If you trace the Norwegian coastline on a map, you'll immediately notice the incredible variety of waterways that give the coastline its rugged and frayed structure. An impressive 239,000 islands and skerries are scattered here, with the largest, Hinnøya, spanning over 2,200 square kilometers, while the smallest barely reach the size of a single-family home. Particularly striking on the map are the island groups of the Lofoten and Vesterålen, which stretch out into the Atlantic Ocean, north of Bodø and the Arctic Circle.
Many of these islands are connected to the Norwegian mainland by roads and sometimes daring bridges. Others can be reached via ferry connections, while some are accessible through undersea tunnels that first lead the traveler deep beneath the ocean's surface. Such tunnel connections can be found, for instance, to the islands of Giske and Godøya near Ålesund, and they are also present in the Lofoten archipelago.
This intricate network of road connections creates a dense web of transport routes, making even remote islands accessible. However, not every island in Norway is connected by roads, ferries, or tunnels. Most of the smaller islands are uninhabited and therefore do not need to be linked to the transport network. Their land belongs to nature—a rare luxury for many animals in our modern world. Of the many islands, only around 2,000 are inhabited, such as the remarkable small island of Husøy on the main island of Senja.
Our Pure Moments picture was taken near Bodø, looking northward into the archipelago, gently illuminated by the light of the midnight sun. The vast Vestfjord, where the islands are located, separates the mainland from the Lofoten and ends roughly around Narvik, the port city far in the north. The calm sea and clear evening sky create a unique and soothing atmosphere, evoking a sense of wanderlust in the viewer.
