Vikings of Borg

When planning this trip I wanted to find out more about Vikings. The three possibilities were the Viking museum in Oslo (closed), the Viking experience in Gudvangen (time constraints meant I only transited through Gudvangen on my way to Bergen) and the Viking Museum of Lofoten.

This morning the rain was heavier than yesterday so I delayed my departure by about half an hour.
It was still drizzling when I left but if I waited for it to stop raining I wouldn’t go anywhere.
The nice yellow line down the middle of the road that assisted me in knowing I was on the right side of the road disappeared after the turn of to Henningsvær. It would reappear at intervals but otherwise the road was unmarked down the middle.
I was doing okay until I got to the Gimsøystraumen bridge. It’s easy to forget that the Lofoten islands are multiple islands connected by bridges. I wasn’t expected such a bridge. Going over it was much easier than I expected and it didn’t feel as steep as it looked. The wind was 8m/s.

The Lofotr Viking Museum is at the site of the largest chieftain’s long house discovered to date. A farmer found artefacts while plowing in 1983. It proved to have comprehensive archeological remains and the longhouse has been reproduced.
There was a group of scouts there on an excursion so they were cooking Viking bread which looked very similar to a whole meal damper and a lamb soup in the feast hall.
The living quarters had a lot examples of everyday items such as dried animals, pelts, skeins of dyed wool, shoes, clothing and more.
Not long after I got to the long house there was a talk scheduled. We were told that if we lived in a warm climate we should not take home a reindeer skin as they will smell and moult. Not that I’d been planning to bring one home, pretty sure I wouldn’t get it through customs. The Vikings traded with the Sami people in the north which is where the reindeer items would have come, The guide reminded us that the Vikings weren’t just raiders but also farmers and traders. The cheiften at Borg was very wealthy. It’s thought that he moved to Iceland due to political unrest at the time.

After exploring the longhouse I went back to the visitor centre and had some lunch. I had originally wanted to do the Viking feats that is put in the evenings but was told at the tourist information office that they finished on 15/8/25. Probably just as well as I wouldn’t want to do that drive at night. I did get to have viking (lamb and veg) soup for lunch so I didn’t totally miss out.

There is also a exhibition of the discovery and excavation of the site and many finds and artefacts, not just at Borg but other sites as well. All the information is via audio guide rather than print so it did take longer to get all the information. It was nearly 5pm by the time I’d left.

I’d initially planned to go to Nusfjord after I’d finished at the museum but I hadn’t planned on spending so much time at the museum and as it was another 45 minutes according to google maps which probably means more than an hour so I chose not to. While I am getting more confident with the driving I’m certainly not relaxed so won’t be doing as much driving as I had thought.
The Gimsøystraumen bridge wasn’t as steep coming back to Svolvær but the winds were 17m/s and I felt that coming down the steep part.Les mer