norway-russia border region
 

Hello, looking at e-maps, there appears to be an interesting looking coast road in the very far NE Norway. Heading north, it looks like it ends up on an island. Just wondering if anyone here has been in that area?

We have on both sides (N and RUS), but what is your question??

GRTZ,

JP

E79 is the road. It heads up to an island called Varso. Looking at it in more detail, it looks quite militaristic! Is that a tunnel connecting ?

E79 is the road. It heads up to an island called Varso. Looking at it in more detail, it looks quite militaristic! Is that a tunnel connecting ?

????

E75 I think ending at Vardø.

Wikipedia: The island is connected to the mainland via the undersea Vardø Tunnel (Norway's first such structure).

????

GRTZ,

JP

The E75 quite correctly ends in Vardø, a town which also holds the world's northernmost fortress, with "roots" back to the 14th century. In summer you can continue past Vardø along the road 341 which takes you to the derelict fishing village of Hamningberg. Nice ride out there - if the weather is nice. This is, however, where the road ends - you cannot ride any further along the coast.

Yeas I know the place quite well. I have been working there in my younger days.

Vardø or Vardoe as is probably a more understandable spelling for english speakers ("Vargøya" - "The wolf island" - dont worrry theres no wolves there nowadays :-) )is the islands name. And correctly the end of E75.
Vardø is as about as remote as far you can get in Norway. Its a small town of only around 2000 inhabitants. The town has lost much of it former inhabitants due to decrease in fishing resources in the nearby oceans. But a few years back the decrease stopped and the last few years the place has been experienced a small increase in the number of inhabitants.

Vardø houses a quite big military radar complex. But its not much present and noticed in the daily life. Vardø also houses the old museum fortress that Indu describes.

And as Indu says, one can continue another 40-45 km further to the abandoned fishing settlement of Hamningberg. The place were abandoned a few years after the second world war but most houses and building are restored and in good shape and are used as holiday and weekend homes of Vardøs inhabitants. Its a very pitoresque place and the road out there is as pitoruesqe. Not to missed if youre in the area.

On the other side of the big fjord - "Varangerfjorden" is a bigger town called Kirkenes which is actually the bordertown to Russia. One can actually ride along the border to Russia along the river "Jakobselv" for about 15-20 km to "Grense Jakobselv" where the river divides the border between Norway and Russia.

If you visit Northcape there is about a good days ride to these areas and I highly recommend it. There are several smaller places of interest. The whole area is a mix of the ethnic sami peolpe, finnish immigrants, a few russian immigrants and norwegians.

A recommended route south from here is from Neiden, approx 40 km from Kirkenes. If one rides there one soon crosses the border to Finland and further south you can choose to ride through Sweden or Finland.