3. A Day on Herøy and Dønna

Hannah Fulton

Herøy Church

On the second day of our trip we awoke early to catch the ferry to the island of Herøy and Dønna. Our amiable guide drove us across the rugged landscape of Dønna to the relatively flat islands of Herøy. Here we visited the medieval period church of Herøy and our guide explained the different permutations of the church’s layout up to the present day. 

Afterwards, got to walk around inside the Herøy museum, a collection of artifacts from fishers and farmers in the area fashioned into the appearance of an old homestead. It was really interesting to walk around the house and imagine what life must have been like in the past. Especially when you’re in cold temperatures, you appreciate more fully the ability to turn on an electric heater to warm a room. 

Brick oven for baking moose pizza

For lunch, of course, our guide served us a wonderful treat: homemade and home fired pizza made with freshly caught moose meat. This was definitely one of the highlights of the trip for me. The environment of being in a cozy room in such cold weather and cooking food together was really fantastic. Plus, watching our pizza be hand-fired in the brick oven outside was super interesting and the end result was delicious. I also enjoyed trying the Norwegian “Fairytale” soda. 

After lunch we got to explore the artifacts in the general store briefly before heading off to the island of Dønna to continue our tour. On our visit to Dønnes church we were able to climb up in the loft and experience where priests used to preach. Also unique to this church is the mausoleum built in 1680 containing 22 coffins. Realizing that some of the coffins house children and infants really emphasizes the high infant mortality rate of that time. 

As the sun was setting we also were able to visit the grave field around Glein. As the light was fading the forest seemed dark and mysterious which added to the intrigue of the place. Here there are 21 grave sites which have not be excavated. It is easy to see why the Vikings chose to be buried here in the site of the surrounding mountains and fjords. 

Tree growing on a grave mound at Glein