Moskenes

Understand

At 68°N, the Lofoten archipelago is well above the Arctic Circle, and at the same latitude as Greenland or the northern parts of Alaska. However, it enjoys a relatively mild climate due to the circulation of the Gulf Stream, and temperatures up to 23°C in the summer are not uncommon. Still, it remains a subarctic destination, the weather changes fast, and even in the summer it may get cold. When the sun is not shining a sweater is recommended. The winter is cold, but remains bearable. At this extreme latitude – the same as northern Siberia and northern Alaska – winters should be very cold, but instead of -40°C/F, Lofoten temperatures hover around freezing in winter, and start to climb in April.

Before becoming a popular tourist retreat, Lofoten was and still is a very important fishing centre, especially for the special type of cod (skrei in Norwegian), attracted by the rich food brought by the Gulf Stream. At the end of the spring, thousands of tons of cod are hung to dry on wooden racks. For at least a thousand years the very rich Lofoten cod fisheries was a key factor in the Norwegian economy. Thousands gathered from all along the coast to take part in the winter-spring fisheries. The key to Lofoten’s fishery economy was the natural outdoor drying without the use of salt. Low temperatures and constant wind is necessary for this process to be successful, further north it is too cold and further south too warm and humid, while the Lofoten islands have the right conditions. This slow drying process creates the characteristic stockfish (Norwegian: tørrfisk, literally dry fish). The dry cod was transported to and traded at the harbour of Bergen a thousand kilometres down the coast; the cod trade effectively created Bergen as Norway's (and partly Scandinavia's) largest and most important city. The famous waterfront warehouses in Bergen were mostly used to store dry cod. Still today the stockfish is exported to Italy, Croatia, Nigeria and Sweden (the similar dry-salted

Getting there

By plane You can arrive from Bodø (BOO IATA) by air to Røst, Værøy, Leknes or Svolvær (20–30 min flight time). The former airport at Værøy was closed following a plane crash in 1990. However, a helicopter company serves the route Bodø–Værøy, offering several flights per day (2008). If you arrive from the Vesterålen archipelago (located North of Lofoten), a ferry still services the sea route between Melbu and Fiskebøl, the latter located along highway E10 (see above). For getting out via Bodø Airport, your special baggage must not exceed a size limit, which means removing the front wheel of most bikes! Airport in the Lofoten islands:

1 Leknes Airport (LKN IATA). 2 Svolvær Airport, Helle (SVJ IATA). 3 Røst Airport (RET IATA). Airports nearby in Nordland county:

4 Stokmarknes Airport, Skagen (SKN IATA). 5 Harstad/Narvik Airport, Evenes (EVE IATA).

By car A new section of highway E10 was opened in 2007, giving Lofoten ferry-free road connection with the mainland for the first time.

By bus The journey takes about 3½ hours. The bus ride from Narvik to Svolvær takes 4 hours 15 minutes, with two daily services in each direction. The bus ride from Harstad/Narvik Airport Evenes to Svolvær takes about 3 hours (just over 2 hours by car), crossing through a very rugged and scenic terrain and bordering the Møysalen National Park. From the Moskenesøya island (Reine, Moskenes, Å), there are several buses a day through Leknes. There are several buses a day from Narvik (mainland Norway) to Moskenes. The main bus stop is right in front of the ferry waiting room. There is scheduled bus from Narvik (stops at Evenes Airport; no ferry on the new road).

By ferry Another alternative is to arrive by sea, e.g. using the 'Hurtigruten', the coastal steamer, or a common ferry, from Bodø to Svolvær (6 hours), Stamsund, Moskenes, Værøy and Røst. The ferry to Svolvær operates on all days except Sundays. There is no ferry terminal as such in Svolvær, but only a very small w

Getting around

By car The main islands are easily covered by car. The E10 route links Hanøy in the extreme north-east of Austvagøy island and Å at the south-western tip of Moskenesøy through a series of bridges. Although the archipelago may look small on the map, the full crossing is a good 180 km along the E10 on a very windy road, with the usual Norwegian speed limits. However due to the state of the roads, don't expect to average much more than 50 km/h. At the south-eastern tip, around Reine, the road furthermore becomes very narrow, so take your time along the way. All the other secondary roads radiate from the E10, but note that some are even windier and narrower. Petrol is available only in the larger towns, so make sure you fill up when you get a chance.

By bus Most places can be reached by bus. Students get a 50% discount on long trips. Most buses from the south (Å, Reine) stop at Leknes, and you should change to another bus to go further north (Svolvær).

By boat If you plan to visit the southernmost islands of Lofoten, i.e. Værøy or Røst, you will need to take a ferry from Moskenes. Værøy is about 1½ hr from Moskenes, and another approx. 2 hours to Røst.

By bicycle There are (fairly expensive) bikes for hire at various points around the islands and the E10, as a usually relatively unpopulated highway makes a good cycle path for short trips. In addition there are occasional cycle lanes, usually on bridges or around the outside of the many tunnels.

See

The main attraction of the archipelago is its majestic scenery. The coastline is dominated by high mountains cut by fjords, as well as sandy white beaches. Apart from the scenery, the fishing history of the archipelago is visible in several little villages all around the coast. Nusfjord and the lovely Å are prime examples. The Lofoten has many traditional fishermen red cabins built on the sea shore or over stilts (the rorbu), and it is even possible to stay in one. In the summer, you can enjoy the midnight sun. In Leknes, the sun remains above the horizon from May 26 to July 17. The midnight sun is best viewed from the western beaches, such as the Vestvågøy Island beaches Utakleiv and Eggum. When there is midnight sun, there is a polar night, and in winter the sun does not rise from December 9 to January 4. The archipelago is at a good latitude to admire the Northern lights, but from the end of April to September, the nights might be a little too bright. The beaches of Lofoten are also quite renowned. Utakleiv was ranked as the number one most romantic beach in Europe by the British newspaper The Times, and the neighbouring Hauklandsstranden is ranked by the Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet as the best beach in Norway. Eggum was chosen to be the millennial spot in Vestvågøy and in 2007 an amphitheater was created here (designed by Norwegian architects Snøhetta, designers of the library in Alexandria).

1 Kollhellaren (south-west coast of Moskenesøya, by the former fishing village Refsvika). A tall cave