Lake Kuetsjärvi

Kuetsjärvi is a fresh lake in the northwest of the Murmansk region in the Pechenga district, lying at an altitude of more than 20 meters above sea level east of the Russian-Norwegian border. Kuetsjärvi is connected to the Barents Sea by a small channel (through Lake Salmijärvi).

The banks are hilly, covered with pine-birch forest, in places wetlands. The surrounding hills reach 340 meters high. The largest elevations are Orshoaivi (342 meters) and Hingslahdenvari (284 meters).

The area of the lake is 17 square kilometers, which makes it the 40th largest in the Murmansk region. The shape is elongated, 15 kilometers long. In the north, the lake narrows, forming Pitkjaluocco – a bay about 5 kilometers long.

The shores are uneven, flat. Many unnamed capes, only the largest of them has a name - Hapaniemi. The southern coast is decorated with sandbanks and small gentle islands. The largest island of Hautasari lies in the south of the lake. On the banks there is the town of Nickel and the village of Salmijärvi.

Sailing regattas are held on the lake in summer and competitions in auto racing on ice in winter. The ecological state of the lake made ecologists think. A 2007 study showed an excess of the permissible level of nickel and copper in the waters, presumably caused by sewage from a local plant.