Laponia

The picture was taken in Rago National Park in the north of Norway. The name Rago comes from the Sami language and means sledebreen, literally translated as "sliding glacier". It is the sixth smallest park in Norway. To the east it borders Sweden's Padjelanta National Park. However, together with this and the Sarek and Stora Sjøfallet National Parks, it is the largest in Europe.

A width, untouched wilderness crisscrossed only by a few hiking trails. The aim here is to protect an untouched mountainous area with sparse vegetation in its original state. A lot of rainfall and the hard granite formed the Rago into a landscape of polished, bare rocks.
In the national park you have the feeling of feeling the breath of the last ice age. Only the slopes to the left and right of the Laksågas River, the banks of Storskogvatnet (lake) and Trolldalen (Troll Valley), which adjoins the lake to the northeast, are overgrown with pines and fell birches.

From an altitude of 400 meters, bare rock reigns supreme, on which only the most resistant dwarf shrubs - such as the crowberry - and grasses can survive.
The many waterfalls in the park area also contribute to the magnificent nature, the number of which is unsurpassed by any other national park in Norway. Most of the waterfalls are formed by the River Laksåga, which offers rapids and thundering falls in the upper reaches. The river meanders quietly through quiet forests in the lower part. Directly at the outlet of Lake Storskogvatnet, the 18 m high Storskogfossen (Greatforestwaterfall) thunders into the lake-like spread of the river.

Just 1,200 metres downstream, the 43-metre-high Trollforsen (Troll Waterfall) continues the river's fall. Two kilometres further on, the Helligforsen plunges into the Helligholet gorge. But the most grandiose is the Waterfall Værivassfossen, which falls from Litleverivatnet (lake in the picture on the right) 223 m deep into the Valley Storskogdalen.

The lowest point of the park is in Storskogdalen at 120 m above sea level, the highest point is the 1,312 m high Rago (Sámi = Ragucohkka), on the southern slope of which lies the Rágujiekna Glacier. If you are lucky, you can also meet the wolverine, the most predatory inhabitant of the Nordic mountains.

The river Laksåga, whose most beautiful, meandering section is already outside the park boundaries, is home to beavers and trout. The dense forests of the valley are also home to a solid elk trunk. The two largest lakes in the park are Litlverivatnet/Bassejávri at 311 metres and Storskogvatnet at 192 metres. Both are reached by a 2-day hike through the national park.

The lake can be reached after about three to four hours - depending on your physical condition. Another 4-6 hours to the east are the Swedish border. The way there to the tree line is also strenuous, with a 5 m high cliff with luggage causing particular difficulties.

The hike to the lake is not difficult, but not to be underestimated either. In bad weather, the route is not necessarily suitable, as the smooth rocks can become very slippery when it starts to rain.

And rain is really not uncommon in this area.