With the little place Bonhamn we have the region Höga Kusten left behind. It was really a beautiful area and there was a lot to see. On the further route we don't have as many points on the coast and we are currently avoiding everything that is inland. We want to go north via Skelleftea Lapland into the mountains, maybe we'll be lucky with the mosquitos. And then we will definitely see reindeer at last. So far we hadn't had any luck with it.
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Bjuröklubb nature reserve - beautiful stretch of beach
From Umea we are off then up Bjuröklubb nature reserve hazards. Here we have placed ourselves on a parking lot that has direct access to the beach. At first we could still see the Baltic Sea from the window, but then someone with a caravan pushed himself into our field of vision. Finja had a lot of fun on the beach and romped around first. However, there were more mosquitos here, as there was hardly a breeze. There weren't quite that many on the bus. Since we no longer have any fresh carrots to cook for Finja, we wanted to go back to shopping the next day. But in the evening it occurred to Sebastian that we still have dried carrots to soak and so we stayed another day.
I hadn't slept quite so well that night. My left leg with restless leg annoyed me. I would have loved to unscrew the leg so I can sleep. Well, that's the way it is, keeps you awake. But then I slept in and we wanted to stay anyway. So a working day was inserted. I finished writing the reports and Basti edited pictures and put the next report online. On the beach it was also better with the mosquitoes and we took a few nice photos there.
The next day we want to go shopping to Skelleftea and visit the church town. We are not that far away from the Finnish border and now you have to look for suitable sleeping places on the coast. Let's see where we can still find something, because then it goes up to the north at the border. Norway wants to open the borders in 4 weeks and maybe we will manage to spend the weeks in the north in the mountains so that we can then cross over.
Skelleftea - the church district of Bonnstan
After we did a little cleaning on the bus in the morning, we made our way to Skelleftea did. There is the Bonnstan district, which used to be a church town. This district consists of wooden houses that were built in the 17th century. The church towns were mostly to be found in northern Sweden and is the result of the rise of the Protestant church. It became compulsory for the residents to come to church every Sunday and public holiday, and since most of the people lived further away, these church towns were built.
On the weekends they came to their wooden house to be able to take part in the fair. But there was also a lively exchange of information that was important for the residents through the meeting on the weekends. Sometimes you saw other people than just those on your own farm. Work was given or you got to know your spouse here. The church was compulsory until the middle of the 19th century, but the tradition continued even after that.
When the streets and cars came, the houses were left to their own devices, as you could now come from home. The houses slowly fell into disrepair and were renovated in the 1970s and have been preserved ever since. However, you can still see that some of the houses are still in use and people meet there.
After the visit there we went shopping and then continued along the coast to our next parking space.
You can find more information about the church town of Bonnstan here:
Gammelstad (Old Town) - the largest and best preserved church town in Sweden
It has to be washed, so it's a campsite again. In Pitea we found someone who also has a washing machine. It should be the 2nd largest in Sweden and have 5 stars. When we got there, the place was pretty empty. Since there are holidays everywhere in Sweden now, we expected more occupancy. The place is really great for families with children! We have never seen so much animation in any other place. I immediately started washing and 2 hours later the laundry was ready, with the dryer! The best part was that it was all included in the price!
The next morning I had a quick shower and then drove on. Gammelstad is the largest church town in Sweden with over 400 houses and is a world cultural heritage site. In the middle of the 16th century the first wooden houses were built around the church, which was built of stone at the beginning of the 15th century. Most of the houses have only one room in which everything was available. Space had to be saved, so there was either an old form of sofa bed or a high bed cabinet. In addition, there was an open fireplace where they cooked, a table with chairs and often a secretary. Some houses had a second floor or a room next door, which was then rented out.
Church customs are still alive in Gammelstad. The parishioners are invited to church holidays 3 to 4 times a year. In the traditional confirmation class before midsummer, the young people even live in the church houses. Nowadays they have electricity and heating, but no running water or toilet. There are several service houses where you can also take a shower. One of the houses can be visited and the typical furnishings can be seen. A young girl sat in the house and answered my question whether the houses are still in use.
Most of the houses are privately owned and are often used as weekend or holiday homes. Of course, people also meet on the high holidays or midsummer and sit together. Some houses are in the hands of an association and are kept in good shape. It was really all very interesting to see.
Old ferry pier and Haparanda - sleeping place with lost place effect and border town
Just before the island Seskarö we have found a place to stay. It's an old ferry dock that looks a bit like Lost Place. First we thought about what the structures on the bank were, I thought of a boat inlet. But when we saw the same thing on the opposite side of the island, it could only be a ferry dock. Today the 2 islands are connected by a bridge. Here we spent our last night at the sea. Now it's only up to the north and therefore only to the river or lakes.
You have the Baltic Sea on both sides of the ferry dock and towards evening the sky tore open and gave us fantastic images of the sun. We slept well and after we had decided to go on instead of staying another night, we went to around noon Haparanda did. This is the last Swedish city on the coast before the Finnish border. There we first went shopping and took a break. There were also a few pictures from Finland, but you can't go over there yet.
Basti had read that you can go to Norway from mid-July and so our plan is to explore the north of Sweden by then and then drive over there. Let's see if we can do it all that way and if we can actually cross the border. We have time.
Camping Polcirkeln in Jucksengi - our worst night yet
On the way further north and our chosen pitch, we wanted to visit the Swedish Santa Claus. When we got there, there was a campsite right on the river and Santa Claus was supposed to be there. We didn't look for him then. However, we were absolutely thrilled with the section of the river. There were very violent rapids here. Some waves were so high that the water just splashed.
The point was called Kukkolaforsen and that would actually have made us prick up our ears. Forsen is always a term for waterfalls or anything that has to do with water. There were some fishermen here who did not fish with a line, but with cashers. On the Finnish side there were also quite a few people fishing.
The search for a parking space turned out to be very difficult. The first place was at a lake in the middle of the forest and when we got out and were walking a bit, the mosquitoes came over to us. At the 2nd we didn't get out of the car in the first place, so the swarms only flew up on arrival. When we drove back, we saw a woman with a net over her head. On the third one it was written that after a short rest you would like to continue your journey. We were annoyed! The day had started so beautifully and relaxed and now we couldn't find a place!
Around 8 p.m. we arrived at a campsite on the Arctic Circle, Camping Polcirkeln. It's only a small parking space, but everything is there. Since it was already so late and we didn't feel like cooking anything, we treated ourselves to a pizza at the operator. Later we walked to the globe that marks the polar circle. And what can I say, we were besieged by mosquitoes!
The night was really bad! Our bus was half black on all sides, so many mosquitoes were hanging on the car. We had already taken a mosquito or two into the car while running. But when we wanted to sleep, more and more came in. We sealed everything, every slot, the ventilation, the windows. And yet they found their way on the bus ...
Sebastian then accidentally broke the toilet lid. We only slept about 2 hours a night and around half past seven we got up completely exhausted and annoyed. That was definitely the worst mosquito experience we've had so far. Our consideration of where to go and we can find a hardware store for a new toilet seat now leads us to the mountains in the hope that it will be better there !!!
You can find more pictures in the Sweden photo gallery.
