This is What a Train to The Arctic Circle is REALLY Like. Join Me on the Iron Ore Line in Sweden...
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 23 ก.พ. 2024
- I was already in Northern Sweden, so decided to jump on a train into the Arctic Circle. I didn't get quite as far as planned, but still made it as far north as I have ever been on a train. What was it like? Join me to find out...
Filmed on Saturday 13th January 2024
Music courtesy of epidemicsound.com
Map courtesy of Google Maps
Thumbnail designed using Canva
This video is not sponsored and all opinions are my own
I don’t pretend to be a travel expert, but I love what I do and would be honoured if you came along with me. My channel focusses on the wide-eyed wonder and excitement of finding somewhere new, and my genuine reaction to it. You may not get a history lesson in my videos, but who knows, you might pick up some useful travel tips along the way, add a few destinations to your bucket list and hopefully be entertained by what you see. Thanks for watching, it means a lot to me :)
I do ALL of this myself. Planning, filming, editing, promoting, all with a weekly upload schedule, so please understand not every video will be an epic adventure. But my pledge is to always do my best in any situation and KEEP THE CAMERA ROLLING :)
Donate here to future videos: (thank you!)
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/ stevemarsh
FAQs:
WHERE ARE YOU FROM?
I was born in Glasgow but have lived in Carnoustie, Dalgety Bay, Stonehaven, Edinburgh, Montrose, and further afield (Salamanca, Spain & Devonport, New Zealand)
WHEN DO YOU UPLOAD?
Saturdays at 10am Scottish time. Occasionally a bonus midweek video will pop up (in which case, likely to be Tuesday at 5pm)
WHY IS THERE A DELAY BETWEEN TRIP AND VIDEO APPEARING?
This is a result of doing all this myself I’m afraid. Editing takes time and I also like to schedule videos a bit in advance in case of any problems/illness/cancellations etc. Keeping my uploads appearing every Saturday morning is important to me, so I don’t want anything to get in the way of it. Also, I occasionally need some time off to recover from trips!
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO YOU USE?
I film with a GoPro11 and my iPhone12. I edit on iMovie and use epidemicsound.com for music. I also use canva.com for thumbnails etc. I also have a DJI Pocket 3 (bigger sensor) for nighttime, although I’m still getting to grips with it.
WHY DON'T YOU SPEND LONGER AT DESTINATIONS?
The usual suspects I'm afraid - time and money! Hotels especially these days make my eyes water like a true Scotsman. Also my weekly upload schedule means I need to keep on the move.
WHERE'S ALICJA?
Alicja will feature whenever possible, but she has her own life and a proper job so it can take a while for our schedules to match up. Trust me though, I prefer it when She is there too!
DO YOU PAY FOR YOUR OWN TRAVEL?
Yes I do. I've only ever accepted a complementary ticket as compensation for a previous problem. All my opinions are frank and honest reflections of travel as I experience it.
WHY THE ADS?
It's my income, I can't do this for free. Notice I don’t have mid-roll ads though!
CAN I CONTACT YOU?
I used to list my email address but felt bad not having the capacity to respond to everything so took it down (and I got a LOT of spam so missed many genuine messages along the way).
HOW CAN I SUPPORT THE CHANNEL?
Watching my videos is of course support enough, but if you'd like to support further, I'll pop links in here for Paypal and Patreon. All kind donations are super-appreciated and will go 100% towards future filming trips.
DO YOU ACCEPT SPONSORSHIPS?
I don't like to upset the flow of my videos, so I don't even include mid-roll ads anymore (at significant loss of income to myself), so I prefer not to include sponsorships either. I'm open to a small slide at the start/end of each video, but I don't want to get into talking about products, it's something I don't like as a viewer myself (especially as a viewer who pays for TH-cam Premium). So it's probably a polite no, although all of this goes out the window if you offer me something which can give me the chance to make a video for my audience that would otherwise be impossible.
#SteveMarsh #Sweden #Arctic
Not many people could make a video about a four hour train journey and a walk to a hotel, and make it entertaining. You succeeded admirably and made me laugh three times.
Haha I really appreciate that !
