Treriksrøysa, the northernmost point in Europe where three time zones meet

Europe is a continent with six different time zones, and three of them meet at three points that connect six countries.

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Two of those points are at the ends of the border between Poland and Belarus. Those points coincide with Ukraine to the south and Lithuania to the north. Given the conflicts that are currently going on in that part of Europe, they are not the most appropriate places to be crossing a border, unless you want to be stopped.

Further north is the third of these points, known in Bokmal as Treriksrøysa. The borders of Norway (to the north), Finland (to the west) and Russia (to the south) meet here. In addition, the Central European Time (UTC+1, Norway), Eastern European Time (Finland, UTC+2) and Moscow Time (UTC+3) time zones meet here. It is the northernmost point in Europe where three different time zones meet, so that with a simple jump you could go back or forward two hours.

Obviously, this is easier said than done. Finland and Norway are part of the Schengen area, so you should have no problem crossing the border between the two countries freely. However, the Russian border is fenced and you need a visa to enter that country. The nearest border crossing is at Storskog, between Norway and Russia: it is only legal to cross the border there. Furthermore, Finland and Norway are NATO countries, and the relationship between the Atlantic Alliance and Russia is currently so bad that crossing the border can lead to being stopped by the Russian border guard.

A stone boundary marker was erected here in 1846 in the Norwegian municipality of Sør-Varanger, in accordance with the 1826 Boundary Convention between Norway and Russia (Finland was then part of the Russian Empire). A concrete tetrahedron was added to the Treriksrøysa boundary marker in 1945, marking the three countries that meet at this point, 145 metres above sea level.

Please note that Treriksrøysa is not a tourist destination like other places. This border crossing is usually patrolled by Norwegian and Russian border guards. Visitors from Finland and Norway are only allowed to take photos of the border crossing from the Schengen side of the border. Photographs of the Russian border guards are prohibited. Visits to the border crossing are usually made from Grenseberget, Norway, via a 5-kilometre forest track.

Eight years ago, NomadsLife published a video of a visit to this place, where he had the opportunity to speak with two Norwegian soldiers who were in the area and who told some details about this border point:

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Main photo: Julia Velkova.