The Trollfjord or Trollfjorden is a

fjord In physical geography, a fjord or fiord () is a long, narrow inlet with steep sides or cliffs, created by a glacier. Fjords exist on the coasts of Alaska, Antarctica, British Columbia, Chile, Denmark, Germany, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Icela ...

Hadsel Municipality Hadsel ( sme, Válafierda) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional district of Vesterålen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stokmarknes. Other villages in Hadsel include Fiskebø ...

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, ...

county,

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 ...

. The long fjord cuts into the island of Austvågøya and flows out into the

Raftsundet Raftsundet is a strait in Nordland county, Norway. The long strait runs between the islands of Hinnøya and Austvågøya, mostly in Hadsel Municipality, but the southern end is in Vågan Municipality. The strait is crossed by the Raftsund Bridg ...

strait. The fjord has a narrow entrance and steep-sided mountains surrounding it. The name is derived from

troll A troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated areas of rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human be ...

, a figure from

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern peri ...

. The fjord is a popular

tourist attraction A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural ...

due to the beauty of its natural setting. It is only accessible by boat or by a nearby hike over very rugged terrain. The

Hurtigruten ''Hurtigruten'' (), formally Kystruten Bergen-Kirkenes ("coastal route Bergen-Kirkenes"), is a Norwegian public coastal route transporting passengers that travel locally, regionally and between the ports of call, and also cargo between ports no ...

's ships on the route between

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...

and

Kirkenes Kirkenes (; ; Skolt Sami: ''Ǩeârkknjargg;'' fi, Kirkkoniemi; ; russian: Киркенес) is a town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town lies on a peninsula along the Bøk ...

detour into Trollfjorden. It is also popular with other

cruise lines A cruise line is a company that operates cruise ships and markets cruises to the public. Cruise lines are distinct from passenger lines which are primarily concerned with transportation of their passengers. Cruise lines have a dual character; th ...

Geography

The mouth of the Trollfjord where it joins the

is only wide. The

widens to a maximum width of . The mountains surrounding Trollfjord are between high. It is surrounded by the tall mountain Trolltindan to the south and the tall mountain Blåfjell and the tall mountain

Litlkorsnestinden Litlkorsnestinden, or Trakta ( en, The Funnel), is a mountain in Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The tall mountain lies on the island of Austvågøya in the Lofoten archipelago, just north of the Trollfjorden. The summit is the ...

to the north. The Trollfjord reaches a maximum depth of below sea level. Prior to 1960, there was a

waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in severa ...

at the end of Trollfjorden, but it was redirected to produce

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined a ...

at a nearby power station.

Controversy

The location of the fjord is a bit of a local controversy. In 2016, the movie Downsizing was filmed in the Trollfjord and it was advertised and discussed in the media as having been filmed in

Lofoten Lofoten () is an archipelago and a 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. There are two towns, Svolv� ...

, a traditional region of Norway. This, however, upset some in the neighboring traditional region of

Vesterålen Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the archipel ...

who claim the fjord as part of their region as well. Both sides claim to be right. The fjord is located on Austvågøya island (which is often considered part of Lofoten), but it is also in

(which is often considered part of Vesterålen).

History

The Battle of Trollfjord

''The Battle of Trollfjord'' ( no, Trollfjordslaget) was fought in 1890 between the first industrial, steam-driven fishing ships and teams of traditional open-boat fishermen over access to the fjord.

Johan Bojer Johan Bojer (6 March 1872 – 3 July 1959) was a popular Norwegian novelist and dramatist. He principally wrote about the lives of the poor farmers and fishermen, both in his native Norway and among the Norwegian immigrants in the United States. H ...

described the battle in his 1921 novel ''The last of the Vikings'' (). A painting by Gunnar Berg, ''Trollfjordslaget'' depicts The Battle at Trollfjord. The painting is currently located in the Art Galleri Gunnar Berg on the island Svinøya in Svolvær town.Frommer's Scandinavia article on Trollfjord
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Media gallery

Trollfjord Norway.jpg, View of the fjord Gunnar Berg Trollfjordslaget.jpg, ''Trollfjordslaget'' (The Battle at Trollfjord) by Gunnar Berg Lofoten Trollfjord 1975.jpg, Trollfjord near Raftsund Mind the gap Trollfjorden.jpg,

entering the fjord Waterfall in Trollfjorden.jpg, Waterfall on the sides of the fjord

References

{{authority control Fjords of Nordland Tourist attractions in Nordland Hadsel