On the road II – Jäckvik—Hemavan via Norway – 300 km Feb 10 2020

When I look through the window of my stuga in Jäckvik I see, that my car is covered with snow. Appoximately 8 cm have fallen over night. I take a frugal breakfast, pack the car, clean the room and pay for the stay. Then I continue my zigzag car trip south. Today I want to reach Hemavan. I prefer the way via Norway to the way through the Swedish inland.

I drive northwest on the road 95. Due to the warm weather of winter 2019/20 many watercourses are still open.

After 40 kilometres I cross the polar circle again, but I’m more intested in the small shop where I buy food and goodies. (What’s a road trip without goodies?)

I continue following road 95. The road slowly ascends and the trees give way to the treeless kalfjäll. After a while I leave Sweden and enter Norway.

In Norway I expect higher mountains (when visible in the snowy and foggy weather) and tunnels. But first I have to wait. A Latvian truck blocks the road. The driver already had put snow chains round some tyres but in vain. The  road is covered with slippery ice and the wheels carve themselves deeper and deeper into the thick layer of ice. It doesn’t take long until a man from vegvesen arrives to free the truck. The magic ingredience? A lot of sand!

The road is free again and I continue driving. And there they are: mountains and tunnels. “Norwegian essentials.”

It has started snowing more intense. The road 95 descends and leads through forests until it meets the E6, the European route connecting many Norwegian cities from Oslo to Kirkenes. It’s the first time that I turn left, in direction Mo i Rana. There I want to take the E12 back to Sweden again. But first the E6 leads over another mountain passage.

After this passage the road descends and both weather and road gets a bit ugly.

Normally I had turned onto the E12 in Mo i Rana but today Google Maps was my Navigator. It recommends to turn left already in Røssvoll. I follow a tiny path and stop in front of a small suspension bridge. Is it really for cars? It is, other cars use it, too. So I cross the river Raneelva and follow the narrow winding path through forests and settlements. A nice route, but probably much slower than turning in Mo. By the way: the locals don’t seem too happy me using this road. They all glare at me. Perhaps there are many others, who follow Google Maps’ shortcut as well.

The E12 rises and leads over kalfjell a third time this day. I make some photos on the parking places.

Soon I am back in Sweden. I love the bare mountains and so I really enjoyed the ride today. But not it starts getting dark and I am longing for a bed. So I continued to Hemavan without any breaks. I arrived there 16:20 and get a room in the Fjällcenter. Tomorrow I’ll even get a real breakfast! Luxury!