Sandnessjøen Self-Guided Walk
Sandnessjøen is a small town located on the Helgeland coast. While many may use Sandnessjøen as a stop on a longer and more scenic road-trip, there are some lovely points of interests to see here. The town was a Viking seat, and the recreated longhouse Torolvstein will tell you all about Sandnessjøen’s most famous Viking. Additionally, the town is seeing growth and renewed interest thanks to the oil industry. So, spend the night in Sandnessjøen and see the town’s highlights on this self-guided walking tour!
In this article...
Norway's Coastal Road
Bodø is located at the end of the Fv17, which is Norway’s Coastal Road. You can find my guide to the Fv17 by clicking the link below.
Norway's Coastal Ferry
Kirkenes is a port of call of Norway’s coastal ferry. Find my guide for the coastal ferry by clicking the link below.
Sandnessjøen Self-Guided Walk
Kulturbadet
The Kulturbadet is the building in Sandnessjøen that has a swimming pool, cinema, library, theatre and concert hall, and meeting rooms. It is a new building from 2016. When the building was being planned, a competition was held for who would be the architect. The L2 Arkitektur firm in Oslo won with their draft called “Sky Blue”.
Street Art: Future Eyes
Jort Agoch, Leticia Cascone Ruiz (2016)
The town has recently been decorated with murals to boost tourism. The murals reflect life in Sandnessjøen. It was designed to liven up the grey buildings, and the artwork is inspired by the local children.
Torolv Kveldulvsons gate
The street is named after the famous Viking Torolv Kveldulvsson, who lived in Sandnes. He is known as the first exporter of stockfish from the north. Egil’s saga tells that in the time around 875 “he sent people north to the town of Vagar in Hålogaland (now Vågan) on cod fishing and also went with fish to England”.
This street has the main shopping mall, Amfi, plus some restaurants and businesses.
Petter Dass Statue
Petter Dass (1647 – 1707) was a Lutheran priest and the foremost Norwegian poet of his generation, writing Baroque hymns and poetry. He was appointed the parish priest at Alstahaug Church in 1689. He wrote texts and hymns, but many weren’t published until after his death.
His most famous work is a topographical description of Northern Norway called “The Trumpet of Nordland”. Some of his psalms are still in use.
After Petter Dass died, many Norwegian fishing vessels of Northern Norway carried a black cloth on their sail for 100 years as a sign of mourning. He is still a popular subject of folklore in Nordland. For example, there is a legend of how he fooled the devil to carry him to Copenhagen to preach for the king.
There is only one known portrait of him, but many doubt if it was him. Still, it was used as the basis for this sculpture.
The Petter Dass Museum is located a short drive from Sandnessjøen.
The Seven Sisters
This statue on the side of an otherwise very dull office building symbolises what Sandnessjøen is most famous for: The Seven Sisters. This is a mountain chain with seven peaks, and it’s based off a story of the seven troll sisters who were chased by a very eager male troll. They all turned to stone in the sun, forming the mountains. You will be able to see the Seven Sisters during this walk, but the best views are when you drive out of the town.
Optional Detour: Sandnessjøen Church
The earliest existing historical record of the church goes back to the year 1240, when the church was mentioned in a saga. The original church wa slocated about 2km (1.2 mi) southeast of the present church site. In 1644, the old church was torn down and a new church was built on the same site.
In 1882 the church was torn down and replaced. Some of the materials were used in the new construction.
TV Tower
This is the TV-tower in Sandnessjøen. It is often decorated with lights on special occasions, such as new year’s eve and the main festival in Sandnessjøen, Havnafestivalen.
Fortress & Bunker Area
There is very little information about the fortress area. It was home to the Artillery Group Sandnessjøen. There were 7 Heeres Küsten Batteries and 3 Marine Artillery Batteries in the group.
The battery was set up in 1940.
There are information signs on all the main sights that you can read.
Torolvstein
During the Viking Age, this was one of Northern Norway’s largest and most powerful chieftain seats. At this building you can learn about Norwegian Viking History with the key figures from Sandnessjøen, Torolv Kveldulvson and Sigrid of Sandnes. The area around Sandes was one of the best documented areas from the Viking Age.
The long house was very common in Norway during the Iron Age. They were long houses built to accommodate both housing and livestock. Longhouses throughout the Nordic region are made up of a log system.
The building is located on almost the same site as the old chieftain seat from 1,000 years ago.
Enjoy More of Sandnessjøen
Visit the travel guide page to see road-trips, restaurants, and top activities that you can do.
Norway's Coastal Road
Bodø is located at the end of the Fv17, which is Norway’s Coastal Road. You can find my guide to the Fv17 by clicking the link below.
Norway's Coastal Ferry
Kirkenes is a port of call of Norway’s coastal ferry. Find my guide for the coastal ferry by clicking the link below.
