Øvre Pasvik National Park

The Øvre - Pasvik National Park (Norwegian: Øvre Pasvik nasjonalpark, Sami: Báhčaveaji álbmotmeahcci ) is a Norwegian national park in the municipality of Sør -Varanger in the county of Finnmark. It was founded in 1970 and expanded in 2003 and now includes a protected area of 119 km ². He is also in the border triangle Norway - Finland - Russia and has the function to get the big, largely untouched coniferous forest area with its distinctive and unique biodiversity and cultural heritage and protect.

The National Park borders the Øvre - Pasvik nature reserve, Pasvik Nature Reserve and Gjøkvassneset nature reserve. On the Finnish side it borders on the Vätsäri wilderness area in Inari and on the Russian side of the Pasvik Zapovednik in Pechenga. Under the name of Pasvik - Enare there is a joint research and tourism project at the National Park, the Vätsäri wilderness area and the Pasvik Zapovednik are involved.

Geography and Landscape

The National Park forms a spur of the Siberian taiga. The landscape is dominated by wetlands and sparse pine forests, interspersed with numerous lakes and two rivers. About a quarter of the area is water.

The soils are generally poor in nutrients which is among other things to the prevailing rock gneiss. The climate is continental, with embossed little rain and cold, dry winters.

Flora and Fauna

The national park is half covered with pine forest. Birch trees are found only individual standing under the pines. In the eastern part of the park on the banks of Ødevatn is a single spruce. The pine forest along the Finnish and Russian border is one of the largest pristine forests of Norway. Some typical taiga plant species that would otherwise not or only rarely occur in Norway, are native here. These include Labrador tea, Lapland buttercup, the Siberian wool grass, blueberry willow and sedge Carex Laxa. A total of 190 different species of flowering plants were counted.

The fauna includes many, otherwise mainly further east native species, including birds such as the Siberian jay, the Smew, the Waxwing and Pine Grosbeak. The largest mammals in the park are the brown bear, which also has the highest density of Norway here, wolverine and raccoon dog. Even rare rodents such as the Lapland shrew and the wood lemming live in the park.

Heritage

The oldest traces of settlements in the National Park are from the Stone Age. Between the 6th and 19th centuries there was Sami settlements in the park, which, however, were resolved by expulsion of the seeds by Norwegian agricultural and forestry workers. We also found several animal graves in Øvre - Pasvik.

Tourism and Management

Through the Norwegian Government the seeds reindeer herding and the nomadic life is still permitted in the park.

In Øvre Pasvik - although there is hardly any paved roads, yet it is relatively good for hiking. The fish-rich waters are also popular fishing spots.