If you are into history, and especially WWII history, then you have come to the right place when you come down from Bjørnfjell and you reach the Narvik fjord and the surrounding mountains. It is full of remains from the German occupation of Norway during WWII.
Some of the fiercest battles took place in this area at sea and on land, and if it hadn’t been for the allied strategy to pull out of Northern Norway to concentrate on other arenas, the Nazi regime might very well have had a shorter life span. Their sole interest was to have a port from where they could ship the iron ore that they bought in Kiruna in Sweden. From Narvik the much needed resource was shipped to Germany. So this steady supply actually had the German war machine rolling.
Today Narvik is still a huge transport and shipping hub for the northern part of Norway. Trains carrying iron ore from Kiruna are still entering the shipping facilities in the outskirts of the city several times every day. Not many people actually know that the city of Kiruna today is so undermined from the mining activities that they are relocating the city to the surrounding areas.
But besides from the historic events that took place here, it is also a beautiful mountainous area. But be prepared for a little bit of a shock when you reach Norway. As beautiful as it is, just as expensive it is. So when you on your way to Lofoten reach the little town of Bjerkvik, don’t start crying when you see the gas prices. Luckily, as in other countries. gas stations are fighting to catch the customers with good offers. So in many, cases you will be able to find some lower prices than the daily list prices. The below photo is from Shell in Bjerkvik.
So, what will you be doing in Bjerkvik? Well, if the weather is fine, there is a nice beach front and lots of possibilities to go hiking and exploring in the mountains. Otherwise there are several grocery store to choose from if you need to top up your supplies. If you are into clothing, you could always visit the Narvik Outlet, where you could find a nice bargain. Even fishing equipment is to be found in that store.
But Bjerkvik is also the place where you decide if you want to go North in direction of Tromsø or even further towards Hammerfest, Alta or maybe to the North Cape. In this case I chose to go further West and South to Lofoten. After all, the Lofoten Islands were the primary destination for this trip. So off we go towards the next road split at Tjeldsundbrua (Tjeldsund bridge). From there it is either North towards Harstad or Southwest towards Å in Lofoten.
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