I've never missed any of your videos. Sweden looks freezing Tho@@steve-marsh
Well... you've done it again...yet another place that I would never have put on my bucket list but now I'm inspired, especially the train journey coz I love trains. The whole aesthetic works for me...I'm a fan of darker winter days...right up my alley. Thanks for another good one.
Well said, couldn't say better myself.
I have always wanted to visit Sweden but I think I will arrange my trip for mid summer. I lived in Caithness for 15 years and the dark winters and cold weather got to me eventually. Five hours of daylight mid winter is not good for wellbeing.
What i like about this channel is that you show people journeys which everyone can take. You don´t fly first class around the world, take a 10 000 euro cruise across the Atlantic, visit a luxury resort on a Tibetan mountain top or take close up of ridiculously expensive food while flashing your 25 000 euro Swiss watch.
Agree entirely, so much more identifying for the average person, Jeb B enjoys the High Life in a Class that only the Very Wealthy or the Sponsored Vloggers can aspire to…. Steve Marsh is a Stand Out for everyone..
yeah I like Steve’s videos because he comes across as more of a working class person like myself that travels with a budget in mind.
Totally agree - real people’s travel!
I bet he wishes he could 🤣
I delete any such video’s that pop on my pad, they’re boring. Most of the time you’re watching people eat.
As a person living in Lapland, I can hear how cold it is by the sound of the snow under your boots.
I heard the loud crunching and my first thought was "oh it's colder now".
Higher pitch = lower temperature
it was above 0, that sound was of "kramsnö". not the styrofoam from below -10C
@@TheDanielsweden Absolutely not above 0. Average temperature Kiruna 13 january 2024: -12,8C. Average temperature Luleå 13 january: -8,3C
@griechland i live in lule, when he recorded this it was around 0°. The heated side walks on smedjan is for fuck said weat, it only happens above frezing. Below 0 the water evaporates... stop this nonsens
A whole country living with snow, plunging temperatures and dark days and nobody thinks twice! Here in Ireland, a half inch of snow has us queuing for beead and milk; closing schools and taking buses off the road..! This is real life - a lovely video. Thank you Steve.
To nannymackify. Same as when I stayed with my relatives in SWITZERLAND. No fuss - they're prepared for snowy weather, not afraid of it! In England, people describ it as a terrible day, IF IT RAINS! Grow up!
Some facts about the derailment you talked about:
It was an iron ore train (like the one you saw at 11:09) that derailed with multiple wagons and destroyed 15 kilometers of track. Repairs have been delayed due to the remote location and harsh winter weather. They have just now started letting cargo traffic through after more than 2 months of shutdown. But still no passenger traffic as far as i know.
Thanks so much for this!
15 kilometres? Wow, that's really not messing about.... 😮
Did much of the ore that would have been exported from Narvik then go to Luleå instead during that time? Or are there suitable facilities at all in Luleå?
@@TangoMikeLima No, only ore from the mines i Gällivare goes to Luleå. All of the ore that was supposed to go to Narvik was stored on huge piles in Kiruna. Last i heard they had 5 billion Swedish Kronor (approx 500 million euro) worth of ore on pile.
Very interesting brief on the derailment and it's consequences, thank you
I live in Narvik, a pity u didnt get here. The train ride from Kiruna to Narvik is something to behold.
This! The route is absolutely beautiful and Narvik is as well!
Does anyone agree that your videos are so great because we enjoy going along with You? Thank you for sharing your adventures. 💚❄️
I got a bit panicked when you got off and started walking in the snow. Flashbacks to that time you got off the train a stop too early in the snow in the middle of the night 😬😬. Glad you made it.
I remember that one also. Pitch black and not knowing which way to go.
Winter and Summer in these northern places are like a change in dimension, so different yet so beautiful. Keep it up Steve!
So true! And I love it!
@steve-marsh it's fantastic, from someone who lives in Melbourne with weather changes every 3 hours, it's pretty sick
As i say to all our lovely tourists, welcome to our wonderful country! Happy to see you seem to like it, and you did choose a perfect route to go. All the living space in the northern part of sweden makes residents a calm and contemt people. Nice, a bit quiet, but very friendly if you stop and talk to them. Enjoy!
