Hiking along Sunnivaleia between Kinn and Selje

The trip starts in Florø. You can get here by car, fast boat from Bergen and flight to Florø airport . If you arrive the day before, you can stay overnight at, for example, Kinn hotel in Florø.

From Florø you take the local boat from Florø harbour to Kinn kai. Check departure times at skyss.no. Note that there are different departure times in the summer than the rest of the year.

From the pier on Kinn, follow the marked road to the right and walk about 10 minutes until you reach the accommodations Kinn Skulehus and Kinn Gjestehus . There is no shop on the island, so remember to buy food and other goods in Florø. At Kinn Gjestehus it is possible to pre-order dinner or purchase goods.

Kinn Church is about a 10-minute walk further west towards the sea. In the summer season you will be greeted by a volunteer host who holds open church tours and prayers. This beautiful stone church from the 12th century is still in use. At the end of June, the Kinnaspelet play is performed in the amphitheater outside the church.

From the church you can follow a marked path around the entire island, through the Kinnaklova skerk which has been a sailing landmark for centuries. Here you have a wide view of the sea and the coastal landscape. The walk around the island takes about 2 hours. Remember good shoes and clothing that tolerates westerly weather.

There is a stamp for the key location in Kinn church or in the mailbox by the church hall, and also individual stamps at the accommodation locations.

Take the boat back to Florø. Check timetables at skyss.no , and remember to book a pick-up in advance from Kinn kai before the boat leaves Florø . In Florø harbour you take another boat (Norled Bergen-Selje or Kystvegekspressen) to Smørhamn kai . Here the next leg of Sunnivaleia starts .

You can walk about 1.5 km, take the bus that corresponds to the express boat in the direction of Kalvåg and get off at Smørhamn gamle handelsstad, or arrange to be picked up by the host in Smørhamn gamle handelsstad . Here there are furnished apartments in the old seaports where both kings and travelers have sought port for over 350 years. Here you can cook your own food, but remember to shop in Florø. There is also a grocery store in Kalvåg 3 km if you want to go there.

Kalvåg is a charming fishing village on the island of Frøya, and many of the buildings have recently been restored to become the Knutholmen hotel and restaurant . The gallery of the imaginative Westland artist Oddvar Torheim in Kalvåg is also well worth a visit. The old road past Frøya church out to Kalvåg is a nice walk, and can be combined with a bus one way.

Pilgrim stamps can be found at Smørhamn's old trading post and in Frøya Church. These are not key locations .

Just north of the old trading town of Smørhamn, the marked trail to Sunnivaleia starts across Bremangerlandet. Between Smørhamn and the pilgrim hostel Havlys Bed and Breakfast in Iglandsvik , it is about 20 km, partly on marked trails in the terrain and partly on asphalt roads. See a detailed description of the route here . Follow the markings to Sunnivaleia .

From Iglandsvik it is a 2.5 km walk through beautiful coastal scenery to the idyllic beach Grotlesanden . Along the road is also the old churchyard where the medieval church at Grotle stood. The churchyard has recently been restored with good information boards, and is well worth a visit.

You will find stamps in the pilgrim hostel.

At Bremanger church on Hauge you will find another marked path on Sunnivaleia . You follow this north and in stages along the road along Dalevatnet , before you again follow the marked path along the old postal road from Klungreset to the ferry terminal at Oldeide . This part of the hike goes over a mountain area with a view of the outer part of the Nordfjord, and can be a bit steep in some parts. From Iglandsvik to Oldeide it is about 16 km.

Check the ferry times from Oldeide to Måløy at skyss.no

In Måløy you can stay overnight at a hotel , campsite or book transport to the pilgrim hostel at the beautiful Ulvesund lighthouse .

You will find pilgrim stamps at Bremanger Church and the pilgrim hostel Ulvesund Lighthouse.

From Måløy bus terminal you take a bus the first part to Totland church. Here you walk for about 30 minutes along the road to Rimstad, where there is a marked path for Sunnivaleia along the old pilgrim road and the post road over Berstaddalen towards Selje. The trip is about 18 km and takes around 7 hours. Please note that there is no mobile phone coverage on parts of the road. Part of the year the path can be wet, and you must expect to cross several streams. It may be an advantage to have walking poles. You can read a more detailed description here . From Berstad it is about 5.6 km to Selje. You can walk along the road, or arrange transport by taxi or Selje Pilgrim Center .

The Selje Pilgrim Center is located in Selje presbytery, and there is a pilgrim hostel, café and pilgrim reception. You can get stamps for both the Olavs Pass and the Sunniva Pass in Selje presbytery, which is open every day during the summer season. Contact the Pilgrim Center for appointments outside of the season.

You can also visit Selje Church, which is open every day during the summer season. You will receive a stamp for the key town of Selja Monastery both in Selje presbytery, Selje Church and at the quay in Klostervågen and Bø on Selja.

From the harbor just below Selje presbytery, a boat leaves for Selja Monastery on the small island of Selja. Arrange to store your luggage at Selje presbytery while you are on the island. The boat trip takes about 10 minutes, and you can book tickets online at Klosterbåten . The boat runs twice daily during the summer season , with a guided tour of the monastery ruins .

Out of season you can book transport with the Klosterbåten for larger groups, or you can take the local boat to Bø on the east side of the island. Check the timetables between Selje kai and Seljeøya at skyss.no . This is a booking route, so remember to book a ride the day before.

If you have a wet card , you can rent a kayak from BUA in Selje and paddle out to Bø on the east side of the island, and walk along the old monastery path the last bit.

It is also possible to get off the Monastery Boat at Bø and walk across the island to the monastery. The trip takes about 25 minutes. The path is protected, and is as old as the monastery and the holy site. Pilgrims have walked here for a thousand years.

At Selja you can visit both the monastery ruins from the early 11th century, the mighty terraced complex with the ruins of the Sunniva Church where the shrine with the relics of St. Sunniva stood, and the cave where St. Sunniva, according to legend, suffered martyrdom.

If you are here around July 8th, you can experience Seljumannamesse in the monastery ruins.

In Selje you can take a speedboat back to Florø where the tour started, or further south to Bergen. Unless you want to stay longer and explore Stadlandet, the pilgrim route over Dragseidet and the Coastal Pilgrimage Path further north.

Have a good trip!