The Tana river ice drifting is often
a fascinating and exciting sight

Spring is here when the Tana river ice drifting starts together with the other big rivers of Lapland. It is often a fascinating and exciting sight.

During winter the ice cover on lakes and rivers connect people as they can cross almost everywhere on skis, by foot or by snowmobile. In some places, like the Tana river, there are even regular ice roads crossing the river. In spring these roads disappear and create some inconvenience for people.

This is also a time of waiting. Fishermen wait for the ice to go so that they may angle or use their nets.

For some weeks the rivers and the lakes are in an intermediate state where they are sort of "useless". Nobody can use them for transportation. And fishing is not possible. We just wait.

The Tana river constitutes the border beween Norway and Finland and is among the longest rivers in Norway and Finland. Normally the snow melting starts at the southern parts of the river. The river starts flooding and the ice loosens and start drifting and pushing downstream.

Sometimes the ice gathers where the river is narrow and shallow. Then huge packs of ice and ice floes form ice dams which cause flooding which can in turn flood the roads and cause damage to buildings.

The Storfossen/Alaköngas is such a place. This also can happen at the lower parts of the valley - i.e. near the river delta, the Tanamunningen Nature Reserve.

Here is a slide show of Tana river ice drifting
(All photos: Olav E. Johansen)

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