Scandinavia… Not a country, but a beautiful area. Scandinavia is the collective name for the following Northern countries; Norway, Sweden and Denmark. Looking at history, Finland and Iceland also belong to Scandinavia: according to the Norwegian council, they also belong. All in all, Scandinavia is huge (more than a million square kilometers), while about 24 million people live there. For comparison; The Netherlands is more than 41,000 square kilometers with about 17 million inhabitants.

Of all western European countries, the Scandinavian countries probably have the most more or less untouched nature. In addition, they are countries that are easily accessible from the Netherlands. Norway is characterized by, among other things, the fjords and the Trollstigen, known to many motorcyclists. And where Sweden is known as wide and relaxing, everyone knows Finland as the land of 1000 lakes. All in all, legitimate reasons to traverse this beautiful nature in the north of Europe by means of a number of routes.

The route starts in Enontekiö, located in the far north of Finnish Lapland. After less than a mile you will pass a supermarket. It is wise to stock up on some food and drink for the road. There are not extensive catering establishments along much of the route. If you stand in front of a closed door somewhere, you have at least something with you.
A few hundred meters away you will pass a gas station, if you do not have the tank full you can still do so here.

After driving 40 kilometers through the Finnish part of Lapland past countless lakes you arrive at the border with Norway. The first kilometers in Norway look no different than in Finland. Low trees, extensive landscape and water, lots of water. There are several points where you can stop for a while to stretch your legs and take a look at the surroundings.

The first coffee stop is planned in Kautokeino at restaurant Duottar. Judging by the snowmobiles in the parking lot, it can snow seriously here. Of course it is wonderful to ride or slide through the landscape on such a thing.

After the coffee break, you drive further north and you pass Cábardasjohka dam, an electricity plant. This river power plant is owned and operated by Ymber AS. The power plant uses a drop of approximately 5.5 meters about 2 kilometers from the outlet to the Kautokeino River. The plant previously had a regulation reservoir in Stuorajavri, about 15 kilometers north of the plant. By raising the water level by 1 meter, a reservoir volume of 21.5 million m³ was achieved here. The regulation dam was destroyed by the spring flood in 1968 and was not later rebuilt. The plant has a vertical Kaplan turbine (diameter 1.8 m, 14 m³ / s, 250 rpm) that generates 725 kVA / 400 Volt. The annual production is 4-4.5 GWh.

A few dozen kilometers further on you will pass the Pikefossen waterfall. This is the only waterfall (8 meters) on the Kautokeino / Alta River.
The name is derived from a Sami legend of a girl herding reindeer while her master was traveling. The whole herd of reindeer drowned. When her master returned and saw what had happened, he threw the maid into the waterfall, hence the name. There is a picnic area and toilets.

You will also pass the point where the Trangdaselva flows into the Altaelva River. Especially when the river has a high flow at that time, it is a spectacular sight, beautiful to see. Just after the bridge there is a place where you can park.
The Altaelva is the third longest river in the province of Troms og Finnmark. The river starts in the mountains and lakes in the municipality of Kautokeino, near the border with the province of Troms og Finnmark and Finland, just south of the Reisa National Park. The 150-mile river then runs north to the municipality of Alta, where it flows into the Altafjorden in the town of Alta. The river carved out Sautso, one of the largest canyons in Europe on its way from the high Finnmarksvidda plateau to the sea.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the river was the site of the Alta controversy over the construction of a hydroelectric power station. The Alta power station was finally built in 1987, creating Lake Virdnejávri on the river.
The river is one of the best salmon rivers in Norway, known for its large salmon. In the past, salmon up to 33 kg were recorded and up to 24 kg are still caught. In 2011, 1082 salmon weighing 7 kilograms or more were caught on the river.
The Altaelva literally means the "Alta river". The Northern Sami language version of the name is Álttáeatnu and the Kven language version of the name is Alattionjoki. The part of the river that is upstream (south) of the Alta Dam is also called Kautokeinoelva, which means the "Kautokeino River" as that part of the river is in Kautokeino. That part of the river is also known as Guovdageaineatnu or Eatnu in the Northern Sami language.

At Alta you reach the coast, where you look out over the Altafjorden. This fjord is named after Alta, where, as mentioned, the Altaelva also flows into the sea. A coffee break and a refueling stop are planned in Alta. Shortly after the refueling stop, you can see the mouth of the Altaelva in the fjord from the bridge.

In Alta you will also find the Alta Museum. Dive into the history of Alta and the surrounding nature reserves on a trip to the Alta Museum. See rock art that is thousands of years old, learn about the spectacular Northern Lights, and learn about the origins of the city market in the 15th century.
Highlights of the museum include old panels and boulders with rock art. The museum also contains one of five examples of outdoor rock art declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. From the museum there are hiking trails through the area along a small bay.
When you return to the museum, you can continue your tour of the museum at one of the numerous exhibitions. For example, explore the history of the Alta market, which has been around since the 15th century. In addition to detailed maps of the trade between Alta and the rest of Northern Europe, you can also view photos of life in the market at the beginning of the 20th century.

On the way to the end of the route you will pass a number of nice places to stop, for example Rasfsnesbukta and Leirbotnvannet. At both places you have a nice view over the water. The latter lake is the source of the Leirbotnelva (Lakselva), which flows into the Altafjord at Leirbotn. The Leirbotnelva was protected from current development in Conservation Plan IV for watercourses in 1993.

After about 300 water-rich kilometers you will reach the end of this route, the Skaidi hotel in Skaidi. A well-appreciated hotel with a bar, restaurant and sauna.

The midnight sun is also clearly visible in the north of Norway. The midnight sun never completely disappears; however the sun sinks quite low and floats just above the horizon. The sun now hangs for several hours between sunset and sunrise, radiating a soft glow: a dream come true for every photographer. Shady silhouettes against a golden sky with beautiful nature all around you, that is an experience that many people would love to experience.
In the north of Norway, the midnight sun shines from the end of May to mid-July. However, a warning is in order, exposure to this phenomenon can disrupt your sleep cycle.

For campers, two campsites are indicated in the vicinity of the end point: Repparfjord Camping og Misjonssenter and Russenes Camping. The latter is more than 20 kilometers away.

Have fun driving this route!