Cheap houses aswell
Hi Steve really enjoyed your crossing Arctic circle blog. It brought back memories when I did something similar about 10 yrs ago. I did the Narvik to Kiruna but I stopped off at Abisko . Never forget it the temperature hit - 36 but rewarded with Amazing Norther lights . Pity when you got to Kiruna you didn't make the short hop to the Ice hotel atJukkarsarvi small taxi ride away. . Your blogs got me on the travelling bug visiting Isle of Skye and Orkney last year The information as been so valuable to us and in a no nonsense style. To the point that me and the wife will be relocating to Orkney in the next year . am an avid Norther lights chaser and photographer, so retiring to Orkney is the next best thing , as living in Scandinavia is to expensive. You got me into Cullen skink soup, which we tried in Skye last year for the first time, and I now make my own . You have a lot to answer for all in a very good positive way. If there's anyway else I can do to support your channel let me know . Seriously you have inspired us to make life changing decisions .
I love walking in that crispy crunchy clean snow! Once it has been treated with salt/grit it turns into muddy slush which is nasty. What a journey, Steve!
I miss that Swedish snow!
Had an operation this week so have been off work - your videos have kept me sane, thanks!
Oh hope the recovery is going well!
The Bishops Arms is a chain of British looking pubs across Sweden. I’ve visited a few of them in my travels and they have a great selection of beers and the food isn’t too bad. I hadn’t realised that some of them also have hotel rooms - very useful for future reference.
Keep up the great work of taking us on your off-the-beaten-track journeys - my travel bucket list is getting much longer thanks to you mate!
Your videos are my Saturday morning ritual here in the East Coast of the US! Particularly enjoying these last few in Sweden, as I have part Swedish heritage. My mother lived part of her youth in Sweden and in 1940 took the long train ride, then bus, up to Petsamo, Finland (on the coast of the Baltic Sea) to sailed on the ship that was also carrying Norway’s Crown Princess Märtha and her children, to safety in America. You know, the recent documentary ‘The Crossing’?
A high-rise in the Arctic getting demolished.
Amazing video again. Loved all the snow crunching.
An Arctic subscriber, that is fabulous!! Loved the train journey, loved the cleanliness, the punctuality, the scenery and the fact the announcements were also in perfect English. Puts our railways to shame.
I loved watching your snowy train journey to the Arctic. Train rides in the snow are simply magical to me, and yours brought back fond memories of one of our favorite trips of all time. In December 2022, we spent a month in Sweden, Denmark and Norway (more than half of it in Norway) during which our modes of transportation included, among other things, a beautiful train ride through snowy scenery from Stockholm to Copenhagen on an SJ tilting train, an overnight DFDS ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo, and a magnificent, simply stunning, and, yes, purely magical, 7 hour train ride through the snowy forests, mountains and frozen lakes of Norway from Oslo to Bergen on VY's famous Bergensbanen. In Bergen, we boarded a Hurtigruten ship for an 11 night journey sailing up and down the coast of Norway -- way above the Arctic Circle (all the way to Kirkenes - on the Russian border) during Polar Night. Quite the journey for two people in their late 60's who have lived in hot, humid South Florida for the last 42 years -- and we loved every minute of it. Proper clothes kept us comfy cozy.
Thank you so much for sharing this! It really IS magical :)
Wow! What an amazing trip - so different from your homeland, you must have wonderful memories.
We did the 11 night cruise with hurtigruten at Christmas. Was awesome
@@johnsmuth5062 Our was at Christmas, too!
@@janettesinclair6279 We do! And want to do it again!
You have landed in an environment that is totally alien to me, I live in southern Louisiana where we only get snow every five to ten years. I have lived up North but not for many, many years so I would be freezing. Please stay warm and thanks for bringing us along.
Believe me, it felt otherworldly pretty much the whole time I was there!
Thanks to our brave host. Today I watched this video on the large tele screen while having breakfast.
Love your vlogs Steve. Your honesty and humour are great. You could make a walk around a roundabout interesting ! Thank you for doing what you do.
Gosh what a place. That sky!
These people could do with teaching UK travel infrastructure people how to cope with winter!
So true they are the masters!
My new Saturday morning treat... I'm really feeling like "a bug in a rug".
Glad to hear it :)
Last summer I had the pleasure of travelling on train #96 all the way to Narvik, well worth traveling from Australia to do it.
