Northern Norway

"but there are a few glaciers around, so I guess any advice on camping on glaciers would be great as well"  

What? Camping on glacier in Finnmark!!! HELLOOOOO

I have lived in Finnmark for nearly 20 years, and near the biggest glacier Øksfjordjøkelen, but it is not a place you go to camp unless you have 1: extensive course in how to move on glaciers. 2: Ice axes, ropes and crampons for glaciers. 3: Special equipment in forms of tents, mats, bags and stoves that could be used in winter camping.

Finnmark has just 3 "big" glaciers, Øksfjordjøkelen (41km2), Seilandsjøkelen (14km2) and Langfjordjøkelen (8km2) They all are in remote areas and hard to get at. Forget the glaciers!

The main part of Finnmark is the flat plateau called Finnmarks-vidda. It is a vast area where the vegetation is mosly low birches. Vidda has also large areas of wetlands, and hence LOTS of insects if you are there in the right time (end june, mid july). Insect repellant is a must, lots of it!

Finnmark is greater than Denmark, but has only about 75000 inhabitants, so there is a lot of places to camp. Since camping is free in Norway on unfarmed land (+ a few rules) you have enough places to camp. Just use google map and the street view, there you may see the terrain.

The sami and their reindeers are dominant in the county, remember to avoid conflict with their culture. Finnmarkseiendommen http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Finnmark_Act is the owner on behalf of the state of the land. Look at www.fefo.no for info about licenses for fishing inland. Fishing in the sea is free for all.

 

Has anybody mentioned insects?

In Norway some years ago I woke in my tent, thinking that it was a cloudy day, it wasn't the midges massed inside the top of my tent waiting in ambush for me were about a quarter inch thick.

fine Head and or body nets an absolute must in my opinion.

Steve D

OK calum, then I guess you have the knowledge of moving on glaciers, as well as the necessary equipment. Insects are not a problem on the glacier, nor in the vicinity of Øksfjordjøkelen either. I lived in Øksfjord and we could see the glacier from our house, but I never went on that glacier. Never was a problem ever with insects in Øksfjord, too stony for them to hatch there.

On Finnmarksvidda the matter is different, could be a major problem. Cars have broken down due to enormous amounts of insects clogging the air-intake and resulting in overheating of engine. Worst time is normally july, august is just a bit of insects, september is insect free. But then winter is close by too, so weather could be severe.

In Finnmark you never can exclude a possible storm, even in summer and especially on top of a glacier. You must fasten the tent using tubescrews. The amount of loose snow could be too small for any snowpegs to get hold.

The most used way to get to Øksfjordjøkelen is to take the ferry to Tverrfjord and go to Tverrfjordvatnet and then lake 226 and lake 579. Then you climb east of the peak 931 and enter the glacier south of that peak. Use map http://ut.no/kart to find the lakes and the peak.

Local information you may turn to is the municipality Loppa Kommune http://www.loppa.kommune.no/lag-og-foreninger.21144.no.html and ask the Øksfjord Jeger og Fiskeforening or Øksfjord Idrettslag. You find the names and telephone numbers in the list. I did not ffind an outdoor-consult but ask if they have that. It is called "utmark-konsulent" in norwegian.

How many persons are you that plan to enter the glacier, and at what time do you plan to be there?