Alsta (historically, ''Alsten'' or ''Alstein'') is an island in the municipalities of

Alstahaug Alstahaug is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sandnessjøen. Som ...

and

Leirfjord Leirfjord is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Leland. Other villages in Leirfjord include Bardalssjøen and Sundøy. The l ...

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 island is surrounded by the

Vefsnfjorden The Vefsnfjord or Vefsnfjorden is a fjord in the Helgeland traditional district of Nordland county, Norway. It is about long, reaching a maximum depth of about below sea level. The fjord flows through the municipalities of Alstahaug, Leirfj ...

to the east, the

Leirfjorden Leirfjorden is a fjord in the municipalities of Leirfjord and Alstahaug in Nordland county, Norway. The long fjord is located east of the town of Sandnessjøen, between the mainland and the island of Alsta. There is a short strait that conn ...

to the north, and the Alstenfjorden to the south and west. The eastern part of the island is dominated by the Seven Sisters mountain range which has five mountains that are more than tall, while the western part of the island is relatively flat and it is the location of the town of

Sandnessjøen Sandnessjøen is a town and the administrative centre of Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. Sandnessjøen was granted special trading privileges in the late 1600s and it received town status in 1999. Sandnessjøen is located on ...

and the village of Søvika in the south. Alsten

The long island has an area of , and its highest point is the mountain Botnkrona, which reaches above sea level. In 2017, there were 6,969 residents on the island. The islands of Altra and

Skålvær Skålvær are a group of islands in the municipality of Alstahaug in Nordland county, Norway. The islands are located in the western part of Alstahaug, about northwest of the island of Tjøtta, just west of the southern tip of the island of Al ...

lie to the southwest, the islands of Tjøtta,

Offersøya Offersøya or Offersøy is an island in Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The island lies directly between the large island of Alsta and the smaller island of Tjøtta at the mouth of the Vefsnfjorden. The Norwegian County ...

Mindlandet Mindlandet is an island in Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. The island lies at the mouth of the Vefsnfjorden, just south of the islands of Tjøtta and Rødøya. The island is fairly flat, and has a lot of very good agricul ...

, and

Rødøya Rødøya is an island in the municipality of Rødøy in Nordland county, Norway. The island is located just west of the mouth of the Tjongsfjorden, north of the island of Gjerdøya, and west of the mainland. There are ferry connections fro ...

lie to the south, surrounding the entrance to the

. The island is connected to the mainland by the

Helgeland Bridge The Helgeland Bridge ( no, Helgelandsbrua) is a cable-stayed bridge that crosses the Leirfjorden between the mainland (in Leirfjord Municipality) and the island of Alsta (in Alstahaug Municipality) in Nordland county, Norway. The town of Sandnes ...

Norwegian County Road 17 County Road 17 ( no, Fylkesvei 17), also known as the Coastal Highway ( no, Kystriksveien), is a Norwegian highway that runs from the town of Bodø in Nordland county (in the north) to the town of Steinkjer in Trøndelag county (in the south). I ...

, which connects the northern part of the island to the municipality of

on the mainland. This same highway 17 continues across the island from north to south where it then connects by bridge to the nearby islands of

and Tjøtta. The eastern part of the island is often called the "backside" of the island since it is on the other side of the mountains from the more populous side. This "backside" lies inside the municipality of Leirfjord and the

Sundøy Bridge The Sundøy Bridge ( no, Sundøybrua) is a cantilever bridge in the municipality of Leirfjord in Nordland county, Norway. The concrete bridge connects the mainland to the village of Sundøy on the island of Alsta. The bridge has three spans, w ...

connects the

Sundøy Sundøy or Sundøya is a village in the municipality of Leirfjord in Nordland county, Norway. The village is located about south of the village of Leland. Sundøya has a population of about 120 people. It is located on the north side of the V ...

village area on the backside of the island to the mainland.

References

Alstahaug Leirfjord Islands of Nordland {{Nordland-island-stub

See also

References