Sadly, on that run they had run out of reindeer stew.
49 smackers for that train? It may not be the most recent wagons and locomotives, but how on earth do they manage to provide such a level of service and cleanliness at that price point? 😳
This was absolutely beautiful! 🤗 There's something to Swedish style that just gets me. It all looks so very sympathic and down to earth, yet also special.
That was my wee holiday with Steve again. Thanks Mate! Always a treat when you upload a new video! 🤗
Well Sweden is a socialist country for starters. They take it from the tax payers and give it to immigration cities in the south or public transportations such as these.
I've paid about 38 quid for the Gothenburg Stockholm high speed train in March!
Actually that train is Norwegian, operated by Vy. Makes the price even more amazing given Norwegian prices - you probably would not buy four pints in Norway for that.
Take it from me - you can't 😞
Government subsidies , public transport is very important especially in harsh conditions, so all the inhabitants together pay a bit to get these things, that's why life is better here than in cutthroat capitalist countries where everything has to be commercially viable. And everybody would have to sit in his car driving 10 hours through the snowy roads. Because there would be no train.
Don't take this wrong, Scandinavian countries are still capitalist, but they combine it with a bit more government services in the economy.
Loved the train journey and the scenery after sweaty like mad in Brisbane summer day it bought a lovely sense comfort seeing all that snow. Love how people take their dogs on the trains in Europe, first time I came across it was on a journey from Paddington to Truro and in my carriage where two dogs that had managed to curl up together under a seat and seemed very content, must be the rocking motion of the train and not a bark or growl from either of them .
I'm sending you some snowy aircon!
@@steve-marsh Greatly appreciated, thanks.
We do this trip from Stockholm to Kiruna once every winter. A gr8 journey for 16 hours. We love this train, relaxing and soothing. Thx for refreshing our experience....Tommy
Another great journey. I bet it was a relief to get in to the hotel where it’s nice & warm? I always look forward to Saturday when another journey with Steve appears.
It sure was a welcome sight!
I'm watching my favourite video on my 18th birthday today. I'm a massive fan 😊
Happy birthday! 🥳🎂
Happy birthday to you!!!! (sorry, I'm a bit late) :D
Thank you both
Great video Steve 👍 looking forward to the next video, I hope you had time to visit the Ice Hotel in Jukkasjärvi. Good luck! /Mikko
Coming up next week! Couldn't afford to stay though!
Great video Steve. Made me shiver all through the journey, just glad I had that hot coffee in front of me whilst watching .....
I've never been as cold as stepping off the train at that intermediate stop!
@5:00 👍A few more trips to Scandinavia and you'll get around like the locals.
a big part of the quality of any journey is the people you travel with. With you and your invincible optimism I could travel anywhere.
As you said, Boden is a junction station, there are usually three trains coming in at the same time, from Stockholm, Luleå, and Narvik; they then split the trains and shunt them to form three new trains heading off three ways. That's why the guard on the night train asked you your destination, to make sure you were in the right part of the train - and that's why they lock the doors between certain carriages, so that you won't end up in the wrong place.
Hi Steve. I now feel so cold 🥶
I definitely could not live in the arctic. Oh too cold for me. Thank you for showing how harsh an environment it is. Brave souls.
Breakfast?? That was a banquet fit for King Steve! Keep safe and wrap up warm as my nan use to say.
It was a perfect start to the day :)
Clarion is a motel/hotel part of the USA based Choice group. It is a better middle range hotel brand in the USA. It is common for many 'mid-range' motels/hotels in the USA to have a hot breakfast self-service buffet although not always as good as that was.
@@leonb2637We have to look after our Steve, he's a well travelled man!
I love how you just go with the flow, travel can have many unexpected turns you take them in stride!
The beauty of European geography and climate Steve! You miss the variety we have when you are away from it. I have just returned from a week or so in India (via Qatar). The relentless onslaught of just sun and heat pretty much all the time is as dull as it is oppressive. Talking about a small world, I was visiting a Christian church (St Marks) in Bangalore and heard an English voice. It was a man rebuilding their church organ. He had been working in India as an organ repair man on/off for 20 years. We got talking, and he told me where he was from in England - it was just 15 miles up the road from where I was born! Same town I went to college. What are the chances! 😃
Incredible eh! Sounds like a fantastic trip, but the constant heat would floor me!
