Gea Norvegica became the first UNESCO Global Geopark in Scandinavia in 2006, covering 3,000 square kilometres across the municipalities of Larvik, Bamble, Kragerø, Nome, Porsgrunn, Siljan, and Skien. The geopark tells a 1.5-billion-year geological story, from ancient mountain chains and tropical seas to volcanic activity, continental rifting, and ice-age sculpting.
The eastern part of the park features larvikite, the national rock of Norway, with its distinctive blue-grey feldspar crystals formed deep in a magma chamber. The Fen Carbonatite Complex, 580 million years old, is the world's type locality for magmatic limestones. Geo-sites are scattered across the region, from Mølen stone beach to old quarries and road cuts. There is no single entrance or visitor centre; the geopark is a network of sites best explored by car.
The eastern part of the park features larvikite, the national rock of Norway, with its distinctive blue-grey feldspar crystals formed deep in a magma chamber. The Fen Carbonatite Complex, 580 million years old, is the world's type locality for magmatic limestones. Geo-sites are scattered across the region, from Mølen stone beach to old quarries and road cuts. There is no single entrance or visitor centre; the geopark is a network of sites best explored by car.