Two kilometres of white sand curving beneath a mountain that drops straight from 1,045 metres. Brennviksanden in Steigen is one of Norway's most spectacular beaches, regularly listed among the country's finest, and almost nobody outside Nordland has heard of it.
The mountain behind it is Kraktindan, Steigen's highest peak, and it walls in the beach so completely that the setting feels more like a tropical bay misplaced in the Arctic than anything you would expect at 67 degrees north. Across Vestfjorden, the jagged Lofoten Wall runs along the horizon. On clear midsummer nights, the midnight sun hangs between the peaks.
The beach is a protected nature reserve. Camping on the sand is not allowed, but wooden walkways lead in from both sides and there are shelters, gapahuker, at either end. The water is cold, the sand is real, and the crowds are small. Most visitors are Norwegians from Nordland who consider this their best-kept secret.
The mountain behind it is Kraktindan, Steigen's highest peak, and it walls in the beach so completely that the setting feels more like a tropical bay misplaced in the Arctic than anything you would expect at 67 degrees north. Across Vestfjorden, the jagged Lofoten Wall runs along the horizon. On clear midsummer nights, the midnight sun hangs between the peaks.
The beach is a protected nature reserve. Camping on the sand is not allowed, but wooden walkways lead in from both sides and there are shelters, gapahuker, at either end. The water is cold, the sand is real, and the crowds are small. Most visitors are Norwegians from Nordland who consider this their best-kept secret.