It's so interesting seeing my country through someone else's eyes. 😃
You can make me wach you for years. And interest me for years
❤❤❤
Another fine watch, cheers! P.S. great work capturing the northern lights so vividly in the street near your hotel. 😉
Glad it's you doing the trip , just means I can watch the trip in comfort and the warmth of an open fire.Too old to enjoy cold and snow. Breakfast looks good. Cheers
Oh that breakfast warmed me up for the walk to the station :)
@@steve-marsh Champion mate. I just had cooked breakfast here at home after seeing yours. Lol 9 days and am away to relatives in New Zealand and Falkirk later in the year. Cheers mate .Regards to you both
You had us laughing from the off Steve with your "I'm blending in here..." comment. Thank you for the entertainment 😁
....very informative and enjoyable, from the comfort of my warm Spanish climate. Great stuff😎🍻
Always enjoy my Steve vlog on a Saturday! Great train journey and scenery. Glad you enjoyed the lasagne, one of my favourite foods. Very impressed you found the hotel and how cool to meet a subscriber! You forget how big Sweden is! Your Swedish trip so far has been amazing, looking forward to next vlog. 😊
Thanks so much Alan, that was the best lasagne I ever did have!
The best channel to live a vicarious life.
Steve's my favorite youtuber.
👍
I have to say this Sweden mini-series is Top Notch! Thanks!
The walkways you saw with absolutely no snow or ice on, are actually heated from the district heating!
When I was 11 we had a school TV program about Kiruna. It was about the mining town in the artic with almost no daylight in winter. It impressed me greatly, now I know how easy it is to take the train to go up there, it goes on the todo list.
Love watching this - reminds me sooo much of my train journeys in Europe back in the early 2000's.......... I wish I could do them again!
Glad to bring back cool memories :)
I have been an avid fan of Steve Marsh since I found the channel about a month or two ago and have watched almost all your videos Steve. I love your positive personality. I admire that you never appear to take taxis or local buses and walk everywhere.
I'm Irish and have been to Scotland many times, from the Boarders all the way as far north as Inverness and from Stranraer all the way to Skye and most places in between.
Your videos remind me of many a happy trip.
Your ferry videos are just so entertaining And informative and your European adventures let me see parts of Europe I may never get to... Thanks Steve!!! 😊
Hey thanks so much! Yes, you miss so much jumping in a taxi (however tempting it may be sometimes)
Ah, after seeing the highrise being demolished, I take it you're to find out about literally the whole town of Kiruna moving in the next video. Quite a unique situation.
Mate, you were not kidding. Wow.
"The re-development of Kiruna is a reconstruction project, as the Kirunavaara mine, run by LKAB, undermines the existing town centre. Several buildings are to be moved or demolished. The town center is to be moved 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) to the east.
In 2004, it was decided that the present centre of the municipality would have to be relocated to counter mining-related subsidence...The moving of the town was started in 2014 and the plan describes a process that continues to 2100." - From Wikipedia
@@k.r.baylor8825 Yeah. As a Swede I have known about it happening, but never really seen any of the process. It will be interesting to hear Steve's thoughts about it.
"Fun" sidefact: The railway derailment that forced Steve to take the bus to Narvik rather than the train got resolved about a week ago, and the track opened up again. Yesterday, however, another derailment happened in the same area, and it's shut down again, hopefully less than two months this time.
10 out of 10 in my book for this one Steve! And what isn't "fabulous" in Sweden, or better yet, having a an entire train to yourself... 'Steve's Arctic Express'?
It was one of my favourite trips ever, hence all the content on it :D
@@steve-marshMine too! Cheers Mate on to the next bit of travel goodness.
I love trains, especially European trains. All that snow makes me shiver. But what an adventure.
I especially enjoy the parts of your videos where you show the menus for what is available to eat. Thanks for another great adventure.
Cheers
Cheers for coming along!
I enjoyed this train trip more than I thought I would. Its always fun watching your videos. Looking forward to next week,and see what new adventures you have in store for us.
