Exploring Rovaniemi and Encountering Reindeer on the Road

With an extra day in Rovaniemi, we decided to take it easy and do some exploring. Sunday was all about immersing ourselves in northern culture at the Arktikum Museum. It’s an amazing place that brings the wild beauty of the Arctic, along with its culture and history, right up close. We spent most of the afternoon there, soaking in the exhibits.

the Arktikum Museum.

the Arktikum Museum.

the Arktikum Museum.

the Arktikum Museum.

Screenshot Daylight

Since the sun isn’t setting anymore, we’re officially in 24-hour daylight mode. In the evening, we treated ourselves to a fantastic meal at Nili Restaurant, where we were served authentic Lappish delicacies—seriously, an unforgettable culinary experience. After dinner, I indulged in the hotel’s sauna before calling it a day. Definitely a day to remember.

The next morning, Michel headed to the hospital for a final checkup on his eye, while I had the critical mission of getting his glasses repaired. One of the legs had broken off, and now that he can’t wear his contact lenses, he really needs them. The first optician couldn’t fix them, but in the second place, after explaining it just needed to be functional, they told me to come back before lunch. By the time Michel was cleared to ride (with a fresh set of meds and no contacts for a week), his glasses were also patched up and ready to go!

By noon, we hit the road under a steady drizzle. It felt good to be back on the bikes after a few days of forced downtime. Even the rain couldn’t dampen the thrill of making some serious miles again.

The adrenaline kicked in when, after a clear overtaking maneuver, a reindeer appeared out of nowhere in the middle of the 100 km/h road. We slammed on the brakes, and the animal just stood there, staring us down. It didn’t move until I was a mere 10 meters away, then finally decided to jump off. The thing with reindeer is, that you never know which direction they’ll go—it’s a total gamble whether they’ll leap towards or away from you.

Reindeer kicked in on the road

Halfway through the route, we stopped at a gas station for a quick coffee. Inside, we bumped into Wilma and Henriette, two Dutch cyclists we’d met earlier at the campsite in Rovaniemi. We caught up on each other’s weekends before parting ways again.

Quick coffee with Wilma and Henriette

By 6 p.m., we started searching for a campsite but found out it was closed. After pushing another 40 km, we lucked out with a spot that had cozy log cabins—and get this—cheaper than the campsite in Rovaniemi, complete with a wood-fired sauna. Perfect!

In the photo, you can spot Sweden across the river. The river is the border itself, so we’re literally camping on the edge of Finland. The best part? Staying in a log cabin means we can pack up fast tomorrow morning and head straight to Tromsø, Norway.

Our log cabin for the night

Our log cabin for the night

Our log cabin for the night

Our log cabin for the night

On the other side is Sweden

Our log cabin sauna

Our log cabin for the night

Our meal at the log cabin’s place restaurant