Mostad
Encyclopedia
Mostad was a village on the island of Værøy
in Lofoten
, Norway
.
In its prime around 1900 over 120 people lived here. Because of no roads and very unsatisfactory harbours, a few years after World War II the village was abandoned. The last citizens left Mostad in the 1950s. Today the place is an El Dorado
for those who seek wilderness and beauty.
In the period 1950-60 several houses were moved to the other side of the island, Sorlandet, where living was much easier. only a few houses are left.
Catching puffin
s was a subsidiary source of income beside fishing. Catching puffins involved the use of the unusual puffin dog, also termed the Mostad dog. Puffin meat was cured in salt and lasted way into the autumn. Today, there are about 600 puffin dogs in Norway. All of them can be traced back to Mostad. Going ashore on Mostad is generally combined with a fishing trip or an expedition by boat to the bird cliff
s.
Mostad can also be reached by foot. Since 1996, simple overnight accommodation has been available at the schoolhouse in Mostad.
Pål Espolin Johnson's "For Love of Norway" is a fictionalized history of the village seen through the eyes of Magda, who arrives in 1909 to marry a local fisherman. This compelling, simply told episodic account of Mostarders in the first few decades of the 20th century provides an intimate glimpse in lives lived in a harsh and unforgiving place, but one filled with human warmth.
Værøy
Værøy is an island and municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Lofoten traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sørland. Værøy was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838...
in Lofoten
Lofoten
Lofoten is an archipelago and a traditional district in the county of Nordland, Norway. Though lying within the Arctic Circle, the archipelago experiences one of the world's largest elevated temperature anomalies relative to its high latitude.-Etymology:...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
.
In its prime around 1900 over 120 people lived here. Because of no roads and very unsatisfactory harbours, a few years after World War II the village was abandoned. The last citizens left Mostad in the 1950s. Today the place is an El Dorado
El Dorado
El Dorado is the name of a Muisca tribal chief who covered himself with gold dust and, as an initiation rite, dived into a highland lake.Later it became the name of a legendary "Lost City of Gold" that has fascinated – and so far eluded – explorers since the days of the Spanish Conquistadors...
for those who seek wilderness and beauty.
Catching puffin
Puffin
Puffins are any of three small species of auk in the bird genus Fratercula with a brightly coloured beak during the breeding season. These are pelagic seabirds that feed primarily by diving in the water. They breed in large colonies on coastal cliffs or offshore islands, nesting in crevices among...
s was a subsidiary source of income beside fishing. Catching puffins involved the use of the unusual puffin dog, also termed the Mostad dog. Puffin meat was cured in salt and lasted way into the autumn. Today, there are about 600 puffin dogs in Norway. All of them can be traced back to Mostad. Going ashore on Mostad is generally combined with a fishing trip or an expedition by boat to the bird cliff
Bird cliff
Bird cliffs are steep cliffs with numerous small shelves which serve as nesting locations for bird colonies. Bird cliffs are found on islands in the North Atlantic and Arctic, such as the Faroe Islands, the Svalbard archipelago and on islands off Northern Norway...
s.
Mostad can also be reached by foot. Since 1996, simple overnight accommodation has been available at the schoolhouse in Mostad.
Pål Espolin Johnson's "For Love of Norway" is a fictionalized history of the village seen through the eyes of Magda, who arrives in 1909 to marry a local fisherman. This compelling, simply told episodic account of Mostarders in the first few decades of the 20th century provides an intimate glimpse in lives lived in a harsh and unforgiving place, but one filled with human warmth.