Stora Sjöfallets Visitor Centre - 23 June 2018

Geoff 

In reading various leaflets we'd acquired, I came across a possibly interesting detour for today. The only drawback was that it was over fifty miles down a road which led to very little else other than our destination, the Stora Sjöfallets Visitor Centre, although the proper name is the Naturum and it is in the Stora Sjöfallets National Park. 

Anyway, we first refuelled in Jokkmokk and continued on the E45, undecided what to do as it would be a long way only to find it was a disappointment. Along the E45, we passed by lakes and dams, part of Sweden's hydroelectric power generation system. Just after going across one dam, I surprised Amanda by braking hard and turning off on to a narrow tarmaced road. It was signposted Harsprånget and I had read about it on the blog of some friends (http://langdale-associates.com/sweden_2013/part_5/index.htm) we met in Sweden in 2016. The blog is a real mine of information. So we parked in what used to be the village centre an took around what was left of it. The village had been built to house workers involved in construction of the dam. About 1,200 people had lived here and there had been shops, a community hall and the village even had it's own football team and a pitch. However, the work on the dam was finished by 1979 although people continued to live in Harsprånget until 1985 when it was abandoned. Wooden houses were loaded on to lorries and taken elsewhere. All that remains is a largely hidden network of streets overtaken by nature and, here and there, a pole with a street name on it. An information board set out some history (in Swedish) and there were some old photographs. 

Returning to the E45, we continued through the small town of Porjus and, shortly after, turned off down the road towards the Stora Sjöfallets National Park. After a lunch stop, we decided to go on to the visitor centre. The road went on sometimes through quite open land and sometimes through forest but with mountains in the distance. 

Eventually, the mountains closed in, we saw snow capped areas and the weather deteriorated. We arrived at the Naturum car park with only a couple of other vehicles there. We made our way on foot through an almost primeval wooded area to the Naturum building, an odd structure made of wood on the outside. 

We had over an hour to spend here but there is much too see so we will return tomorrow. One of the guides, Jenny, gave us an informative description of aspects of Sami life. Her English was very good, having lived in Bristol and Birmingham for five years, only returning home when tuition fees in the UK were sharply increased. 

Amanda

We are rather losing track of the days of the week so, after oversleeping (Geoff clearly needed an unheard of lie-in to help recovery of the bruised ribs!) we were taken aback when downloading the paper to realise that it is Saturday. We were undecided as to where to head for today. Geoff had discovered an interesting looking eco-visitor centre in one of the National Parks north west of the E45, but it meant a drive of some 50 miles down a dead end road and back again along the same road. We set off, still undecided. The views from the  E45  became more dramatic and it took us past several huge dams with associated power stations. Following a sign we drove off the road along a track to the site of what was, in the mid twentieth century, the thriving village community of Harsprangets Samhalle, built for workers at the Harsprangets Power Station. All the buildings were finally demolished in 1985, and all that remain,  in what is now overgrown woodland, is the street signs. A strange place, eerily calm.

Just after Porjus Barjas, an unusually smart and prosperous looking place compared to others we have passed, with its power station and visitor centre, we turned off on the road to the Stora Sjofallets National Park and Visitor Centre, and stopped for lunch in a lovely wooded lakeside lay-by. Fortified, we took a deep breath and crossed our fingers it would be worth it, and set off again along the road, The day had started bright, but it had now clouded over and become blustery. But the scenery became spectacular as we headed towards towering snow capped mountains along the excellent road with no traffic. And yes, it was worth it! A 300 yard walk through the trees from the car park nestled the large wood and glass building, living up to its eco tag in appearance. Inside we were requested to don either the slippers or the shoe covers provided, and we stepped through into a large, super-modern, warm exhibition hall with a stylish wood fire in the middle encircled by a comfy bench, a cafe to one side, and loads of information and exhibits about both Sami Culture and the local ecology. Only a couple of other people were there apart from staff, one of whom, Jenny, asked if we would like her to tell us more about the exhibition. We sat in the cafe chatting to her over Hot Chocolate and berry cake with vanilla sauce, and she then gave us our own personal guided tour of some of the exhibits. She was very knowledgable, having studied social ecology, She had also spent 5 years in England, in Bristol and Birmingham, before returning here to university.

We are staying the night here in the blustery car park, to return to the Centre tomorrow morning, and explore the walkways around it and the lake in what will hopefully be better weather.