Tjeldsundet is a strait in

Northern Norway Northern Norway ( nb, Nord-Norge, , nn, Nord-Noreg; se, Davvi-Norga) is a geographical region of Norway, consisting of the two northernmost counties Nordland and Troms og Finnmark, in total about 35% of the Norwegian mainland. Some of the la ...

. The long strait is located between the island of

Hinnøya Hinnøya is the fourth-largest island in Norway, and the largest outside the Svalbard archipelago. The lies just off the western coast of Northern Norway. The island sits on the border of Nordland and Troms og Finnmark counties. The western p ...

and mainland

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

in its northern part and between Hinnøya and the island of Tjeldøya in its southern part. Tjeldsundet has been an important waterway for more than 1,000 years and was well known and used during the

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period The ...

. The northern part is in

Troms og Finnmark Troms og Finnmark (; sme, Romsa ja Finnmárku ; fkv, Tromssa ja Finmarkku; fi, Tromssa ja Finnmark, lit. Troms and Finnmark in English), is a county in northern Norway that was established on 1 January 2020 as the result of a regional reform ...

county between the municipalities of

Harstad ( se, Hárstták) is the second-most populated municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. It is mostly located on the large island of Hinnøya. The municipal center is the town of Harstad, the most populous town in Central Hålogaland, ...

and

Tjeldsund Tjeldsund ( sme, Dielddanuorri) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The southwestern part of the municipality is part of the traditional district of Ofoten and the rest of the municipality is part of Central Hålogaland. The ...

, while the southern part forms the border between

and

Nordland Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, ...

counties between the municipalities of

and

Lødingen Lødingen ( sme, Lodegat) is a municipality in Nordland county in Norway. Lødingen is located on the southeastern corner of the island of Hinnøya, and is part of the traditional district of Ofoten. The administrative centre of the municipali ...

. The southern entrance to the strait begins at the

Ofotfjorden Ofotfjord ( or ) is a fjord in Nordland county, Norway. It is an inlet of the Norwegian Sea, located about north of the Arctic Circle. The long Ofotfjord is Norway's 12th longest fjord and it is also the 18th deepest, with a maximum depth of . ...

at the village of Lødingen and the town of Harstad is located at the northern entrance of the strait where it empties into the Vågsfjorden. The Tjeldsund Bridge connects Hinnøya to the mainland by the E10 road, also known as King Olav's Road ( no, Kong Olavs vei), part of which goes from the town of Harstad to

Harstad/Narvik Airport, Evenes Harstad/Narvik Airport ( no, Harstad/Narvik lufthavn; ) is an international airport located in Evenes Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The airport serves the towns of Harstad and Narvik. It is co-located with Evenes Air Station of the R ...

Media gallery

Tjeldsundet and mountains.jpg, Southern part of Tjeldsundet looking east towards the mountainous Tjeldøya Lavansfjorden (1).jpg, Lavansfjorden, a branch of Tjeldsundet,

municipality TjeldsundbruaHarstadNorge.jpg, Tjeldsund bridge over the Tjeldsundet Tjeldsundet-2.jpg, View looking north into the Tjeldsundet strait

References

External links

* {{authority control Landforms of Nordland Landforms of Troms og Finnmark Straits of Norway Harstad Lødingen Tjeldsund