Vesterålen
Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just north of Lofoten and west of Harstad. It is the northernmost part of Nordland county. Sortland is the largest town, situated near the center of the archipel ...
archipelago
An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands, or sometimes a sea containing a small number of scattered islands.
Examples of archipelagos include: the Indonesian Archi ...
, situated about inside the
Arctic circle
The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle.
The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...
. Andøya is located in
Andøy Municipality
Andøy is the northernmost municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Vesterålen archipelago. The main island in the municipality is Andøya. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Andenes. Other village ...
in
Nordland
Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, N ...
county,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
. The main population centres on the island include the villages of
Andenes
is the administrative centre of Andøy Municipality which is located in the Vesterålen district of Nordland county, Norway. The village of Andenes is the northernmost settlement of the island of Andøya (and in Nordland county). To the east ...
,
Bleik
Bleik is a fishing village in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located on the northwestern part of the island of Andøya, about southwest of the village of Andenes.
The village has a population (2018) of 461 whic ...
, and
Risøyhamn
Risøyhamn is a village in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located on the southern part of the island of Andøya. The island of Andøya is connected to the neighboring island of Hinnøya by the Andøy Bridge at ...
.
The island has an area of , making it the tenth largest island in Norway. The island is connected to the neighboring island of
Hinnøya
Hinnøya is the fourth-largest island in Norway, and the largest outside the Svalbard archipelago. The lies just off the western coast of Northern Norway. The island sits on the border of Nordland and Troms og Finnmark counties. The western pa ...
via the
Andøy Bridge
The Andøy Bridge ( no, Andøybrua) is a cantilever road bridge that crosses the Risøysundet strait between the islands of Andøya and Hinnøya in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The northern end of the bridge is located in th ...
. The
Andfjorden
Andfjorden is a fjord on the border of Nordland and Troms og Finnmark counties in Norway. It primarily flows between the large islands of Andøya and Senja. Grytøya and the smaller islands Bjarkøya and Krøttøya are located in the fjord. The m ...
lies to the east of the island, the
Risøysundet
Risøysundet is a strait between the islands of Andøya and Hinnøya in the Vesterålen archipelago in Norway. It is located in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county. The long strait has only one road crossing: the Andøy Bridge as part of th ...
strait lies to the south and east side of the island, and the
Gavlfjorden
Gavlfjorden is a fjord (more accurately, a sound) in Nordland county, Norway. The long fjord separates the large islands of Langøya and Andøya in the Vesterålen archipelago and it runs along the border of three municipalities: Øksnes, Andøy ...
lies to the southwest side. The
Norwegian Sea
The Norwegian Sea ( no, Norskehavet; is, Noregshaf; fo, Norskahavið) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to ...
lies to the west and north.
The numerous bog areas on Andøya are used for the extensive production of
peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficien ...
. Andøya is also well known for its
cloudberries
''Rubus chamaemorus'' is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae, native to cool temperate regions, alpine and arctic tundra and boreal forest. This herbaceous perennial produces amber-colored edible fruit similar to the blackb ...
. Besides the flat and largely continuous bog areas, Andøya also consists of steep mountain ranges reaching up to high. The sharp peak of
Kvasstinden
Kvasstinden is the highest mountain on the island of Andøya in the Vesterålen archipelago in northern Norway. It is located in the southern part of Andøy Municipality in Nordland
Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, No ...
is the highest point on the island at . Andøya Space, which was founded in 1962, is also located on the island near the Andøya Air Station.
Important Bird Area
A 10,000 ha area comprising low-lying boggy ground in central Andøya, along with a stretch of the eastern coast and the lake of
Skogvollvatnet
Skogvollvatnet is a lake in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The lake lies on the west coast of the island of Andøya. There is a wide isthmus
An isthmus (; ; ) is a narrow piece of land connecting two larger areas across ...
on the west coast, has been designated an
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations.
IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...
(IBA) by
BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global partnership of non-governmental organizations that strives to conserve birds and their habitats. BirdLife International's priorities include preventing extinction of bird species, identifying and safeguarding ...
(BLI) because it supports several thousand
barnacle
A barnacle is a type of arthropod constituting the subclass Cirripedia in the subphylum Crustacea, and is hence related to crabs and lobsters. Barnacles are exclusively marine, and tend to live in shallow and tidal waters, typically in eros ...
Eurasian curlew
The Eurasian curlew or common curlew (''Numenius arquata'') is a very large wader in the family Scolopacidae. It is one of the most widespread of the curlews, breeding across temperate Europe and Asia. In Europe, this species is often referred t ...
s. Protected areas within or overlapping the site include the Skogvoll, Risøysundet, and Åholmen
nature reserve
A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...
s and the Skogvoll and Risøysundet
Ramsar site
A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O)
*** Permanent 8 ha (P)
*** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts)
**
Bleik
Bleik is a fishing village in Andøy Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located on the northwestern part of the island of Andøya, about southwest of the village of Andenes.
The village has a population (2018) of 461 whic ...