ON16 Boden-Mjölan

16th ride from Oekene to the North Cape: from Boden to Mjölan, 127 kilometers, 1008 meters of elevation, and 40 kilometers of gravel roads. A ride with many rural and winding roads and from km 70 to km 110 a long stretch of gravel road. Still doable with a road bike, even in the rain.

You are now really in the north of Sweden in Sami territory (Lapland has a more pejorative meaning). This is an area in the north of Sweden, Norway, and Finland that has traditionally been inhabited by the Sami, a nomadic herding people. For more info see https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lapland

Mjölan is a small hamlet of the slightly larger Överkalix is a Swedish municipality in Norrbotten. The municipality belongs to the province Norrbottens län and has 3,933 inhabitants. The village Överkalix is located on the Kalixälven; the village attracts many tourists and sport fishermen annually due to its location. Northwards along the Kalix älv lie the Swedish iron ore mines. Because traditionally Finnish and Sami are spoken in this part of Sweden, these languages are recognized minority languages in Överkalix. Most names also have a Finnish and sometimes a Sami variant. In addition, a distinct Swedish dialect is also spoken.