Murmansk is the largest city north of the Arctic Circle, a port of over three hundred thousand people on the eastern shore of Kola Bay, and it owes its existence to the sea. The water stays open all year, kept free of ice by a final tongue of the Gulf Stream, which made this a vital harbour during the First World War, when the city was founded in 1916, and during the Second, when Allied convoys brought supplies here from Britain and America. The city was heavily bombed, and its character today is dominated by blocks of Soviet housing, stern monuments and ships tied up along the waterfront.
The most striking monument is Alyosha, a huge concrete soldier standing on a hill above the bay, raised in 1974 to honour the defenders of the Arctic. The city has the atomic icebreaker Lenin, the world's first nuclear-powered surface ship, which is now a museum moored at the harbour. In midwinter the sun does not rise for about six weeks, and the city lives under the glow of streetlights, auroras sometimes flickering above them. In summer, the sun does not set for several weeks, and the long evenings are bright and cool.
For a rider, Murmansk is the start of the Arctic coast. The road to Teriberka, on the Barents Sea, is about a hundred and twenty kilometres of tundra, rock and water, with low birch scrub, reindeer and cold light. The coast is bare and wind-beaten, with surf crashing on dark rocks, and the old fishing village has a ship graveyard that has become well known from films and photographs. The surface is mostly good, though sections can have frost damage, and weather is a serious matter, with sudden fog, snow even in June and strong wind. The season for riding is short, roughly June to early September.
Fuel is available in the city and in the nearby suburbs, such as Roslyakovo, and you should fill the tank before leaving, since services on the coast road are scarce. Warm clothing is essential, even in summer, and spare layers are wise. Mobile coverage is patchy once you leave the main roads.
Try the local fish, salmon, cod and the sweet king crab that was introduced from the Pacific, and warm up in a cafe with tea and pastries. The city is not pretty, but it has a strong, stubborn character that suits the north.