The first meeting of the Saami of Sweden, Norway and Finland was held on February 6, 1917 in Trondheim, Norway, thus the date. The Russian Saami joined the union in 1992.
Kandalaksha+
The City of Kandalaksha, Murmansk oblast, and its vicinity. Getting there, where to stay, what to do. The ultimate source of Kandalaksha and area info in English.
re: Saami sacred stones, Vottovaara mountain, Russian Karelia
How many hours driving, or by bus, is Vottovaara mountain, and the Saami sacred stones, in Russian Karelia, from Kandalaksha?
Link to photos of them:
http://unusualplaces.org/saami-sacred-stone-vottovaara-mountain/
About Vottovaara, Seidozero and other sacred places. Pasha, translate please.
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Here:
Vottovaara (Воттоваара). The nearest village is Gimoly (Гимолы), Petrozavodsk district. Distance from Kandalaksha 700km. Train from St. Petersburg to Gimoly is 12 hours. Or take a bus from Petrozavodsk to Suoyarvi (Суоярви), then whatever. The story of a car trip from Petrozavodsk: http://melifaroh.livejournal.com/419300.html
A car trip starting from St. Petersburg, with photos and maps, very clear and detailed: http://www.aroundspb.ru/vottovaara-trip.html
It is a distant place no matter where from you go. Not a day’s trip.
If you are interested not specifically in Vottovaara but any similar site will do, I’d recommend Seidozero. From Kandalaksha you go through Lovozero or Revda. Total travel distance from Kandalaksha is 220km (through Lavozero) and 209km (through Revda).
That’s the least paidful way to see seids (large stones on “legs”) in the vicinity of Kandalaksha even though one should still be prepared to do a lot of walking. These seids are on top of mountains, thus no way to drive right up to them.
re: Vottovaara mountain, 417 meters, Russia west Karelia
The remoteness of the place, the foggy wet conditions, and the stunted trees and vegetation contribute to a haunted feeling about the place.
re: Vottovaara mountain, 417 meters, Russia west Karelia
Are you allowed to camp on top of Vottovaara? Is there water anywhere on top of it? Are local Saami guides available?
Do you need a Karelian peoples permit to hike, or camp on Vottovaara mountain?
re: Vottovaara, 417 meters, Russia west Karelia, Saami sacred rocks site.
Spaseeba bolshoi. It is very remote and difficult to get to, isn’t it!
There was also a good reference to it on a NASA space agency earth sciences website, under glaciers. But the link is broken.
About Ozero Seidozero, Murmanskaya, I was studying about trying to hike to there from Revda, Murmanskaya. A friend at Kirovsk also recommends Ozero Seidozero for Saami sacred rocks.