Træna – an archipelago of distinctive peaks

Lying just over 30 nautical miles from Norway’s Helgeland coast, north of Lovund and south of Myken, Træna Municipality is made up of around 500 islets, skerries, and islands. The Arctic Circle traces a line through them, but it can look like the tropics when you sail here in summer.

This is a place of white sandy beaches and peaks that rise from clear seas. There’s even a beach that the locals refer to as ‘Waikiki’ and a signpost that points in the direction of Hawaii.

Home to one of Norway’s oldest fishing villages, Træna’s year-round resident population has barely changed since the Stone Age, growing from around 250 people to just 500 today. These permanent residents live on the four main islands – Husøya, where the majority of people live, Selvær, Sanna, and Sandøy.

The deep, cold waters that surround the archipelago are rich with different species of fish throughout the year. It’s long been known that Træna’s rocky islands, with their sheltered inlets, are the ideal base for fishing boats.

(Image copyright: Hans Petter Sørensen / FarOutFocus – Visit Norway)

In scenes that could be from almost any time in the last few centuries, you’ll see fish hanging from the eaves of rorbuer, traditional red fishing huts next to the water’s edge, as fishermen chat over the day’s haul.

The people who call Træna their home love to welcome visitors. “In a place like this, where everybody knows everyone, we’re always ready to have a chat, so please say hello when you visit!” says Marit Strige Bertheussen, the Manager of Træna Museum.

Ramona Remmen, born and raised in Træna, admires the entrepreneurial mindset of its people. An example of that out-of-the-box thinking is the Træna Festival on Sanna island. This annual music festival attracts hundreds of revellers to the island's beaches, while Kirkhelleren Cave – with its great acoustics – acts as the stage for the performers.

From late-May to mid-July, the Midnight Sun bathes the islands in daylight around the clock. It’s a time when Træna buzzes with activity with visitors and festival-goers swimming or joining locals on trails, picking berries as they go.

And when autumn does show up, says Ramona, “nothing can beat the magical light we get late in the season, just before we go into the darkness of winter!” Marit agrees that she also likes autumn, “We’re still holding on to the summer warmth but also get some of the magical remnants of the Midnight Sun.”

“Being on the Arctic Circle, we get both the Midnight Sun and the winter dark, which means we also get the Northern Lights, so it really is the best of both worlds,” says Ramona.