Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Around Alta
SAUTSO-ALTA CANYON
The Altaelva hydroelectric project has had very little effect on the most scenic stretch of
river, which slides through 400m-deep Sautso, northern Europe's grandest canyon. The
easiest way to see this impressive forested gorge is to take the 3½-hour tour (adult/child
Nkr545/275) that the tourist office organises each Monday, Wednesday and Friday in July,
leavingat4pm,numberspermitting(minimumsixpeople).Inadditiontospectacularviews
oftheSauto-AltaCanyon,thetouralsoincludesapassthroughtheAltaPowerStationdam
and a snack.
KÅFJORD
Kåfjord's
Tirpitz Museum ( 92 09 23 70;
www.tirpitz-museum.no
;
adult/child/con-
cession Nkr60/30/50; 10am-6pm Jun-Aug)
, commemorating the
Tirpitz
, once the
world's largest battleship, is the achievement of local resident Even Blomkvist, who has
single- handedly collected, bought, begged and borrowed the artefacts, uniforms, memor-
abilia and nearly 3000 evocative photographs relating to the battleship. It hid away deep in
Kåfjord from March 1943 to October 1944, then sneaked out and was sunk in waters near
Tromso.
Atitspeakinthe1840s,thistinysettlement18kmwestofAltawasaprosperoustownof
over 1000 inhabitants thanks to the copper works (Kåfjord Kobberverk), which were then
Norway's largest. You can follow an easy 1.3km signed trail around the little that remains
(you'll find plenty more information in Alta Museum). Half hidden in the grass opposite
theexplanatorypanelisaplaqueinmemoryofthreeBritishmidgetsubmarinesthatentered
the fjord and severely damaged the
Tirpitz
in 1943.
TotherightoftheE6,a9kmcarttrackbegins250mnorthoftheparishchurchandleads
past copper-mine tailings up to the observatory at the summit of
Mt Haldde
(904m), a
mountain venerated by the Sami.