Steve you make an excellent video on a journey that gives an insight to places you can see without leaving the armchair. Sorry to hear you had a fall, hope you are ok
Beautiful! I live vicariously through your travel videos! Appreciate all you do and I appreciate your sense of humor as well!! Keep the good videos coming! God Bless!!
Thanks again Steve. Nobody can make a video in the Arctic Circle train journey to a city most haven’t heard of interesting. Challenge accepted. I love the journey as much as the destination. Cheers
One of the best vloggers out there. Top class Steve
Looks like home to me in central Alberta for 4-5 months some worse, some better. We are getting some snowy cold weather in the next 2 days. However , im not a heat guy😅. I so miss train travel. Thanks Steve.
Another great video Steve, the views from. The train looks absolutely stunning, a real Winter's Wonderland 😊
I like the sound of the shoes when walking on snow in very cold weather.
Oh WOW! That was so good! In the Artic too! And I shivered when you got off the train! Haha! Great video Steve thank you! Looking very forward to next one! Stay warm! And upright!(sorry about your fall)! Cheers me dear! 🥴🤭😁😀🙏🏴🇮🇪🙋🥶
Haha my fall woke me up :D
Looked colder than Dr. Zhivago.
Happy to see you pass through my home town - Boden. It's not just a garrison town. Trivia: my great-grandfather was the head station manager in Boden.
It's the Iron Ore railway because it was originally built to transport iron ore from the mines in Kiruna to (a) Luleå in Sweden, and (b) Narvik in Norway. Iron ore trains have priority, and passenger trains have to wait.
Love that you found a subscriber there - you deserve those moments.
At 12.20: it's a shame that they don't have a sign saying something like 'Welcome to the Arctic Circle'.....your journey was fascinating. You keep me hooked.
You keep coming up with real gems . It’s supposed to be 36 degrees C in Melbourne, Australia tomorrow . It’s about 19 now, & I am sitting here thinking how cold that would be. I have been a little North of Bergen on my travels but this area in January is definitely bucket list material for me. I would love to be where you are in January, north of the Artic Circle . The train looks cold too, the way it is layed out. I definitely would love to stay somewhere that is north enough that it’s dark all day . I am envious of you doing this trip. Thanks Steve.
I couldn't recommend this trip highly enough, it's like another world up there!
Thoroughly enjoy your videos. They are so informative and a pleasure to watch! Thank you 😊
Thanks sooo much Barbara!
Oh wow! A subscriber in the Arctic 👍👏Everything clean. Love the paper bag with Good Morning on, from train cafe.
Scenery beautiful 🤩 Fantastic video ⭐️
Thanks for bringing us along.stay safe .❤️💕👍
An absolute pleasure!
Great train ride in a nice warm quiet train. Loved the scenery. Also noted the large gap between track and the trees, something we could learn in the UK! Always amazed as you head off in any direction to find the hotel. Glad you made it to the Arctic circle despite train issues!
Yah....Saturday Morning :)...wish I had that breakfast !
Oh it was gooooood!
Eating his way across Europe.
One Full English at a time.
Cheers Mate!
@@rodwallace6237 Breakfast does appear to feature more in Steve's videos these days :)
Nice to see a video from my country, Thanks! I was driving truck up to Gällivare and it can be very cold in the north. My record is -44C and that is not easy to work in.
Another good vlog Steve . . . but oh my gosh you certainly made us feel cold watching all that snow and ice, rather you than us
I remember being in hospital in Sweden in 1962, I was a young merchant seaman then. I remember there was jam on most of the food, I could not believe it.
If anyone wishes to learn more in order to improve their governance they need only move to one of the Scandinavian countries for a few years. VERY impressive.
Thanks for taking us along Mr. Marsh.
🇨🇦
As far as I know, there isn't a lineside marker for the Arctic Circle alongside the Malmbanan, but there is a closed station very close by called Polcirkeln, and which can easily be seen from passing trains.
If you ever go on the Inlandsbana they stop at the circle and you get to walk up to it - literally marked with stones.
Hello Steve, really enjoyed this video. Such an amazing part of the world. Loved your walk to the hotel with crunching footsteps. Some years ago I travelled on the iron ore train line as part of a bus tour of Scandinavia. In Narvik I was sitting in a cafe near the railway line and an iron ore cargo train went past - they are incredibly long and I had never seen such a thing before. Love all your videos.
