Kvåsfossen is one of the largest waterfalls in Southern Norway, with a 36-metre drop on the river Lygna. A massive boulder sits in the middle of the falls. According to legend, a troll placed it there to stop the salmon from getting upstream.
The troll failed. In 2014, Norway's longest salmon ladder was completed here: a 220-metre tunnel bored through the mountain in an arc around the waterfall, with 46 pools and a 20-metre rise. Salmon, trout, sea trout and eels all use it. What makes this special for visitors is that you can watch the fish through a glass wall inside the tunnel. Seeing a salmon fight its way up the ladder from a few centimetres away is genuinely impressive.
The Nasjonalt Villakssenter, Norway's National Wild Salmon Centre, opened next to the waterfall in 2017. It has exhibitions on salmon biology and the threats facing wild salmon in Norway, from fish farming parasites to hydroelectric dams. Norway's national bird, the white-throated dipper, nests at the waterfall and is often spotted here.
Kvåsfossen is about 15 kilometres north of Lyngdal centre, along the Lygna valley. The salmon ladder is most active between June and September.
The troll failed. In 2014, Norway's longest salmon ladder was completed here: a 220-metre tunnel bored through the mountain in an arc around the waterfall, with 46 pools and a 20-metre rise. Salmon, trout, sea trout and eels all use it. What makes this special for visitors is that you can watch the fish through a glass wall inside the tunnel. Seeing a salmon fight its way up the ladder from a few centimetres away is genuinely impressive.
The Nasjonalt Villakssenter, Norway's National Wild Salmon Centre, opened next to the waterfall in 2017. It has exhibitions on salmon biology and the threats facing wild salmon in Norway, from fish farming parasites to hydroelectric dams. Norway's national bird, the white-throated dipper, nests at the waterfall and is often spotted here.
Kvåsfossen is about 15 kilometres north of Lyngdal centre, along the Lygna valley. The salmon ladder is most active between June and September.