Møysalen: a peak from the equator, Norway's oldest rocks and traces of iron ore mining
Møysalen National Park is located in the Vesterålen archipelago, north of the Lofoten archipelago, southwest of Norway’s largest island, Hinnøya. The alpine coastal landscape dominates here, so you can admire both fjords and high mountains. Of course, tourists are attracted to the highest point of the park – Møysalen (1262 m above sea level), which gave the name to this protected area and has an interesting history. This part of the continent came to Norway (more precisely, place where modern Norway is located)… from the equator. At that distant time – about 65 million years ago, when continents roamed the globe, colliding, forming mountain ranges or, conversely, breaking away from each other – the peak of Møysalen was part of a flat plain. Based on today’s geological research, it can be concluded that modern Norway and Greenland were one part of the continent, then the land began to tear apart, and Greenland moved east. At the same time, the landscape along the Norwegian coast has risen by 1000-2000 meters. So the flat top of Møysalen is rocks uplifted by tectonic activity, formed deep in the earth’s crust – it`s hard to imagine – 2500-1800 million years ago. It is one of the oldest rocks in Norway. Another interesting fact about Møysalen National Park is that there were at least two iron ore mines in the early 20th century in what is now a protected nature area. Traces of this page of history can still be found today – even near the hiking trail to Møysalen. You can see here the old railway, on which the carts with ore went (they rolled down under their own weight, and the horses dragged them back, empty), or the quarry from which you enter the mines. One of them is located on a hill at an altitude of about 200 m above sea level, there are remains of cable car mechanisms and even fragments of workers’ barracks (over 100 people worked here). There are only few marked trails in the park, so every traveler can look for their own unique route. And if you have a kayak, you can see the magnificent fjords, which are not accessible by land.
Photos: Brit Grønmyr, Lødingen historielag
