Bremanger - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Bremanger is a municipality in the county

Counties of Norway

Norway is divided into 19 administrative regions, called counties . The counties form the primary first-level subdivisions of Norway and are further divided into 430 municipalities...

of Sogn og Fjordane

Sogn og Fjordane

is a county in Norway, bordering Møre og Romsdal, Oppland, Buskerud, and Hordaland. The county administration is in the town of Hermansverk in Leikanger municipality while the largest town is Førde....

, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

. Bremanger is the only municipality in Sogn og Fjordane, which is located in two districts. The north-eastern parts comprising Oldeide, Berle, Rugsund, Davik, Isane and Ålfoten is located in Nordfjord, while Bremanger, Kalvåg, Svelgen, Sørgulen and Botnane are located in Sunnfjord. The municipality works, however politically with the Nordfjord district in the council of Nordfjord municipalities. Bremanger was separated from Kinn

Kinn

Kinn is a small island west of the town of Florø in the municipality of Flora, Norway. The island lies about west of the neighboring island of Reksta and the village of Rognaldsvåg, which is the main population center for the area...

in 1866. Davik

Davik

Davik is a village and former municipality in the traditional district of Nordfjord in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The former municipality of Davik was located in parts of the present-day municipalities of Vågsøy, Bremanger, and Eid. The administrative center of the former municipality was...

was merged with Bremanger on 1 January 1965.

The municipality consists of the villages Bremanger, Berle

Berle

Berle is a village on the west coast of Norway. It is located on the eastern coast of Bremangerlandet island in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county. The village lies along the Berlepollen fjord, about west of the cliff Hornelen. Berle is about a drive west from the village...

, Davik

Davik

, Isane

Isane

Isane is a village in Bremanger municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It has a ferry connection to the village of Stårheim which is about northeast across the Nordfjord in the municipality of Eid. The population of Isane is 42...

, Kalvåg

Kalvåg

Kalvåg is a village located on the southeast side of the island of Frøya in the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. Kalvåg is on the coast along the Frøysjøen, the southern entrance to the Nordfjord. Kalvåg has a population of 351...

, Svelgen

Svelgen

Svelgen is a village in the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. Svelgen, the municipal center of the municipality, has a population of 1,189. It is located at the end of the Nordgulen fjord, about northeast of Midtgulen Church...

, Rugsund, and Ålfoten

Ålfoten

Ålfoten is a village that lies on the south side of the Nordfjord in the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The population of the village is 181. The village has an elementary school and the Ålfoten Church which was built in 1678...

. Svelgen is the administrative centre of the municipality. In the district of Bremanger are found tourist destination

Tourist destination

A tourist destination is a city, town, or other area that is dependent to a significant extent on the revenues accruing from tourism. It may contain one or more tourist attractions and possibly some "tourist traps."...

s such as Kalvåg, which has one of the largest and best-kept waterfront environment in the county, Grotlesanden ocean beach, the Hornelen mountain, with the tallest sea cliff in Northern Europe, rock carvings

Petroglyph

Petroglyphs are pictogram and logogram images created by removing part of a rock surface by incising, picking, carving, and abrading. Outside North America, scholars often use terms such as "carving", "engraving", or other descriptions of the technique to refer to such images...

at Vingen, and the old trading stations of Rugsund and Smørhavn.

General information

Kinn

was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt

Formannskapsdistrikt

Formannskapsdistrikt was the name for a Norwegian local self-government districts put into force in 1838. This system of municipality was created in a bill approved by the Storting and signed into law by King Carl Johan on 14 January 1837...

). Bremanger was established as a parish

Parish

A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...

(prestegjeld) within the municipality of Kinn in 1864. On 1 January 1866, the parish of Bremanger became a separate municipality with a population of 1,852. Bremanger parish was sub-divided into new sub-parishes in the early 1900s. Midtgulen sub-parish was created in 1903 and Bremangerpollen in 1908. On 1 January 1964, the Husefest and Breivik farms were transferred from Bremanger to Flora

Flora, Norway

Flora is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre is the village of Florø, which was founded in 1860, has 8,448 inhabitants . The Eikefjord area, which is the second largest place in Flora, has about...

