Storekvina is the only train station serving Kvinesdal municipality. The village sits along the river Kvina, about 7 kilometres north of Liknes, the municipal centre.
The Kvinesdal valley stretches from the mountains in the north down to Fedafjorden on the coast. High in those mountains lies Knaben, once one of Europe's most important molybdenum mines. Molybdenum hardens steel for armour and weapons, making the mine a strategic prize. One of Germany's reasons for occupying Norway in 1940 was to secure this supply.
Germany stationed a thousand troops and antiaircraft batteries at Knaben. The Allies struck twice in 1943: first on 3 March, when ten British Mosquito bombers attacked the processing plant, killing sixteen Norwegians and one German engineer. On 16 November, 131 American B-17 bombers hit Knaben on the same day another formation targeted the heavy water plant at Vemork in Telemark. Despite the raids, the mine remained Germany's primary molybdenum source for the rest of the war.
Today the Knaben Mining Museum and guided mine tours let visitors walk inside the mountain and see the tunnels. The drive from Storekvina up to Knaben takes about 45 minutes through dramatic mountain scenery.
The Kvinesdal valley stretches from the mountains in the north down to Fedafjorden on the coast. High in those mountains lies Knaben, once one of Europe's most important molybdenum mines. Molybdenum hardens steel for armour and weapons, making the mine a strategic prize. One of Germany's reasons for occupying Norway in 1940 was to secure this supply.
Germany stationed a thousand troops and antiaircraft batteries at Knaben. The Allies struck twice in 1943: first on 3 March, when ten British Mosquito bombers attacked the processing plant, killing sixteen Norwegians and one German engineer. On 16 November, 131 American B-17 bombers hit Knaben on the same day another formation targeted the heavy water plant at Vemork in Telemark. Despite the raids, the mine remained Germany's primary molybdenum source for the rest of the war.
Today the Knaben Mining Museum and guided mine tours let visitors walk inside the mountain and see the tunnels. The drive from Storekvina up to Knaben takes about 45 minutes through dramatic mountain scenery.
