The next part of our Finnmark experience will take us to Berlevåg, once one of the largest fisheries in Finnmark. We’ll stay the night in one of few remaining pre WWII buildings in Finnmark and hike to the horn of Tana.

Berlevåg

Coastal scenery on the way to Berlevåg

Kongsfjord

Kongsfjord and Veines is an idyllic village on your way to Berlevåg. Instead of finding accommodation in Berlevåg we had already booked room at Kongsfjord Gjestehus. They have an excellent rating on TripAdvisor. During WWII all of Berlevåg was destroyed, but Kongsfjord was spared. A group of houses on Veines in Kongsfjord has been converted to guest houses offering accommodation and we were set on staying in these historical buildings.

Wooden houses in Kongsfjord

Kongsfjord 2016

Finnmark, Norway

Kongsfjord 1942   (Photo from Digital Museum)

Kongsfjord has built a good reputation as a bird watchers paradise. Many come to get a glimpse of the Gyrafalcon building their nests for breeding in the steep cliffs on Veines. A bird hide has spectacularly been build on the edge of the cliff.

Blog from Biotope – Bird watching at Kongsfjord 

Berlevåg

Most Norwegians will think of the popular Berlevåg Male Choir when you mention Berlevåg. There was even a documentary called ‘Cool and Crazy’ (Heftig og Begeistret) made about the choir.

Old fisheries

Old harbour in Berlevåg

Berlevåg used to be one of Finnmark’s largest fisheries. The history as a fishery can be found at Berlevåg Harbour Museum, one of six museums participating in the collaboration of Museums for Costal, Heritage and Reconstruction of Finnmark.

Another place worth a visit is Arctic Glasstudio. I seldom buy souvenirs on our travels, I’m there for the experience. But visiting the studio of Daniela I could not help myself. She creates beautiful glass art work, all made locally – and I left with two beautiful glass angels..

Old fishing boat on land

Stranded fishing boat in Berlevåg

Our next stop was Kjølnes Lighthouse located beautifully on the approach to Berlevåg. What a picturesque location! The lighthouse was originally constructed in 1916, but the one watching over the coast today is from 1947.

Kjølnes Lighthouse

We stopped for coffee, cake and a chat with the friendly host. We learned that you can stay overnight at the lighthouse that has a guesthouse with 11 rooms available for visitors. An idea for our next visit maybe? The wooden hot tub looked very tempting.

Wooden hottub

Wooden hot tub at Kjølnes Lighthouse

Hiking to Tanahorn

After spending hours in a car it feels great to get out and explore parts of the country you cannot reach by car. The coastal landscape west of Berlevåg is one of those places worth exploring. One of the hikes we had read about was the moderate hike to Tanahorn, or Hoartnavarri in samì.

Starting point for the hike is 8km west of Berlevåg. Marked parking lot on the right hand side of the road. The hike is 3.5 km in easy terrain. If you visit in early fall (September) you will find lots of wild blueberries along the start of the trail.

Finnmark Norway

Happy hiker on Tanahorn

The hike is a moderate one, but it is a continuous climb so you will not see the sea before you reach the top. But once you reach ‘the horn’ you are surprised by a dramatic view and cliffs dropping to sea. The perfect way to end our visit to Berlevåg before heading east to Vardø.

Finnmark Norway

View from Tanahorn

This post is from our road trip exploring Finnmark – the northernmost county in Norway. If you want to read more about Finnmark check out these posts:

The road to Havøysund

Ingøya – a summer island paradise

What you need to see when you visit the North Cape

Route 888 to Gamvik