From Kilpisjärvi in Finland to the Arctic sea, to Skibotn in Norway, the distance is 50 kilometers, which corresponds to 500 kilometers of climatic and biological change as compared to going southwards from Kilpisjärvi to Oulu.
Kilpisjärvi in Finland is 50 km away from Skibotn – a small village at the coast of Norway. The altitude differences between the villages is 500 metres, but the climatic and biological differences correspond to 500 km going from Kilpisjärvi southwards to Oulu. The landscape in Kilpisjärvi is monotonic, snowy and characterized by patches of small birch trees. Kilpisjärvi is the coldest place in the summer in continental Europe. Going down from Kilpisjärvi towards Skibotn, the sunniest place in Norway, the landscape becomes more heterogeneous and dominated by pine trees, and the trees are substantially larger.
Subzero 