Måstad is an abandoned village on the southern part of the island of

Værøya Værøya or Værøy is an island in Værøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The island makes up about 89% of the land area of the whole municipality and it is home to 100% of the municipal residents. Name The Old Norse form of the isla ...

at the southern end of the

Lofoten Lofoten ( , ; ; ) is an archipelago and a Districts of Norway, traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Lofoten has distinctive scenery with dramatic mountains and peaks, open sea and sheltered bays, beaches, and untouched lands. T ...

archipelago and is located on a

strandflat Strandflat () is a landform typical of the Norway, Norwegian coast consisting of a flattish erosion surface on the coast and near-coast seabed. In Norway, strandflats provide room for settlements and agriculture in Norway, agriculture, constitut ...

. It is located in

Værøy Municipality Værøy is an island List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Lofoten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the villa ...

Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. It is currently use as summer houses or cabins from the locals. Måstad was in its prime around the year 1900 when over 120 people lived here. However, because there are no roads connecting to it from the rest of the island and it has a very unsatisfactory harbour, the village was abandoned a few years after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The last citizens left Måstad in the 1950s. Today, the place is an

El Dorado El Dorado () is a mythical city of gold supposedly located somewhere in South America. The king of this city was said to be so rich that he would cover himself from head to foot in gold dust – either daily or on certain ceremonial occasions � ...

for those who seek wilderness and beauty. From 1950 to 1960, there were several houses from Måstad that were moved to the village of

Sørland Sørland is a seaside resort, fishing village, and the administrative centre of Værøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the southern side of the island of Værøya. The village is the main population center of the isla ...

on the other side of the island where living was much easier. only a few houses are left still standing. Catching

puffin Puffins are any of three species of small alcids (auks) in the bird genus ''Fratercula''. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crev ...

s was a subsidiary source of income beside

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

. Catching puffins involved the use of the unusual puffin dog, also termed the Mostad dog or the

Norwegian Lundehund The Norwegian Lundehund (Norwegian: ''Norsk lundehund'') is a small dog breed of the Spitz type that originates from Norway. Its name is a compound noun composed of the elements ''lunde'', meaning puffin (Norwegian ''lunde'', "puffin", or ''lundef ...

. Puffin meat was cured in salt and lasted way into the autumn. Today, there are about 600 puffin dogs in Norway. All of them can be traced back to Måstad. Going ashore at Måstad is generally combined with a fishing trip or an expedition by boat to the

bird cliff Bird cliffs, or nesting cliffs, are steep cliffs with numerous small shelves which serve as nesting locations for bird colonies. Bird cliffs are found on islands in the North Atlantic and Arctic, such as the Faroe Islands, Iceland, the Svalbard a ...

s. Måstad can also be reached by foot. Since 1996, simple overnight accommodation has been available at the schoolhouse in the village.

In literature

Pål Espolin Johnson's "For Love of Norway" is a fictionalized history of the village seen through the eyes of Magda, who arrives in 1909 to marry a local fisherman. This compelling, simply-told episodic account of residents of Mostad in the first few decades of the 20th century provides an intimate glimpse in lives lived in a harsh and unforgiving place, but one filled with human warmth.

Media gallery

Mostad.JPG, View of the only road in the village, Husbekkveien, from around 1900 Måstad 2009 1.JPG, View from above, looking down on the remaining houses (2009) DSC00156måstadfjell.JPG, View looking south at the village at the base of the mountain Måstad 01.jpg, House in Måstad Værøy DSCF1934 Norway.jpg, House in Måstad Måstad 2009 2.JPG, View of the village Måstad 02.jpg, View of the abandoned village in 2014

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maastad Villages in Nordland Værøy Villages in Norway (depopulated)