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

Alstahaug Alstahaug is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Sandnessjøen. Some of the villages in Alstahaug include Søvika and Tjøtta. Most reside ...

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 ...

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, ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, 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 ...

. 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, Leirfjo ...

to the east, the Leirfjorden 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 o ...

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 Tjøtta is a village in Alstahaug Municipality i ...

lie to the southwest, the islands of

Tjøtta Tjøtta is a village in Alstahaug Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the southern tip of the island of Tjøtta, which is located south of the large island of Alsta. The village is located on an island, but it does have ...

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 Road ...

, Mindlandet, and Rødøya lie to the south, surrounding the entrance to the

. The island is connected to the mainland by the Helgeland Bridge on

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

. 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, ...

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 ...

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

References

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

See also

References