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Foto: Bjarne Oymyr
Kayaking Locations
In Sunnhordland you’ll always be close to a geosite where rock, landscape and exhibitions offers both insights and views. Explore the soul of Sunnhordland, blended in our nature and culture. But please; leave no trace and be prepared for our wild and changing weather.
But tread carefully, leave no trace, shop locally, and be prepared for our unpredictable West Coast weather.
TRAIL CODES
Green - easy access Blue – offshore, possible sea Red – Long hike for experienced hikers
Ryvarden
Geosite 1 - Long hike for experienced hikers
The 2 km trail to Ryvarden Cultural Lighthouse passes through some of the oldest rocks in the geopark: 1.5 billion-year-old glacially polished augen gneiss. From the lighthouse you overlook the meeting point between the Hardangerfjord and the North Sea, and towards the young submarine volcanism on the northern side of the fjord. Visible from the sea, but extremely exposed to weather and not recommended for kayaking.
Espevær village
Geosite 3 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A picturesque fishing village with around 50 permanent residents, located far out towards the North Sea. A centre for the herring fishery in the 19th century. Narrow roads between well-preserved traditional houses, a shop, restaurant, lobster huts, the Baadehuset Museum and Norway’s largest lobster park, awarded the Europa Nostra Diploma. Sheltered paddling inside the archipelago, but exposed access. Scheduled boat service between Eidesvik and Espevær.
Close to Hespriholmen.
Sokkamyro
Geosite 4– Long hike for experienced hikers
A Stone Age workshop settlement where greenstone axes from Hespriholmen were produced. Located at the inner end of Langevåg, close to the guest harbour and the local heritage centre with café and shop. Langevåg offers sheltered kayaking, but the Bømlafjord just outside can be very demanding. Sokkamyro is a protected site. Archaeologist Håkon Schetelig began the excavations here in 1900, thereby initiating Norwegian Stone Age archaeology.
Sætrehillaren
Geosite 5 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A rock shelter where several artefacts have been found, including a bone comb from around AD 600 with an inscription believed to be a love poem. An example of how rock shelters were used as hunting stations throughout the Stone Age. Idyllically located in sheltered Sætravika. About 30 minutes’ walk from Vika, or access by boat or kayak from the west side of Bømlo. Note: The waters outside Sætravika can be extremely exposed.
Hespriholmen
Geosite 6 - Long hike for experienced hikers
The source of greenstone axes in south-western Norway for more than 6,000 years. One of the oldest intact quarries in the world. The island is protected, but landing from the eastern side is possible if weather and sea conditions allow. The Nordøyane and Holsøyane waters are suitable for kayaking, but exposed to the open sea and require solid kayaking and boating experience.
Get there with private boat, or contact the Geopark.
Holsøyane
Geosite 10 - Long hike for experienced hikers
An island group with well-exposed lava and pyroclastic flows, 474–466 Ma. Laminated layers of andesitic tuff and thick beds of pyroclastic breccia containing folded tuffite fragments. Good kayaking waters, but exposed to the open sea and requiring solid experience.
Søre Lyklingholmen
Geosite 11 - Long hike for experienced hikers
Exceptionally well-preserved evidence of deep-sea landslides. A complex mixture of deep-sea sediments, volcanic and plutonic rocks, and later diabase intrusions formed over more than 20 million years. Visible from the sea, with possible landing in a cove west of the site. Very exposed area requiring advanced kayaking skills.
Urda
Geosite 12 - Long hike for experienced hikers
The main source of soapstone used for churches in south-western Norway during the Middle Ages before 1160. Appears as a vertical quarry face with numerous extraction marks from ashlar blocks and vessels. Located about 100 m from the shoreline at the northern end of Lyklingesjøen. Parking near the road sign, or landing at the guest harbour. Waters outside Lykling are very exposed.
