Vuonnabahta, Varangerbotn in Norwegian, is the small settlement at the head of the Varangerfjord, where the main roads of East Finnmark meet. The E6 comes in from the west and the south, the E75 heads east along the fjord toward Vadsø and Vardø, and it is a natural place to pause before tackling the long Varanger route along the northern shore. Around it the landscape is low and open, with birch scrub, bogs and gentle hills, and the fjord stretches away to the east, wide and grey.
This is Sami country, and the settlement is home to Várjjat Siida, the Varanger Sami Museum, which tells the story of the coastal Sami people who have lived around the fjord for thousands of years. The area is rich in archaeological sites, including old house sites, graves and traces of hunting and fishing communities going back to the Stone Age. The museum is a good introduction to the region and its people, and it is a modern building with exhibitions about language, culture and history.
The Varanger peninsula, to the north, is among the most remarkable landscapes in Norway, a high, bare plateau of tundra that ends in steep cliffs at the Barents Sea. It is famous among birdwatchers for its Arctic species, including king eiders and Steller's eiders in winter, and in summer the cliffs are home to huge colonies of seabirds. The road along the north shore of the fjord, toward Vadsø and Vardø, is the Varanger National Tourist Route.
The riding from here is open and atmospheric. The road follows the shore with long straights, gentle curves and wide views over the fjord, and the tarmac is mostly sound. You will rarely queue. Wind is a real factor and cold, and the sky rarely holds one mood for long. In summer the midnight sun gives endless days, and the light over the fjord and tundra is soft and golden. In autumn the colours of the tundra are extraordinary.
Varangerbotn has a shop and fuel, which is useful because services are sparse in this region. Tana bru, about fourteen kilometres away, has more options. Vadsø is the next town of any size, about sixty kilometres east.