On the road to snow-where!

This spectacular snowy route marks the border between Sweden and Norway - and is perfect challenge for adventure-loving snowmobilers.

But this group are quite literally treading on a thin line - because to their right is Norway where riding a snowmobile for fun is illegal while to their left is Sweden where it is allowed.

Strict laws in Norway mean unless it is work related, riding snowmobiles is against the law. 

But photographer Havard Dalgrav, 25, and his friends were undeterred by the risk of ending up on the wrong side of the law and travelled four hours to the border to capture these stunning shots.

The snow motorway: Snowmobilers ride down the cleared border between Sweden, pictured on the left where riding snowmobiles for fun is legal, and Norway on the right where it is not 

A bumpy ride: The snowy route is more than 1000 miles long - making it the longest border for either country

The incredible snowy terrain, home to wolves and brown bears, is more than 1000 miles long and is the longest border along either country.

Mr Dalgrav, from Oslo, Norway, discovered the route while travelling to Sweden for a snowmobile trip earlier this year.

 

He said: 'It's a really breath-taking sight - the track seems to go on forever and as much as I'd love to get to the end of it I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to.

'It looks natural but I'm sure the trees must have been removed to mark the border, maybe left from WWII or something when this was much stricter.

'When you zoom in on the internet using Google Maps you can actually see the gap on the border and follow it all the way along from top to bottom.'

A winter wonderland: A man walks through the freshly-fallen snow in Chemnitz, eastern Germany, yesterday

Going nowhere fast: Bikes are covered in heavy snow in Munich, southern Germany, today as temperatures in the Bavarian capital fell below freezing

Vineyards were left covered in snow near Durbach, southern Germany, today

A quick dip: Ducks make the most of a river that has remained unfrozen after more snowfall in the Belarusian capital Minsk

But while the pictures may make the route appear to be as smooth as motorway, Mr Dalgrav revealed it was actually a rather bumpy ride. 

He continued: 'It's about 10-15 metres wide and what you can't tell from the pictures is that it's really quite bumpy so you can't get the sort of speed you crave looking at the long straight line.

'The laws are quite unusual so a lot of us from university travel over to Sweden together. Just a few meters to the right and we would have been breaking the law.

'We discovered it in February this year and we decided to make it an annual trip. It was about -15c so when driving at 100kmh with the wind in your face it's pretty cold.

'Unfortunately due to the temperature my camera stopped working - thankfully it was after I got this shot of the route snaking along the border for miles into the distance.
'It was so much fun and it's not every day you see something this beautiful.'

Clearing the way: Snowplows clean the A20 highway in eastern Germany after heavy snowfall

A long journey ahead: A man on cross-country skis attempts to make his way across a field in front of a church of Weyarn, Bavaria, Germany

Weather around the world: Snow falls in the suburbs of Beijing, China, bringing traffic problems and delayed flights for the first time 

Hard at work: A worker clears the tracks of the Chur-Arosa line at the train station in Litzirueti, Switzerland, yesterday

Beautiful photographs of horse loggers

It was a picturesque scene that could easily grace the cover of a Christmas card, as a full-time commercial horse logger was photographed removing Scots Pine trees from in the snow.

Simon Lenihan was pictured removing the trees in Crathie, Aberdeenshire, from the Balmoral Estate yesterday with Belgian Ardennes horses Sultan De Le Campagne, 15, and Salome Du Pre Renier, 4.

The beautiful horses working at the royal residence of Balmoral at this time of year were being used in place of large timber machines to minimise any damage to vegetation, soils and water-tables.  

Traditional values: Simon Lenihan, a full time commercial horse logger, removes a Scots Pine tree from the Balmoral Estate with Sultan De Le Campagne, a 15-year-old Belgian Aldennes horse

Beautiful scene: Simon Lenihan uses Salome Du Pre Renier, a 4-year-old Belgian Ardennes horse, to remove another Scots Pine tree from the estate

Tough work: Simon Lenihan removes a Scots Pine tree from the Balmoral Estate with Sultan De Le Campagne, a 15-year-old Belgian Ardennes horse

Traditional trade: The Prince of Wales is the Patron of The British Horse Loggers, an association that works to promote horse logging and support professional horse loggers

The Prince of Wales is the Patron of the British Horse Loggers, an association that works to promote horse logging and support professional horse loggers.

 

Mr Lenihan, who lives in Grange-over-Sands, Cumbria, was working in temperatures of -4C (25F) yesterday with his son Ian in front of photographer Jeff Mitchell.

Mr Mitchell, 42, of Balloch, West Dunbartonshire, told MailOnline: ‘They take the horses instead of using heavy machinery which causes quite a lot of damage to the ground.

Teamwork: Simon Lenihan and his son Ian, full time commercial horse loggers, remove a Scots Pine tree

Old-fashioned ways: The horses working at Balmoral are being used in place of large timber machines

Carefully does it: The purpose is to minimise any damage to vegetation, soils and water-tables

Together: Simon Lenihan removes a Scots Pine tree from the Balmoral Estate with Sultan De Le Campagne

‘I think those guys must have been working in temperatures of -4c. There’s a bit of frost on the ground, but those guys start around 5:30am and go and warm the horses up on a two-mile walk.

‘That gets the muscles and the blood going through the horses. They’re going back to the methods people were using 100 years ago. The neck harness is made by the Amish in the US.’

He added: ‘They've been up there for about 12 weeks. It's gorgeous, that whole area is just beautiful. You can see why the royal family go there. I think it's one of the most beautiful places in the UK.’ 

Going for cold: The team was working on the estate in Crathie, Aberdeenshire, in temperatures of -4C

Horse play: There are successful horse logging contractors working throughout Scotland, England and Wales

The British Horse Loggers offers demonstrations, training, professional development and works to advertise and promote horse logging

The British Horse Loggers's website describes horse logging as 'the extraction of timber using horses as 'base machine' with a wide range of traditional and modern implements'. 

It continues: 'Horse loggers work through the whole range of timber produced in British woodlands; from small coppice poles and firewood, through thinnings in soft and hard woods up to final crop - large saw logs in soft and hard woods.'

The organisation offers demonstrations, training, professional development and works to advertise and promote horse logging.

Sultan De Le Campagne drags along a Scots pine trunk, while Simon Lenihan follows on

The Lenihans were working today in sub-zero temperatures. They first take the horse for a two-mile walk to warm them up

Purchased by Queen Victoria in 1848, the Balmoral Estate has been the Scottish home of the Royal Family ever since.

The estate covers about 20,000 hectares (just over 50,000 acres) of heather-clad hills and ancient Caledonian woodland.

Over the past 150 years, careful stewardship by the Royal Family has preserved its wildlife, scenery and architecture.