Northern events

During summertime many towns in Sweden house special markets during one weekend. On July 17 we visited such a summer market in Överkalix in northern Sweden, close to the Arctic Circle. Some 10,000 visitors during three days are passing this very long street filled with sellers trying to pursuade you to buy cheap clothes, local handicraft and food etc..

This guy is making a fortune by selling bread while his partner behind him is baking it. The sign behind him says that this bread is a genuine sami glow cake - more thicker, salty, sweet and more stiff ... hell ... hi ... little more of everything and very tasty.

Most males up here in the north do game hunting, especially Elk in the autumn, and also fishing. On display on the market street the local hunters club had several Eurasian Lynx fur trophies. This cat is very rare in Sweden. The population is estimated to be only 1,500 individuals and this in a country as large as France. I have difficulties in understanding why people do practise hunting rare animals as a hobby..

The local amateur radio club SK2HG from Kalix was there and showed this more nature friendly type of hobby. Inverted V´s for 80 and 20 m bands was up on flag poles. Gunnar, SM2IUF operates the radio trying to attract market visitors. Sigvard, SM2EJE is sitting to the left. Outside the photo is Håkan, SA2APO.

SK2HG is organizing the great and annual Seskarö Field Day. This year on August 13-15. In an article from 2008 in the NSD news paper, describing the activities at the Seskarö Field Day that year, Yngve, SM2YIP is interviewed. Yngve has a "true" definition of a radio amateur:

- A genuine radio amateur can talk endlessy about nothing

And in the same news article Rune, SM5COP has a "true" definition of what amateur radio is:

- Amateur radio is something else than Internet. It is difficult to explain. It is about all what is around us, and not inside any cables.

In the late evening same day we drove to the Flakasand Blues & Rock Festival. What a magic place out in no-where this was! Great artists performing in sunlight in the middle of the night. Located on a beach along the big wild Kalix river. A river that receives its water from the highest mountains in Sweden 400 km away. See video below and some photos here. We drove by car 500 km and every kilometer was worth it.