.

On 1 January 1965, the neighboring municipality of Davik

Davik

was dissolved and most of it was transferred to Bremanger. All of Davik south of the Nordfjord

Nordfjord

Nordfjord is a fjord and a traditional district in the northern part of Sogn og Fjordane county in Western Norway. The district comprises the municipalities of Selje, Vågsøy, Bremanger, Eid, Gloppen, Hornindal, and Stryn. Nordfjord covers an area of and is home to a population of approximately...

and all the islands except Husevågøy, Grindøy, Gangsøy, and Risøy were merged into Bremanger. This added 1,567 residents to the population of Bremanger, bringing the new total to 5,600.

Name

The name (Old Norse

Old Norse

Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....

Brimangr) originally belonged to the fjord of Bremangerpollen. The first element is brim which means "breaker wave

Breaking wave

In fluid dynamics, a breaking wave is a wave whose amplitude reaches a critical level at which some process can suddenly start to occur that causes large amounts of wave energy to be transformed into turbulent kinetic energy...

" or "heavy sea". The last element of the name is angr which means "fjord

Fjord

Geologically, a fjord is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created in a valley carved by glacial activity.-Formation:A fjord is formed when a glacier cuts a U-shaped valley by abrasion of the surrounding bedrock. Glacial melting is accompanied by rebound of Earth's crust as the ice...

Coat-of-arms

The coat-of-arms

Coat of arms

A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...

is from modern times. The arms were granted on 24 October 1986. The arms show a wave, and it symbolizes the sea

Sea

A sea generally refers to a large body of salt water, but the term is used in other contexts as well. Most commonly, it means a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, and is commonly used as a synonym for ocean...

and hydro-electric power

Hydropower

Hydropower, hydraulic power, hydrokinetic power or water power is power that is derived from the force or energy of falling water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Since ancient times, hydropower has been used for irrigation and the operation of various mechanical devices, such as...

, both of which are of great economic importance to the municipality.

Churches

The Church of Norway

Church of Norway

The Church of Norway is the state church of Norway, established after the Lutheran reformation in Denmark-Norway in 1536-1537 broke the ties to the Holy See. The church confesses the Lutheran Christian faith...

has eight churches within the municipality of Bremanger. It is part of the Diocese of Bjørgvin

Diocese of Bjørgvin

Bjørgvin Diocese is a diocese in the Church of Norway. It covers churches located in the counties of Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane. The cathedral city is Bergen. Bergen Cathedral, formerly the Church of Saint Olaf, serves as the seat of the presiding Bishop...

and the Rural Deanery

Deanery

A Deanery is an ecclesiastical entity in both the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England. A deanery is either the jurisdiction or residence of a Dean.- Catholic usage :...