Goldmines in Lykling
lokalitet 13 – lett tilkomst
The biggest gold mine area in Norway, where appr. 200 kilos of gold was extracted before the last mine was abandoned in 1910. The mineralization is categorized as an orogenic gold deposit. Protected.
Located by the sea but very exposed. The best landing possibility is at the guest harbor in Lyklingesjøen, a 2 km walk from the mines. The nearest launch sites are in Åreidalen, Kulleseidkanalen guest harbor, or Eidesvik.
Helgeneset
Geosite 15 - easy access
At the very tip of the headland, just north of the red boathouse, pillow lavas from submarine volcanism in the Iapetus Ocean can be seen, formed 495 million years ago. Note: For parking and access across pastureland, contact the landowner (+47 909 85 254). Good kayaking waters, with launching from Åreiddalen or Kulleseid Canal Guest Harbour.
Utslåttøy
Geosite 20 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A natural sculpture park around a lagoon facing the open ocean. Glacially polished granite shaped by weathering along fractures. Abundant pegmatite with large crystals of feldspar, quartz and mica. Accessible by private boat or kayak in an adventurous but very exposed area.
Accessible by boat.
Ospholmsbleikja
Geosite 23 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A granite quarry (granodiorite) that supplied stone for houses, roads and quays in Bergen between 1870 and 1930. Formed by flowing magma deep beneath an island arc around 466 Ma. One of the Finnish stonemasons, Eino Taipale, left his signature in the quarry wall. Accessible by kayak or boat in calm, sheltered waters.
Boat needed.
Moster Amfi & Moster church
Geosite 27 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A stone church from around 1100 built of stone and marble, located next to the Moster Amphitheatre and the Church History Centre. The amphitheatre is built within a former marble quarry and includes a café, library and exhibitions. Lime kilns nearby and a pleasant walking trail to Vetahaugen. Parking at the church or access by boat to Moster harbour, approx. 200 m away. Sheltered harbour, but exposed waters in the Bømlafjord.
Digernesklubben
Geosite 29 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A fine exposure of dark red laminated chert formed from sedimented silica algae on the floor of the Iapetus Ocean, 450–490 Ma. Parking at Digernes. Note: The rocks are slippery when wet. Visible from the sea, but very exposed with no suitable landing for kayaks.
Fitjar centre
Geosite 34 - easy access
A fine example of the use of local granite as a building material in Fitjartun. The stone wall near the church is built from stone from an older medieval church. The fertile moraine soils have supported agriculture, and the area is known for exceptional Bronze Age finds and as the site where King Håkon the Good was mortally wounded in 960. A good starting point for kayaking trips.
Fitjar islands
Geosite 35 - easy access
A beautiful archipelago of granite, specifically a 468 Ma granodioritic pluton formed in an uplifted magma chamber and shaped by Quaternary glaciations. A cultural landscape of national interest (KULA). Ideal waters for leisure boats and kayaking, with Fitjar town as a convenient starting point.
Entrance by your own boat, evt. Fitjar tourist info: +47 951 89 950
Raugholmen
Geosite 36 - Long hike for experienced hikers
Here you can literally walk on red rocks from Earth’s interior! Peridotite, harzburgite and olivine formed in the transition zone between Earth’s mantle and oceanic crust. Located 500 m from Bekkjarvik Guesthouse and Beckerwyck House. Accessible by boat or kayak.
Access by boat, but the same bedrock is found along the promenade on land around the island.
Røyrvikeskaget
Geosite 37- Long hike for experienced hikers
A spectacular coastal landscape on the western edge of Møkster, where granite veins intruded into marble and quartzite when a magma chamber exploded deep beneath the volcanic island arc formed during the collision of Laurentia and Baltica, 474 Ma. Accessible by boat or ferry; kayaking possible but very exposed.
Tilkomst m/båt/rutebåt, evt. kajakk men er svært eksponert/værhardt område.
