Husevågøy – where fjord meets open ocean

A small island at the outer end of Nordfjord, facing the full force of the Stad Sea yet offering quiet harbours, coastal paths and a rich sense of history.

Quick facts about Husevågøy

  • Location: Outer Nordfjord, Western Norway

  • Municipality: Kinn

  • Main village: Husevåg

  • Best for: coastal walks, sea views, photography, cycling, fishing and quiet island life

  • Access: Car ferry from Måløy and Oldeide

  • Nearby day trips: Hornelen, Vetvika, Selje Abbey and Hoddevik

What makes Husevågøy different

Husevågøy is not a place shaped by mass tourism. It is a small island community where everyday coastal life, weather, family history and older traces of settlement are still closely connected to the landscape.

What makes the island special is the contrast between shelter and exposure. The village of Husevåg lies protected behind its harbour and breakwater, while just beyond the headland the coast opens directly towards Stad Sea, one of the most weather-exposed stretches of sea in Norway. This tension between calm water and open ocean gives Husevågøy much of its character — and much of its photographic appeal.

The island also carries deeper layers of history: old boathouses, fishing traditions, prehistoric remains, marked coastal paths and a rare underwater coral area just outside Husevåg. For visitors interested in nature, photography and quiet places with a real local story, Husevågøy offers more than scenery. It offers a sense of continuity.

Who Husevågøy is for

Husevågøy is best suited to slow travellers, photographers, walkers, cyclists and visitors who enjoy quiet coastal places rather than busy attractions. It is a place for taking time: watching the weather change, walking short coastal paths, exploring the harbour and understanding how island life has been shaped by sea, shelter and exposure.

How to get to Husevågøy

Husevåg on Husevågøy at the entrance to Nordfjord, where the ferry road leads towards a quiet coastal village near the Stad Sea.

Husevågøy is reached by car ferry on the Måløy–Husevågøy–Oldeide route. Check the current timetable before travelling, as departures may vary with season, weather and sea conditions.

Check ferry timetable

After arriving at the ferry quay on the eastern side of the island, the road crosses low hills before reaching Husevåg on the north-western shore. The journey is short, but the landscape changes quickly: from sheltered fjord views to open coastal scenery and glimpses of the sea beyond the headlands.

The main village, Husevåg, lies tucked into a protected bay with a small harbour, old boathouses and wooden homes rising gently from the shoreline. Fewer than twenty people live here year-round, which gives the place a quiet, lived-in atmosphere rather than the feel of a tourist resort.

Before you visit Husevågøy

Husevågøy is a small island community with limited visitor facilities. Travellers should check the ferry timetable in advance and bring food, water and suitable clothing, especially if planning to walk, cycle or photograph along the coast. The weather can change quickly, and the island is best experienced at an unhurried pace rather than as a quick roadside stop.

Landscape and Weather

Wide horizons and ever-changing light

Husevågøy sits at around 62° north, with wide views towards Nordfjord, Vågsøy, Bremangerlandet and the open sea. On calm days the water can lie almost mirror-still around the harbour and inner fjord. On other days Atlantic swells roll in towards the cliffs, reminding you how close the island is to the Stad Sea.

For photographers, this changing weather is one of Husevågøy’s strongest qualities. The light rarely stays the same for long. Around midsummer, the sun can be seen setting into the sea at the outer entrance of Nordfjord, creating long evenings with slow sunsets, soft reflections and warm light across the water. Autumn and winter often bring darker skies, fast-moving showers, northern lights and sudden breaks of sun over the sea.

From the marked paths and hills above Husevåg, the geography becomes easy to read: sheltered bays on one side, sea-facing slopes on the other, and the fjord opening out towards the Norwegian Sea. Even a short walk can give a strong sense of standing at the outer edge of the Norwegian coast.

Husevåg – a small coastal village

The main settlement on the island is the village of Husevåg, a small coastal community on the north-western side of Husevågøy. The village lies in a sheltered bay, protected from the most exposed seas, but still close enough to the open coast for the weather and light to change quickly.

The harbour is central to understanding the village. The breakwater, completed in 1920, gave boats better protection from the sea, while the shoreline around Vågen still carries traces of older coastal life. The first boathouses in Husevåg were connected to seasonal fishing, and for generations people here combined fishing, farming, boat traffic and work along the shore.

Modern life has changed the practical role of the village, but the older coastal culture is still visible in the layout of the houses, the boathouses, the harbour and the remains of earlier quay structures. Husevåg is small, but it has never been empty of history.

Trollholet

Traces of human activity on Husevågøy go much further back than the present village. At Trollholet, a large cave on the north-western side of the island, archaeologists have found cultural layers with shells and bones, probably from the Iron Age. At Færeldemyra there are Bronze Age rock carvings in serpentine rock, including boat figures and sun symbols. Other registered sites, such as Ramsevika and Tytingvåg, show how the island has been used for settlement, resource gathering and travel for thousands of years.

These older traces add an important layer to Husevågøy. The island is not only a scenic place at the edge of Nordfjord, but part of a much longer coastal history.

A rare underwater world

White cauliflower coral outside Husevåg. Photo: Erling Svensen

Just outside the breakwater in Husevåg lies one of the island’s most remarkable natural features: a large area of white cauliflower coral growing along a steep underwater slope. The strong currents between Husevågøy and Vågsøy bring nutrient-rich water through the sound, creating good conditions for coral, anemones and other marine life.

