Tana (Norway)

The Tana (  or ;  ; ; ) is a  long river in the Sápmi area of northern Fennoscandia. The river flows through Troms og Finnmark county, Norway and the Lapland region of Finland. The Sámi name means "Great River". The main tributaries of Tana are Anarjohka and Karasjohka.

The Tana Valley is the core area for "the River-Sami Culture" in Finnmark; salmon fishing is central in regard to that culture.

History: According to written sources since the 17th century, fishing has been a major livelihood for the Sami people in the river valley.

Geography

In its upper course, it runs for  along the Finnish–Norwegian border, between the municipalities of Utsjoki, Finland, and Karasjok and Tana, Norway. The river is the fifth longest in Norway. The last  of the river run through the municipality of Tana in Norway. The river discharges into the Tanafjorden, one of the largest and most unspoiled river deltas in Europe. The delta is protected and is an important home to wetland birds. There are large deposits of sand in the delta that are exposed sandbars at low tide.

Fishing
In 2022, authorities in Norway and in Finland will not permit salmon fishing (in the river). In 2023, on Finland's side of the river, some permits would allow fishing of humpback salmon - and the methods for that would be drift netting and seine fishing. 

In 2020,  was the annual total of salmon captured in the river. Previously, in 2002, fishermen on the river captured an annual total of  salmon, with an average size of . The annual sea trout catch for that year on the river was . Both Finland and Norway regulate the fishing on the river.

During the years when the authorities permit fishing, one can purchase a fishing permit (for angling). Some residents, can get a permit for fishing with barrier net.

The Tana is well known for its excellent salmon fishery and is the most productive salmon river in Finland and Norway. The world's record for Atlantic salmon is held by a salmon caught on the Tana; it was  and was taken in 1929 by the Nils Mathis Walle.

In 2023, Norwegian authorities constructed a barrier with a trap that has sorted out hundreds of humpback salmon (on some days), while allowing other fish to pass. The installation is in the vicinity of Seidaholmen - and downstream of it. In August that year, media said that disassembly of the barrier had started.

Transportation
The Tana Bridge (or Nybrua) was constructed in 2020, replacing the function of a neighboring bridge from 1948; its main span is .

The Sami Bridge at Utsjoki was constructed in 1993. The European route E6 highway follows the western shoreline of the river for most of the length of the river.

In winter, there are usually two ice roads that are in use from December to April. These roads are located near Rustefjelbma and near Polmak and have a weight limit of , but few other limitations.

References

External links

Historiker: – En stor skandale innen naturforvaltning [Historian: – A great scandal in regard to conservation of nature] (10 April 2021) NRK
Aage Solbakk. "LuossaLaksSalmon". https://deatnu.net/luossalakssalmon/. DeanuInstituhtta. Retrieved 2023-05-22
Angling in Tana river

Rivers of Troms og Finnmark
Rivers of Norway
Rivers of Finland
International rivers of Europe
Border rivers
Finland–Norway border
 
Nesseby
Karasjok
Tana, Norway
Rivers of Utsjoki