Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Bodø
POP 47,300
Bodø, Nordland's largest town, was founded in 1816 as a trade centre, then turned to fish-
ing in 1860 during an especially lucrative herring boom. The town centre, rebuilt after be-
ing almost completely levelled by WWII bombing, is unexciting architecturally - and in
summer it can reek of the fish that sustain it - but it's open, tidy and has a pleasant marina.
The city's main charm lies in its backdrop of distant rugged peaks and vast skies. Dramatic
islands that support the world's densest concentration of white-tailed sea eagles - not for
nothing is Bodø known as the Sea Eagle Capital - dot the seas to the north.
ManyholidaymakersbypassBodøintheirrushtoreachthefarnorthorsimplyleapona
ferry to Lofoten. However, it's a great place to spend a day or two and acts as the gateway
to Norway's true north; only 63km west of Fauske on the Arctic Highway, it's the northern
terminusofNorway'srailwaysystemandmarksthenorthernmostpointofthestaggeringly
beautiful Kystriksveien coastal route.