The coral area is found at depths of roughly 30 to 80 metres and is considered one of the largest known occurrences of this southern cauliflower coral species along the Norwegian coast. It is not something most visitors will see from land, but it adds an important hidden dimension to Husevågøy: the island is just as interesting below the surface as above it.

Things to do on Husevågøy

  • Walk to Hovdeneset for open views towards the Stad Sea and the outer coastline

  • Hike Rauddalsegga or Kletten/Rønelden for wide panoramas over Nordfjord, Bremangerlandet and the open sea

  • Explore Husevåg harbour, Vågen and the old boathouse environment along the shore

  • Bring a bicycle on the ferry and follow the quiet island road between Husevåg, Krabbestig and Tytingvåg

  • Look for traces of older coastal life, from landing places and old quay structures to registered cultural remains

  • Photograph changing weather, northern lights, harbour scenes, sea views and the contrast between shelter and exposure

  • Try fishing from shore or by boat, always respecting local conditions, weather and protected areas

Husevågøy is well suited to slow, simple exploration. There is only one main road and very little traffic, so walking or bringing a bicycle on the ferry is an easy way to experience the island. From the ferry quay the road crosses low hills and follows the shoreline past boathouses, small farms and open views towards Nordfjord, the outer islands and the open sea.

Short detours from the road take you down to sheltered inlets, old landing places and stretches of rocky shoreline where you can feel the force of the Atlantic on windy days. For those who enjoy hiking, waymarked paths lead up into the hills and along the ridges above the village. From these viewpoints you can look out over the Stad Sea, the entrance to Nordfjord and the mountains further inland – a wide panorama that quickly gives you a sense of how exposed, yet how peaceful, this small island can be.

Whether you choose an easy walk from the harbour, a quiet bike ride between the small settlements or a longer hike to one of the viewpoints, Husevågøy offers big scenery without crowds, noise or complicated logistics – just the combination of sea, light and landscape that defines the Norwegian west coast.

For photographers

Husevågøy is especially rewarding for photographers who enjoy quiet coastal places rather than famous viewpoints. The strongest motifs are often simple: the harbour behind the breakwater, old boathouses reflected in still water, sea spray at Hovdeneset, low winter light, northern lights above the village and the changing scale between small houses and large ships passing through Nordfjord.

The best photographs here often come from waiting — for weather to shift, for light to break through, or for the contrast between shelter and open sea to become visible.

Day trips in the area

Husevågøy can also be used as a quiet base for exploring the wider Nordfjord and Stad area. Within reach are places such as Hornelen, Vetvika, Selje Abbey and the surfing beach at Hoddevik. Still, the island itself is worth giving time to — especially if you enjoy slow travel, coastal walks and photography. On my Google map I have gathered these and many other interesting places in the area.

Explore the region on my interactive Google Map

I have created an interactive Google Map with viewpoints, hikes, beaches, lighthouses, ferry connections, historic places and recommended day trips from Husevågøy. The map covers the island itself as well as a wider coastal area around Nordfjord, Vågsøy, Stad, Bremanger and nearby parts of Western Norway.

It is designed as a practical planning tool for visitors who want to explore the region at their own pace — from short walks and photo stops to full-day excursions. With more than 12,000 views, the map has already become a useful resource for people looking for places to visit in this part of the Norwegian coast.

Explore sights and day trips on the map

Husevågøy in pictures

The photographs below show Husevågøy as a place of contrasts: sheltered harbour and open sea, summer stillness and winter weather, small village life and wide coastal horizons. Together they give a visual introduction to the island’s character — not only as a destination, but as a lived-in coastal landscape shaped by weather, work, memory and light.

The harbour in Husevåg on Husevågøy – sheltered jetties, small boats and views towards the fjord and mountains in the Nordfjord area on Norway’s west coast.

The bay of Vågen in Husevåg, where the first boathouses were built for fishermen from further inside Nordfjord. Here they had a shorter route out to the open sea and rich fishing grounds.

Northern lights over Husevåg on Husevågøy, with green and purple aurora above the village and coastline.

Stormy day at Husevåg, when waves from the Stad Sea crash heavily against the cliffs. On the most weather-beaten days it is impossible to get all the way out here – see also the storm video from Kråkenes lighthouse just north of Husevågøy.

Sunset over Klovningen, seen from Husevågøy as the light fades across the Stad Sea and the outer coast of Nordfjord.

Pilot whales in the fjord outside Husevågøy, a close encounter with large marine mammals along the coast near Stad.

FAQ / Practical questions

Is Husevågøy worth visiting?
Yes, if you enjoy quiet coastal landscapes, walking, photography, weather, local history and small island communities. It is not a place for mass tourism or a long list of commercial attractions.

How do I get to Husevågøy?
Husevågøy is reached by car ferry on the Måløy–Husevågøy–Oldeide route. Travellers should check the current timetable before departure.

Can I visit Husevågøy without a car?
Yes, but it requires planning. The island is small and quiet, and walking or cycling can be a good way to experience it, especially if ferry times are checked in advance.

Are there shops or cafés on Husevågøy?
Husevågøy has limited visitor facilities, so visitors should bring food, water and what they need for the day.

What is Husevågøy best for?
Coastal walks, photography, cycling, harbour scenes, weather, sea views, northern lights in season and a quiet sense of island life.

Continue exploring Husevågøy