Explore the Lofoten Islands in Norway

With so much of the world inaccessible right now, we’re taking a look through our archive of travel writing to revisit our past trips and to look at how iBestTravel has spent decades exploring the world in the hope of better understanding it.

In this piece from 2010, writer Orla Thomas visits Norway’s Lofoten Islands to find that the surrounding Arctic waters are far more than a scenic backdrop – the sea is the islands’ lifeblood, a source of great wealth and unforgettable stories.

The Unique Landscape of Lofoten

The tiny wooden fishermen’s huts that cling to the shore of Norway’s Lofoten Islands look too flimsy to survive in this prehistoric landscape. Towers of granite loom over these insubstantial red and yellow structures, which are scattered along the water’s edge like Lego bricks tossed aside by a petulant giant.

However, these modest homes are palatial compared to those of the islands’ first inhabitants. Until the first rorbuer (fishermen’s cottages) were built here in 1120, Lofoten fishermen used to sleep beneath their upturned vessels before flipping them over for a day at sea.

The Embrace of Nature

Once the people who came here were at the mercy of nature, but now they rush to embrace it. Holidaying Norwegians making the short hop from the mainland now occupy some of the simple wooden huts built to house fishermen.

They come to see the magnificent Lofotenveggen (Lofoten Wall – so-called because of the way the islands’ mountains stretch out across the sea in a seemingly unbroken chain) and to explore the deserted beaches, hidden fjords, and patches of virgin green behind each spiky peak.

Fishing still dominates island life, and the evidence is everywhere you look – from the seafood dishes listed on each restaurant menu to the giant, A-shaped drying racks in every harbor, where gutted cod are hung in pairs. Stockfish, or dried cod, has historically been Norway’s most valuable export commodity – these ugly creatures made Norway rich.

Meet Morten Nilsen

Morten Nilsen is a fifth-generation Lofoten fisherman who left school at 15 to join his father aboard his trawler, Hellvåg. Between January and April, during the peak fishing season, Morten is so busy at sea that he sometimes sleeps just 20 hours a week, casting out lines every day from 3 o’clock in the morning until 8 o’clock at night.

However, even in these plentiful waters, cod isn’t the lucrative business that it once was – overfishing has depleted supplies and demand for stockfish has dwindled. Consequently, fishermen like Morten have been forced to diversify.

Exploring the Moskenesstraumen Maelstrom

During the summer, Morten uses Hellvåg to take paying passengers out to the Moskenesstraumen Strait, the site of the mighty whirlpool that inspired Edgar Allan Poe’s “A Descent into the Maelstrom.” This is not merely a fictional demon, but the result of conflicting tidal currents between two of the Lofoten Islands, Moskenesøy and Værøy.

“There have been some moments,” says Morten. “In full moon, in bad weather, the current can be very strong, very powerful.”

“I Am Not Frightened by the Sea”

Morten has been forced to make his peace with these angry waters because, to reach the best spots for fishing, he must navigate his way through them every day (though he only takes tourists when the weather is calm). “Out here on the water, I feel free. People who don’t know this area don’t like it, but I am not frightened by the sea because I have learned to respect it.” Morten’s lesson, a valuable one in an environment where nature daily reasserts its dominance, came from his grandmother.

Conversations with the Sea

Morten admits a grudging faith in mythical figures, the very real anxieties suffered by fishermen manifesting as legends. “My grandmother taught me to believe in these things,” he says. “She has made me a very superstitious man.” As Morten begins expertly to steer Hellvåg out from the maelstrom, it is with guidance whispering in his ear.

Furthermore, Heike Vester has no dread of the creatures of the deep but longs for them to come to the surface. “Whales are my passion – when I don’t see them, I become very frustrated, very depressed.” A marine biologist from Germany, Heike’s research focuses on the sounds made by pilot and killer whales. By showing people the beauty of nature, she hopes they will want to protect it – and nowhere is it more beautiful than here.

A Connection to the Environment

Norwegians are devoted to their land and could never be accused of taking their share of the great outdoors for granted. The country has a strict environmental policy, and its citizens are fiercely committed to the ancient law of allemannsretten (literally “every man’s right” – preserving public access to wild areas). Many employers shorten office hours during the summer – explore the Lofoten Islands at twilight, and you’ll see happy workers enjoying the last rays of sunshine on bikes, boats, and on foot.

An Icy Morning Swim

On the hour, there is Euri, her wild blonde hair recently separated from its pillow, wearing a dressing gown and flip-flops. “Joining us?” she says in welcome, as we make our way to the ocean’s edge. “There are four of us who swim together: neighbors. We’ve been doing it every morning for seven years.” Their icy daily dip has health-giving properties, providing a refreshing start to the day.

This otherworldly landscape and ethereal Arctic light have long attracted artists, creating a robust cultural community on these tiny islands. Seventy-four-year-old Swedish artist Else-Maj Johansson first visited the islands on holiday and was enchanted by their beauty and the free-spirited people. She has lived here on and off since her return in 1969.

The Mythical and the Real

You don’t get more dramatic scenery than Troll Valley; it embodies the dichotomy of beauty and danger. Here, it’s easier to believe in myths, surrounded by landscapes that evoke visions of trolls and giants. In the Lofoten Islands, these legends feel palpably real, woven into the fabric of the land.