Boat info (Bekkjarvik Gjestgiveri): +47 550 84 240
Bårdhaugen
Geosite 38 - Long hike for experienced hikers
Located at the westernmost tip of Reksteren, Bårdhaugen provides unique insight into the contact between two magma chambers (granite and gabbro) during the formation of the Sunnhordland Batholith. Accessible by private boat only; very exposed. Not recommended for kayaking. Visible from the ferry sailing between Sandvikvåg–Halhjem.
Boat needed.
Russøy
Geosite 39 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A small island with quarries and remains of medieval soapstone extraction, likely carried out by monks from Munkeliv Abbey in Bergen during the 13th century. Accessible by boat or kayak, or from Våge.
Årbakka
Geosite 41 - easy access
A prehistoric burial ground with four standing stones made of local slate near Årbakka Trading Post. Originally 6–7 stones, along with burial mounds, cairns and stone circles. Pottery and weapon remains were found during early excavations but are now lost. Parking nearby, or access by boat or kayak to the trading post, open in summer.
Pottery and weapon remains were found during early excavations. Traditional shop nearby, open in summer.
Seløy
Geosite 42 - easy access
One of the most spectacular marble mines in the geopark, where a marble layer has been excavated into an underground mine, likely dating back to the 17th century. Several entrances divided by rock pillars of remaining marble. Accessible by private boat or kayak.
Halsnøy Monastery and ice age moraine
Geosite 43- easy access
The Halsnøy Moraine stretches across the fjord floor and forms much of the island of Halsnøy. The monastery was built on fertile moraine soils for the coronation of King Magnus in 1163. Marble from the nearby island of Hidle was used in the coffin walls. The monastery, with café and exhibition, is open in summer. Parking by the main road or landing at the southern quay.
Vannes
Geosite 46 - Long hike for experienced hikers
At Vannes you can take a journey down through Earth’s crust, from a 1,500 Ma volcanic surface to deep-crustal gabbro. The gabbro is penetrated by diabase dykes, likely feeders to surface volcanoes. Visit Vannes Nature Camp at the outer end of Vannes.
Skorpo
Geosite 48 - Long hike for experienced hikers
An Ice Age sculpture formed by the plastic ice sheet flowing into the fjord, polishing the relatively soft phyllite of Skorpo with fast, high-pressure subglacial meltwater streams laden with gravel. Best viewed up close from a boat.
Bergspytt-Garden Nordbø
Geosite 51 - easy access
A soapstone quarry right at the shoreline, largely untouched since the 13th century, when stone from here was used to build Kvinnherad and Ænes churches. A short paddle from Rosendal Fjord Hotel. The farm Nordbø (a visitor farm) owns the quarry and offers activities for families and children.
For visits - call Linda: 950 87 744.
More info about Besøksgarden here.
Møsevatn
Geosite 58 - Long hike for experienced hikers
The drive from Rosendal to Møsevatn at the south-western edge of Folgefonna passes through spectacular landscapes of massive granite and gabbro complexes (plutons). Guided kayak tours to the glacier front are available with Folgefonni Glacier Guides.
Guida kajakkturar til brefronten er mogleg med Folgefonni Breførarlag.
Guided kayak-tours to the glacier are available on Møsevatn, +47 951 17 792.
Langfoss
Geosite 59 - Long hike for experienced hikers
A spectacular waterfall with a total drop of 612 m along Precambrian granite down to the fjord. Ranked among the world’s ten most beautiful waterfalls by CNN Travel. Easily accessible and visible from the E134, or experienced on a guided summit hike along the waterfall with Åkrafjorden Oppleving (8 hours round trip).
Hystadskogen
lokalitet 61 – lett tilkomst
Fint tillaga gangsti gjennom eit freda naturreservat med olderskog og rik biodiversitet. Fleire gravhaugar frå jernalder langs stien, og eit særeige og fint forma geologisk fenomen av kalkspatmarmor i Apalvika. Ca 1 timer lett spasertur t/r parkeringsplassen. Lett tilgang også via kajakk/båt.