Kola peninsula is situated on Extreme North of Russia. It's surrounded from the north and the east Barents sea, from the south - White sea, from the west - frontier with Norway and Finland. This is Transarctic - Russian Laplandia. The territory of peninsula is 145000 sq kms. Here there are no small villages, cities are very compact, because climate is very severe and transport communications aren't enough. Here there is no sun in December - it's "polar night". The polar lights are started in the winter for illumination instead of the sun and it friskes on amplitude of 100-400 kms. In June sun goes on the sky around all day - it's "polar day". Snow comes in the beginning of October and leaves at the end of May. Here there are absolutely wild mountains and woods, impassable bogs, the uncountable rivers and lakes. Brown bears are masters of woods, there are about 500 bears. Mass of an adult individual - 350 kg. Salmon fishing is one of the most interesting tourist amusements. The herd of a salmon (syomga) on peninsula is 80000 pieces. Our salmons are well-known in the world the wild nature and rebelliousness. One of the largest in the world of populations of the yeti (snowmen, bigfoot) inhabits in the wild places of Kola peninsula according to the majority of Russian cryptozoologists . Indigenous population - Saami and Komi. There are two large reindeer farm, quantity of reindeers is 55-60 thousand. Slaughter - annually 5 thousand. The basic consumer of meat - is Sweden, meat of reindeers does not use demand in the local market. Medicines are made of horns of deers. Reindeers calve in May. We have two very big National Parks. Lappish National Park was based in 1930 with the purpose of conservation of the feral reindeer. It's located in the central tundras of peninsula. Here lives Ded-Moroz also (russian StClaus, post-address: Ded Moroz, Zelionaya 8, Laplandsky zapovednik, Montchegorsk, 184506, RUSSIA). Kandalaksha National Park was based in 1932 with the purpose of conservation of places of a nesting of a eider. It's located on sea islands. Kola peninsula is known for its unique geological past. Rare minerals simply find on a surface of the ground. 6-7 new minerals discovered each year. It's a place of pilgrimage of geologists of all world.

      Murmansk - the biggest city of peninsula. It's located in the latitude of 69 ° N..
336 thousand person lives here. Murmansk stretchs on 20 kms along a coast of Kola bay. For the first time Murmansk was built up in 1917 year on a place of a small settlement. During the Second World War the city was completely destroyed by german aircraft, therefore after the war it was built up anew. The field of border of Russia and Norway was unique place where german armies could not cross frontier of Russia. Murmansk has received a title "City-Hero". It's a city-port. A main industry - the sea: fish and a cargo fleet. Ice breacers of the Murmansk shiping company are the only possibility for tourists to get to the North Pole. Arctic navigation are all-the-year-round since 1977.
In the neighbourhood with Murmansk is Kola, it is based in 1565 and it is the most ancient city on peninsula. Towns and bases of Northern Navy fleet are also at northern coast of peninsula.
      Mountans Khibiny are located in the centre of peninsula. There is the largest in the world a deposit of a mineral an apatite. Apatite name a stone of fertility, it's raw materials for manufacture of phosphoric fertilizers. The absolute elevations of basic peaks is 1100-1200 ms. It's Russian skiing Mecca. The longest mountain-skiing line is 3 kms. A season since February till April. Here there are two towns which almost adjoin. Apatity (~70.000 person) stands on a coast of lake Imandra at bottom of Hibiny. It began to be built up roughly from the end of 50th years on a place of small railway station. The status of city since 1964. Kirovsk (~30.000 person) is built up on a terraces of mountains. The first house is constructed in 1930, and in 1932 here already was 32 thousand inhabitants. The initial name - Hibinogorsk, after murder of Kirov (the popular politician of 30th years) was named in his honour at the request of the population. The main industry - mining. Both towns are obliged to the birth to academician Fersman, which began studying Hibiny from 30th years of 20-th century. In Apatity there is very big centre of science (Kola Scientific Centre) consisting of 11 institutes which study mainly questions of development of the richest natural resources of the North. The most boreal in the world the botanic garden is located here (67° 30' N.). Polar night from 9 December till 3 January. Polar day from 27 May till 18 Jule.
     There are some more small towns, but in them there are no briards. Principal businesses of the population - mining (iron, nickel, copper, mica, rare elements), fish (a cood, the halibut, a herring and other crab sticks), military (borders, northern fleet with aircraft). According to last census an aggregate number of the population is 892 thousand inhabitants. 96 percents of the population lives in cities. It's the first place on the country on a urban saturation. The area also occupies 1st a place on the country on an educational level, and middle age of the population - 34-35 years. High schools in Murmansk and Apatity. Nuclear station in town Polarny Zory, also there are some hydro- and thermal power stations. The experimental tidal power station was constructed at northern coast, at present it's inhibited. The Kola super-deep well is in the central part of peninsula, in a strata of the Baltic board It was drilled 13 kilometers, at present it's inhibited. The distance from Murmansk up to Moscow is 2000 kms, up to Sankt-Petersbourg is 1300 kms, up to North Pole 2400. Time: of Moscow (+ 2 hours to central european time). Airports: in Murmansk (international) and in Apatity. Highway: the line of Sankt-Petersbourg - Murmansk, crosses peninsula from the south to the north. The railway is constructed in 1917, trains from Murmansk go up to Sankt-Petersburg (Ladoga station), Moscow (Leningrad station), Vologda, Minsk (Byelorussia) and some other city. Check boundary stations: Norway - "Borysoglebsky", the way from Murmansk; Finland - "Salla", the way from a line of SPb - Murmansk, hardly to the south of Kandalaksha. To reach settlements of a coasts and the central tundras it's recommended by helicopters. Steamships go from Murmansk to some bases of northern coast.

For tourists:
Airport of Apatity
Murmantourism
Kola Expeditions
Wild and Free
GPS Aurora Borealis Forecast Page

To a hunters.

the Spring hunting season - from May, 1 till May, 10.
the Autumn-winter season: since the second Saturday of September till February, 28.