Drive it Yourself: Berlevåg to Båtsfjord

The drive from Berlevåg to Båtsfjord is something special. Both ports are incredibly isolated on the Finnmark coast, but are vital fishing communities for Norway. The rugged shoreline has been shaped by bad weather from the Barents Sea, and the geology here is some of the oldest in Norway. The drive itself is short, but well worth it on any road-trip in the north.

Here’s my self-guided drive from Berlevåg to Båtsfjord.

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We offer downloadable versions of our self-guided drives on our online store.

Coming soon.

Online Guide

Information about points of interest
Images of each point of interest
Historic overview of the neighbourhood
Directions between points
Historic photos
Information about facilities along the way

Downloadable Guide

Information about points of interest
Images of each point of interest
Historic overview of the region & towns
Directions between points
Historic photos
Facilities including supermarkets, toilets, petrol, hotels, cafes, restaurants with addresses.

Watch on Youtube

All of our roadtrips are available on YouTube to watch. They include information about the area provided in text and voiceover form, plus they show the drive in full (sped up in some spots!) so you can get an idea what the drive is like.

Berlevåg to Båtsfjord

Berlevåg

Welcome to Berlevåg! Berlevåg is a small fishing community facing the Barents Sea. Berlevåg is famous around Norway for its mens choir!

Kongshavn

Cultural Heritage Site

Kongshavn has remains of settlements dating approximately 10,000 years back, from the early Stone Age to the 190s. The older settlements are higher up, indicating where the shoreline used to be. 11 housegrounds from the late Stone Age are here, while closer to the sea are 4-5 sites of houses from the Iron Age.

The site is not marked with signs, but there is a parking lot.

Kjølnes Lighthouse

Lighthouse

Ishavsveien

Road

The road is commonly called Ishavsveien and is fascinating for those interested in geology as there’s no soil or vegetation concealig the various types of rock, sediments and rock formations. Prehistoric shorelines here show how the land has risen.

Kongsfjord

Village

Kongsfjord is a small fishing village with a population of around 32 people. It has been inhabited for hundreds of years and Kongsfjord is one of the few fishing settlements that wasn’t destroyed during World War II. The Kongsfjord River has special protection as a salmon river, and parts of the fjord are protected as a special landscape.

The local shop (pictured top left) is full of charm and is a must-see when driving here.

Kongsfjordfjellet

Mountains

You now cross the Kongsfjordfjellet mountain, which is 326m (1069ft) above sea level.

Båtsfjordsfjellet

Mountains

Now you cross the Båtsfjordfjellet mountain at 358m above sea level.

Båtsfjord Municipality

The landscape in Båtsfjord is geologically very old by Scandinavian standards, and to a large extent formed before the last ice ages. Ice sheets from the last ice ages lay frozen over large parts of the Varanger peninsula and thus changed the landscape to a small extent. The large block field areas are believed to be very old, before the last ice age.

However, the ice has left behind a large number (several thousand) of distinctive ring-shaped formations, formations that are otherwise known from only a few places in the world. The area is also characterised by many long and sometimes crossing gullies, which tell a lot about the melting and movement of the ice.