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the mouth of the Skellefte-Elf, from which a small steam-launch
conveys passengers to the town. The scantiness of the vegetation
and the stunted character of the trees testify to the inclemency of
the climate (lat. 65°). — The next station, 12 M. farther N., is —
Piteå (Gästgifvaregård), a town with 2600 inhab., founded in
1620, and frequently plundered by the Russians and burned
down. Several iron-works, timber-yards, and saw-mills in the
neighbourhood. — This was formerly the seat of the provincial
government, but the authorities are now established at (15 M. 1 —
Lul(Gästgifvaregård; Lundberg), the capital of Norrbotten
Län. with 3500 inhab., founded iu 1621, and repeatedly sacked
by Russian marauders. In 1887 one-third of the town was
burned down. As usual in these northern towns, the timber-trade
forms the chief resource of the inhabitants. Here is the office of
the ‘iVeu; Gellivara Company, Limited’, which possesses large estates
in this province, and particularly the hill of Gellivara, about
126 Engl. M. to the N. W., 1750 ft. in height, and described as
consisting of one enormous mass of iron ore. A railway is being
constructed from Luleå to the Ofotenfjord (p. 325), and the section
between Luleå and Gellivara is to be opened for traffic in 1889.
From Lclea to Qvickjock and to Bodø in Norwat (about 600 Kil. or
370 Engl. 31., a journey of 10-12 days). This is one of the grandest and most
interesting routes in Northern Sweden, penetrating into the heart of
Lapland and to a considerable distance beyond the Arctic Circle. As far as
(5-7 days) Qvickjock the route is attended with but few difficulties or
privations, and tolerable quarters are procurable at the principal stations ;
but thence to (3-4 days) Fuske on the Saltenfjord (p. 242) the journey
is very rough and fatiguing, and one night at least must be spent in a
miserable hut, affording no accommodation of any kind. Enquiry should
of course be made as to the steamboats before starting from Luleå, and
Forbud should be sent from station to station for horses, boats, and
even for lodging for the night. In the height of summer the mosquitoes
are an almost insufferable torment, but before the end of June and after
the middle of August the plague is more bearable. The Lule affords
good salmon-fishing as far as the first falls. Higher up, and in the lakes
formed by the river, there is abundance of trout-fishing. The lake-trout
here frequently weighs 20 lbs. and upwards, but is a somewhat coarse
fish. The boatmen on the lakes receive 10-12 0. each per kilometre,
according to a government itinerary which may be procured at Luleå, and
a small fee (drickepengar). The traveller should take with him
preserved meat, biscuits, and wine or spirits, the sale of the latter being
prohibited in Lapland, lie should also supply himself with a bag of small
notes and coins, as change can rarely be got. A gauze bag to cover the
whole head and shoulders will also be found a useful protection against
the mosquitoes. — The journey is usually divided as follows, but the
traveller’s plan of course depends on the steamboat arrangements: —
1st Day. Steamboat to Råbacken in 3 hrs.; walk or drive in l’/z-2
hrs. to Ilcdensfors (a tolerable station), which derives its name from
the rapids here. About 8 Kil. above Hedensfors we reach a higher reach
of the Lule, on which another steamer, stopping at Svarttå for dinner,
conveys us to Edefors (a fair station), at the foot of the cataract of that name.
2nd Day. Walk to Ofvre Edefors in ’/z hr., and take the small
steamer thence to Storbacken (tolerable quarters), at the confluence of
the Lilia and Stora Lule-Elf, about 30 Kil. from Edefors; drive thence in
7-8 hrs. to Jockmock (fair inn), with its church and parsonage. Visit the
magnificent fall of the Lule in the vicinity.
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