(Prosti) of Nordfjord

Nordfjord

style="font-size:medium"|***Churches in Bremanger***
Parish (Prestegjeld Prestegjeld A Prestegjeld is a geographic and administrative area of the Church of Norway roughly equivalent to a parish. A prestegjeld can consist of one or many congregations... )	Sub-Parish (Sokn)	Church Name	Year Built	Location of the Church
*Bremanger Parish*	Berle	Berle kyrkje Berle Church Berle church is a local church community center in the village of Berle in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Bremanger prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin.The church, which can seat 210 persons, was consecrated...	1977	Berle Berle Berle is a village on the west coast of Norway. It is located on the eastern coast of Bremangerlandet island in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county. The village lies along the Berlepollen fjord, about west of the cliff Hornelen. Berle is about a drive west from the village...
	Bremanger	Bremanger kyrkje Bremanger Church Bremanger church is a wooden "long church" in Bremanger village on the island of Bremangerlandet in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Bremanger prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin...	1914	Bremanger
	Frøya	Frøya kyrkje Frøya Church Frøya church is a wooden "long church" in Kalvåg on the island of Frøya, in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway...	1865	Frøya Frøya, Sogn og Fjordane Frøya is an island in the western part of the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The island is located just to the southwest of the big island of Bremangerlandet and its highest point is Fanneskarvarden at an elevation of ....
*Davik Parish*	Davik	Davik Kyrkje Davik Church Davik church is a wooden "long church" in the village of Davik in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin....	1886	Davik Davik Davik is a village and former municipality in the traditional district of Nordfjord in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The former municipality of Davik was located in parts of the present-day municipalities of Vågsøy, Bremanger, and Eid. The administrative center of the former municipality was...
	Midtgulen	Midtgulen kyrkje Midtgulen Church Midtgulen church is a wooden "long church" in Midtgulen village in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin....	1904	Midtgulen
	Rugsund	Rugsund kyrkje Rugsund church Rugsund Church is a wooden "long church" in Rugsund in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin....	1838	Rugsund
	Ålfoten	Ålfoten kyrkje Ålfoten Church Ålfoten church is a cog-joint wooden "long church" in Ålfoten in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin....	1600	Ålfoten Ålfoten Ålfoten is a village that lies on the south side of the Nordfjord in the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The population of the village is 181. The village has an elementary school and the Ålfoten Church which was built in 1678...

Government

All municipalities in Norway, including Bremanger, are responsible for primary education

Primary education

A primary school is an institution in which children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as primary or elementary education. Primary school is the preferred term in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth Nations, and in most publications of the United Nations Educational,...

(through 10th grade), outpatient health services

Health care

Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...

, senior citizen

Old age

Old age consists of ages nearing or surpassing the average life span of human beings, and thus the end of the human life cycle...

services, unemployment

Unemployment

Unemployment , as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work within the past four weeks...

and other social services

Social work

Social Work is a professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of an individual, group, or community by intervening through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice, and teaching on behalf of those afflicted with poverty or any real or...

, zoning

Zoning

Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...

, economic development

Economic development

Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...

, and municipal road

Road

A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...

s. The municipality is governed by a municipal council of elected representatives, which in turn elect a mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

Municipal council

The municipal council (Kommunestyre) of Bremanger is made up of 23 representatives that are elected to every four years. For 2007–2011, the party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

breakdown is as follows:

Mayor

The mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

(ordførar) of a municipality in Norway is a representative of the majority party of the municipal council who is elected to lead the council. Kåre Olav Svarstad of the Labour Party

Norwegian Labour Party

The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in Norway. It is the senior partner in the current Norwegian government as part of the Red-Green Coalition, and its leader, Jens Stoltenberg, is the current Prime Minister of Norway....

(Det Norske Arbeiderpartiet) was re-elected mayor for the 2007–2011 term.

Geography

Bremanger is located along the south side of the Nordfjord. Most of the municipality is on the mainland, but there are many islands that are also part of the municipality including Bremangerlandet

Bremangerlandet

Bremangerlandet is an island in the municipality of Bremanger in the traditional district of Nordfjord in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The island is the largest island in the county. The highest point on the island is the mountain Svartevassegga at , however the cliff at Hornelen, located ...

, Rugsundøy, and Frøya

Frøya, Sogn og Fjordane

Frøya is an island in the western part of the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The island is located just to the southwest of the big island of Bremangerlandet and its highest point is Fanneskarvarden at an elevation of ....

, the three largest.

Bremanger is bordered to the north by the municipalities of Vågsøy

Vågsøy

Vågsøy is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The municipality's administrative center is the town Måløy. Vågsøy is also the name of the main island in the municipality with an area of...

and Eid

Eid, Norway

Eid is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. The village of Nordfjordeid is the administrative center of the municipality. Other larger villages are Mogrenda, Stårheim, Haugen, Kjølsdalen, Heggjabygda, and LoteEid is...

, to the east by Gloppen

Gloppen

Gloppen is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Nordfjord. Gloppen is generally subdivided into three areas: Hyen in the west, Gloppen in the center, and Breim in the east. Each of the areas have their own main service centres. ...