Greetings from Australia.
I absolutely love the snow. Thank you for another great video.
Hi Steve Paul again from Kent love the train scenery was brilliant hope you are ok after your fall take care Paul
I love travelling these journeys with you. Thanks so much. Shows me the world is big and accessible and life is an adventure. You're a breath of fresh air. So good. Addicted!.
I was actually cold watching that!! The train wasn't busy so that was good, hope the fall didn't hurt I would hate walking on icy paths😳 the fancy northern lights were nice😆❄️❄️
That fall certainly woke me up :D
What a cool thing, to have under your belt,... Crossing into the Arctic Circle,.. Bravo ! 👍
Thanks Steve for braving the cold conditions to take us up into the arctic. They’re not short of snow and trees up there. I would love to see you repeat the journey in summer for comparison.
Sad you couldn’t reach Narvik. Hopefully another time:)
You can’t miss the most northern train stations in the world:)
Hi Steve Very interesting vlog. You join me today in a very sunny West Sussex by the sea, makes a change from the deluge we have had in recent days. Regards Crawford
Loved it Steve, again. There is something ‘mystic’ about the atmosphere you’ve captured on your journey there after you crossed into the arctic. Amazing to feel it through the video - that’s what a brilliant job you’ve done of this video. Superb. Cheers Steve!
I love the crunchy sound of very cold snow!
It is actually not the mine but the bi product of it, as they extract the ore before shipping it and leve the slag.
I remember there being an actual stone circle when you pass the arctic circle, but it might have been snowed over.
Or simply removed as the geographical arctic circle moves all the time.
That weird seatings are for meetings. 🙂
Great video, Steve! I took this train route all the way from Stockholm to Narvik, but in warm weather! I had a very nice private sleeper compartment for most of the way, but somewhere south of Kiruna, I had to move out of it, and sit in a 2nd Class coach. (They don't take the sleeper cars down the long descent into Narvik, or at least they didn't then.) You may know this already, but building the railway from the Sweden/Norway border down to Narvik was one of the most expensive ever built, both in terms of money, and lives lost. 🥲
Most Canadians have the ability to tell the outdoor temperature by the sound of squeaking snow while walking. I can tell that Kiruna must have been properly cold. Great episode Steve!
Love it! :)
I followed your route by car one summer 40 years ago. I stayed in Kiruna for one night. I remember it as a one-horse town - a place where the pubs go silent when you walk in through the door. Maybe I can find out how much it's changed in your next video.
There's actually a free shuttle bus timed with each train service, that goes between the station, the old downtown (where your hotel is) and the new downtown. It's paid for by the council because (due to the city being moved) Kiruna currently has a temporary railway station that's a little ways out as you probably noticed.
Yeah, I saw the bus sitting there, but for some reason had it in my head it wouldn't be far to walk :D
@@steve-marshYou’re some man!
Fascinating. Ah, so that's what snow looks like. I can almost remember it.
I miss that Swedish snow already!
Hi Steve. I'm sad to say you missed the best bit. I visited there from Australia doing some rail testing. That was midsummer and we were working at night - but midnight was brighter than your midday and there was still snow on the ground. We used Bjorkliden as our base. We broke on of our "night's" sleep to take the same train as you across the border into Norway and down the mountain to Narvik. Absolutely stunning!
That twilight in Kiruna is stunning!
What a great place! Thanks for showing us around Steve :)
Hi Steve, as I said in my last comment the contrasts of this world are remarkable. The train looked excellent with great facilities and comfort. I think the logistics of running these systems in such harsh conditions would be challenging, however, the Swedish people seem to take it in their stride…
They really cope well with the conditions! I think the consistency of what they face every year helps with it!
It is a bit of a challenge, although the weather is pretty mild at the moment. But earlier this winter when temperatures dropped to around -40°C many trains were cancelled.
@@thetravellingbadger6567 I have only seen snow a few times in my life. To think of minus 40 and dealing with transport systems just shows the tremendous differences in the world!
Love your videos, Steve!
I would enjoy seeing your take on Denmark and a lot of the quirky spots we have here :)
Oh it's high on the list!
@marsh Glad to hear it 👌