Bleik has one of the longest sandy beaches in northern Norway, stretching for about 2.5 kilometres along the northwest coast of Andøya. The name of the village probably comes from the beach itself. It is about 10 kilometres southwest of Andenes.
But the main attraction is not the beach. It is Bleiksøya, the almost perfectly cone-shaped island that rises 160 metres out of the sea about one kilometre offshore. The island is a nature reserve and home to around 80,000 breeding pairs of puffins, making it the largest puffin colony in Norway. The birds arrive on 14 April and leave on 10 August. Outside that window, the island is empty.
You cannot land on Bleiksøya. The only way to see the puffins is by joining a boat safari from Bleik or Andenes. The trip from Bleik takes about ten minutes each way, which leaves plenty of time circling the island. Besides puffins, you are likely to see white-tailed eagles, kittiwakes, cormorants, and arctic skuas. Seals are often on the reefs.
The beach itself is worth walking on a calm day, but this is the open Norwegian Sea. Weather can change fast, and the wind out here can be brutal. On a good day though, the view across the sand towards Bleiksøya is hard to beat.
But the main attraction is not the beach. It is Bleiksøya, the almost perfectly cone-shaped island that rises 160 metres out of the sea about one kilometre offshore. The island is a nature reserve and home to around 80,000 breeding pairs of puffins, making it the largest puffin colony in Norway. The birds arrive on 14 April and leave on 10 August. Outside that window, the island is empty.
You cannot land on Bleiksøya. The only way to see the puffins is by joining a boat safari from Bleik or Andenes. The trip from Bleik takes about ten minutes each way, which leaves plenty of time circling the island. Besides puffins, you are likely to see white-tailed eagles, kittiwakes, cormorants, and arctic skuas. Seals are often on the reefs.
The beach itself is worth walking on a calm day, but this is the open Norwegian Sea. Weather can change fast, and the wind out here can be brutal. On a good day though, the view across the sand towards Bleiksøya is hard to beat.