E1 European long distance path

Understand

The E1 Long Distance Path goes through many countries, including Norway, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. The E1, unlike trails such as the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), does not have a dedicated path. Instead, it is made up of separate local trails that are available in the area, at a few places with a dedicated connecting trail added. The Norwegian part was inaugurated in 2013.

Getting there

The trailhead for the E1 European Long Distance Path is a Nordkapp ("North Cape"). The trailhead marks the northernmost point on continental Europe (more or less). One can hike the entire E1 trail, or sections of it. The sections are usually grouped by country, for administrative reasons, although the borders are not always the best places to begin walking a leg. You could choose to hike the entire thing, some sections, or the whole thing some sections at a time. The trail can be hiked from north to south or south to north. You may choose the start the trail at its proper trailhead at Nordkapp. See its article for more options of getting in. The local airport, Honningsvåg Airport, is 32 km away. Alternatives are at Alta and Lakselv, which offer more options airline-wise but are much farther away.

1 Honningsvåg Airport (HVG IATA), Valan 9751 Honningsvåg, ☏ +47 41 70 66 40. The airport is at Valan, on the south side of Skipsfjorden, 4 km (2.5 mi) north of the town, and 31 km (19 mi) from the North Cape. The airport has an 880-by-30-meter (2,887 by 98 ft) asphalt runway which is operated by the state-owned Avinor. Flights are operated by Widerøe to Tromsø with connecting flights to Oslo. The airline also fly to other communities within Finnmark, who serve the airport with Dash 8-100 and Q200 aircraft. (updated Jul 2020) 2 Alta Airport (ALF IATA), Alta Farm Forest 32, 9515, ☏ +47 67 03 49 00. The airport is located at Elvebakken, 4 km (2.5 mi) northeast of Bossekop in Alta. Alta Airport is owned and operated by the state-owned Avinor. The airport is served by Norwegian Air Shuttle and Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) with Boeing 737 aircraft on flights to Tromsø and Oslo. Widerøe operates services to Tromsø and several regional airports in Finnmark, feeding to the larger airlines' routes. (updated Jul 2020) 3 Lakselv Airport (North Cape Airport, LKL IATA), Lakselv lufthavn, Banak, 9700 Lakselv, Norway, ☏ +47 67 03 50 00. Co-located with the military Station Group Banak, the

Go next

You could hike another one of Europe's long distance paths! The trails E5, E7, E10, and E12 all have legs within Italy, the last country the E1 Long Distance Path goes into. Both the E5 and the E12 end in Italy, so you can hike those backwards as well.