, to the south by Flora

Flora

Flora is the plant life occurring in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring or indigenous—native plant life. The corresponding term for animals is fauna.-Etymology:...

, and to the west by the North Sea

North Sea

In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...

. The Frøysjøen is the sea between the mainland and the main islands of Bremangerlandet and Frøya. There are also some smaller fjords off of the Frøysjøen called Nordgulen, Midtgulen, and Sørgulen. On the east end of the municipality is the Isefjord and Ålfoten fjord.

Industry

Elkem

Elkem is one of Norway's largest industrial companies, and one of the world's leading suppliers of metals and materials. The company's main products are aluminium, energy and silicon as well as specialised products such as ferrosilicon to foundries, microsilica and carbon...

Bremanger is the largest company in Bremanger. The company's own port

Port

A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....

facility provides good and regular connections with the main ports of Norway and the rest of Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

. Elkem Bremanger has specialized in the manufacturing of silicon

Silicon

Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...

metal, ferrosilicon

Ferrosilicon

Ferrosilicon, or ferrosilicium, is a ferroalloy, an alloy of iron and silicon with between 15% and 90% silicon. It contains a high proportion of iron silicides. Its melting point is about 1200 °C to 1250 °C with a boiling point of 2355 °C...

, and specialty inoculants. Silicon metals are primarily used in electronics

Electronics

Electronics is the branch of science, engineering and technology that deals with electrical circuits involving active electrical components such as vacuum tubes, transistors, diodes and integrated circuits, and associated passive interconnection technologies...

, solar, and aluminium

Aluminium

Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances....

industries.

The variety of Elkem Bremanger's operations shows the importance it places on both tradition and looking toward the future. The expansion of hydropower

Hydropower

resources began in 1917, while the first pig iron

Pig iron

Pig iron is the intermediate product of smelting iron ore with a high-carbon fuel such as coke, usually with limestone as a flux. Charcoal and anthracite have also been used as fuel...

production began in 1928. The company then developed and patented several of its production processes, and today manufactures metallurgic products and chemicals

Chemical substance

In chemistry, a chemical substance is a form of matter that has constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. It cannot be separated into components by physical separation methods, i.e. without breaking chemical bonds. They can be solids, liquids or gases.Chemical substances are...

for the world market. Much has happened since 1917, but the company is still known for its developmental know-how and state-of-the-art technology

Technology

Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...

Tongane Coastal Fortress

Tongane Coastal Fortress lies a little further out in Skatestraumen. This is one of the largest German

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

fortification

Fortification

Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...

s which was built in Norway during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. The coastal fort was attacked under the well-known Måløy

Måløy

is a town and the administrative centre of the municipality of Vågsøy in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. Måløy is located on the southeastern side of the island of Vågsøy, about northeast of the village of Holvik and about south of Raudeberg. The Måløybrua connects the town to the village of...

raid, Operation Archery

Operation Archery

Operation Archery, also known as the Vaagso Raid, was a British Combined Operations raid during World War II against German positions on Vaagso Island , Norway, on 27 December 1941....

, during Christmas

Christmas

Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...

1941. The majority of the fortification still remains, among other the main cannon

Cannon

A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...

s and soldier's barracks

Barracks

Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...

. The fort at Rugsundøy is situated with a good view over the approach to Måløy

Måløy

and the entrance to Nordfjord.

Ålfotbreen Glacier

Ålfotbreen Glacier, the westernmost glacier

Glacier

A glacier is a large persistent body of ice that forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. At least 0.1 km² in area and 50 m thick, but often much larger, a glacier slowly deforms and flows due to stresses induced by its weight...

in Norway

Norway

, is about 1,682 metres above sea level. Ålfotbreen Glacier can be reached by foot on marked footpaths or walking with a guide. Ålfotbreen Glacier can be seen from the road in Ålfoten

Ålfoten

Hornelen

The legendary mountain cliff

Cliff

In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...

