ahh, another one of those adventures that come with independent travel.

Calculating the distance of how many kilometers we can drive to and “fro” without running out of gas, we will not make it to the very end of the road. Not if we want to return in the car.

Northeastern Norway

We push it a bit, hoping to find an open gas station in the last populated town. Wait a minute, this road ends in the water. Is there a ferry? Of course not, we are in the boonies. Surprisingly, an old tunnel takes us under the Barents Sea and back up into the town of Vardo, which just happens to be Norway’s easternmost town.

Tunnel to Vardo, Norway

Tunnel to Vardo, Norway

Wow. What a fascinating place. Screeching seagulls nest around the harbor full of fishing and king crabbing boats. Dang, like the coffee in Guatemala, the king crab catch in Vardo is shipped around the world and not available for retail purchase for the regular person, especially not today when everything is closed. Including the only gas station.

Vardo Harbor, Vardo, Norway

Birds!!

Vardo Chapel, Vardo, Norway

The most fascinating find of all awaits us at the “Steilneset Memorial” dedicated to the witches burned in Finnmark, Norway’s northernmost and easternmost province.

Steilneset Memorial, Vardo, Norway

During the witchcraft trials, from 1600 to 1692, 125 people – 111 women and twenty-four men, were prosecuted for practicing witchcraft. Most of them lived in Vardo. The outcome of the “water ordeal” was the convincing evidence of each trial, and held to be God’s judgement. With hands and feet tied, the person was thrown into the water. If they floated, it was evidence of witchcraft. If they sank, well, they died but not as a witch. Twenty percent of the accused were Samis, the others were Norwegian.

Steilneset Memorial, Vardo, Norway

Steilneset Memorial, Vardo, Norway

This exhibition memorializes the seventy-seven women and fourteen men who were convicted and burned at the stake. Plaques and individual texts, based on court records, describe what each of these people were accused of and the outcome of the prosecution. Here is an example of one:

Just one of the 91 people (77 women and 14 men) who were executed during the Finnmark witchcraft trials

On a more pleasant and positive note, we make it back to Nuorgam, barely. We can hardly contain our excitement when we find an open gas station, and an accompanying Diner. Reindeer burgers (dark meat) and fries never tasted so good. We devour the meal like a couple of hyenas.

Northeastern Norway

Tomorrow, we will dodge reindeer and moose along the 6-hour drive back to Rovaniemi. The following day, it will be time to return our “freedom wheels” and head back to our temporary home in Helsinki, via eight hours of trains and busses. We look forward to the surprises and unexpected adventures that onward independent travel shall no doubt deliver.

Thank You, Abundant Universe!