74.23km –11H01’
Altitude : 109 m
16,000 km in 119 days 23 hours and 33 minutes
The day went quickly for me but it was very long for Serge, who had a cold shower the entire day. At km 30 he decided not to make the official 16,000 km stop but to combine the day’s two stops. We planned to make a short halt to see Santa Claus a bit further north than Rovaniemi, on the National 4 at Napapiiri. So the 16,000 km banner came out at km 52 (instead of km 34.4), at the Polar Circle where Santa Claus has his village. Close by there is a theme park for the famous white beard but it is open only between the end of June and mid August, Finland’s summer vacation period.
Serge is thrilled to have arrived at this latitude and even more thrilled to be able to go further north, even if the last 20 km on the E75 will not be easy. To avoid the suction from passing trucks he has to run with one leg in the ditch.
It’s biting cold, which obviously does not bother the ducks that are flying majestically above us. We went around Rovaniemi to the east so all we saw of the city was one it its supermarkets, where we filled the fuel tanks before heading deeper into Lapland. Rovaniemi, the capital of both the province and the region, has a population of 60,000 inhabitants. Lapland has twice the area of Switzerland and only 200,000 inhabitants, like the city of Le Havre. That means there are 2 inhabitants per square kilometer (the national average is 17 per sq. km., one of the lowest in Europe).
We finally bought aerosols of mosquito repellant and I have to admit that in Kemi I counted more than 10 bites on my thighs and buttocks in the space of 15 minutes, without knowing it was happening. And these charming insects attack on the sly right through your clothes. Forewarned is forearmed so we are ready to confront an area which, according to certain books, can be hot and dry in the summer. Thinking about it, sun and mosquitoes are better than the rain; however, behind my back Serge signals that he has his doubts!!!
PS: The photos have a few spots due to rain on the lens, in spite of protection from the umbrella.