Hornelen

Hornelen is a mountain in the municipality of Bremanger, in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. At , it is the highest sea cliff in Europe, and has for a long time been used as a landmark for naval navigation. The horizontal distance from the summit to the sea shore is approximately...

is situated straight across the fjord from Vingen rock carving site

Rock carvings at Vingen

The Vingen rock carvings are located near Frøysjøen in the municipality of Bremanger in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway.- History :...

. Many legend

Legend

A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...

s are linked to this mountain which is northern Europe's tallest sea cliff. It raises 860 metres over the sea and is a good landmark

Landmark

This is a list of landmarks around the world.Landmarks may be split into two categories - natural phenomena and man-made features, like buildings, bridges, statues, public squares and so forth...

for ships. Over the centuries, it has been a well-known sailing mark. The trip to the top of Hornelen takes approximately 4 hours from Berleneset.

Kalvåg

The fishing village Kalvåg

Kalvåg

is the largest and best preserved fishing village in Western Norway. Kalvåg is beautiful and its history is even more fascinating. In 1860, there were thousands of people working in the large herring

Herring

Herring is an oily fish of the genus Clupea, found in the shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and the North Atlantic oceans, including the Baltic Sea. Three species of Clupea are recognized. The main taxa, the Atlantic herring and the Pacific herring may each be divided into subspecies...

fisheries

Fishery

Generally, a fishery is an entity engaged in raising or harvesting fish which is determined by some authority to be a fishery. According to the FAO, a fishery is typically defined in terms of the "people involved, species or type of fish, area of water or seabed, method of fishing, class of boats,...

. Today, approximately 500 people live there.

Vamråkbuene is situated in Kalvåg. During the large herring fisheries in the middle of the 18th Century, Kalvåg was a true fishing metropolis with many thousands of visiting fishermen. Vamråkbuene represents one part of the trading life that the herring fisheries created, and today it is part of the Coastal museum

Museum

A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...

in Sogn og Fjordane

Sogn og Fjordane

. Here you can have a guided tour (arranged beforehand) and an exciting insight in to how the fishing industry

Fishing industry

The fishing industry includes any industry or activity concerned with taking, culturing, processing, preserving, storing, transporting, marketing or selling fish or fish products....

has developed from the 18th century to modern times.

Myklebust Farm

At the Myklebust hill farm, there is still a working hill farm

Fell farming

Fell farming is the farming of fells, i.e. areas of uncultivated high ground used as common grazing. It is a term commonly used in Northern England, especially in the Lake District and the Pennine Dales...

. The hill farm in Ålfoten

Ålfoten

is authentic and unique in this part of Norway. Many of the local hill farms have stopped running and following the tradition of moving the livestock

Livestock

Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...

to the hill farms in the summer.

Rugsund

The islands of Storøya and Litleøya (Big island and Little island) lie in the sound, providing shelter for the old trading post at Rugsund. The excellent, sheltered harbour

Harbor

A harbor or harbour , or haven, is a place where ships, boats, and barges can seek shelter from stormy weather, or else are stored for future use. Harbors can be natural or artificial...

centrally located beside the inner shipping fairway along the coast was popular with seafarers. Today, the harbour is very popular with boat tourists

Tourism

Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

who have seriously begun to discover the attractions of this peaceful, idyllic harbour.

Rugsund Handelsstad is a preserved trading post

Trading post

A trading post was a place or establishment in historic Northern America where the trading of goods took place. The preferred travel route to a trading post or between trading posts, was known as a trade route....

dated back to the 17th century. The historical and restored buildings are clustered around the edge of the sea.

Smørhavn Handelstad

Smørhamn Handelstad (Old Trading Post) is from the 16th century and has been an important junction point for clipper

Clipper

A clipper was a very fast sailing ship of the 19th century that had three or more masts and a square rig. They were generally narrow for their length, could carry limited bulk freight, small by later 19th century standards, and had a large total sail area...

s and cutters (sailing boats) between Nordfjord and Bergen

Bergen

Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....

. The trading post

Trading post

was important to fishermen

Fisherman

A fisherman or fisher is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishermen and fish farmers. The term can also be applied to recreational fishermen and may be used to describe both men...

and to local inhabitants in the area. Here you could buy everything from sharpening stones, pins, syrup to soap, together with beer and distilled spirits. In 1790, there were approximately 30 houses in Smørhamn. Today, there are a few boat houses and houses. Presently, Smørhamn Handelstad is privately owned and not open to tourists. You can see the trading post from the road and from the sea approximately 4 km from the centre of Kalvåg

Kalvåg

Vingen

Vingen is one of the largest rock carving

Petroglyph

sites in Northern Europe

Northern Europe

Northern Europe is the northern part or region of Europe. Northern Europe typically refers to the seven countries in the northern part of the European subcontinent which includes Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Finland and Sweden...

. Animal carvings, human figures, and many other abstract symbols are sketched on the mountains. The oldest dates back 4,500 years. In all, more than 1,500 figures are registered. Vingen has probably been a cult

Cult

The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...

ist meeting place in the region for thousands of years.

Botnane

If you stop at the grave mounds

Tumulus

A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...

at Botnane you get a feeling of the Bronze Age

Bronze Age

The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...

. There are altogether 8 mounds dating back to early Stone Age

Stone Age

The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...

and Bronze Age. Because some of them are so large, it's easy to see them from the road.

Ålfoten Church

Ålfoten church is a cog-joint wooden "long church" in Ålfoten in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin....

is the oldest wooden church in Nordfjord. The log timber church was built in 1610 on the site of an earlier stave church

Stave church

A stave church is a medieval wooden church with a post and beam construction related to timber framing. The wall frames are filled with vertical planks. The load-bearing posts have lent their name to the building technique...

. In the small church, its history is still on the walls, which is a testimony to life and destiny of the remote fjord

Fjord

through the ages.

Rugsund Church

Rugsund church

Rugsund Church is a wooden "long church" in Rugsund in the municipality of Bremanger, Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. The church is a part of the Davik prestegjeld in the Nordfjord deanery of the Diocese of Bjørgvin....

was built at the beginning of the 1930s. It is a very interesting church and is rich in decoration with wall paintings, Mosaic

Mosaic

Mosaic is the art of creating images with an assemblage of small pieces of colored glass, stone, or other materials. It may be a technique of decorative art, an aspect of interior decoration, or of cultural and spiritual significance as in a cathedral...

glass, and carvings. The church was designed by Hans Ditlev F. Linstow. It is often said to be the most beautiful church in Nordfjord.

Vicarage

The poet

Poet

A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...

priest

Priest

A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

Claus Frimann lived and worked in Davik. Claus Frimann (1780–1822) was like so many other priests of this time progressive, this progression started amongst other with tree planting and established a reading room for the village's young men and women. But he didn't just carry out unselfish activities. In his official capacity he also looked after the large estate and was also known to be rather zealous in collection of debts and land taxes. Frimann is best known as a "poet priest" and he has often been mentioned in the same connection as Petter Dass

Petter Dass

Petter Dass was a Lutheran clergyman and the foremost Norwegian poet of his generation, writing both baroque hymns and topographical poetry. -Biography:He was born at Northern Herøy , Nordland, Norway...

. The vicarage

Rectory

A rectory is the residence, or former residence, of a rector, most often a Christian cleric, but in some cases an academic rector or other person with that title...

is situated on the priest's farm estate. Here you can see a memorial column to Claus Frimann at the church.

Beaches

Grotlesanden is one of the largest sandy beach

Beach

A beach is a geological landform along the shoreline of an ocean, sea, lake or river. It usually consists of loose particles which are often composed of rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles or cobblestones...

es in outer Bremanger. Here there is silky soft sand

Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

as far as the eye can see.

Vetvika is situated on the north-western side of Bremangerlandet

Bremangerlandet

island. Vetvika is accessible only by boat or foot. Vetvika has a beautiful sandy beach and an old graveyard. Vetvika is deserted since the 1950-ies, but the houses still remain well kept as holiday houses. The largest farm in Bremanger in early times was the farm Solheim at Vetvika. The farm is situated on the northern side of Vetvika.

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