Nyksund is a coastal village in Vesterålen

Vesterålen

Vesterålen is a district and archipelago in Nordland, Norway, just north of Lofoten.-The name:The Norse forms of the name were Vestráll and Vestrálar . The first element is vestr n west, the last element is áll m ' sound, strait'...

, northern Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 (69°N 15°2E). People have been living in Nyksund since before recorded history. Until the late 18th century, the population was scarce, but with the rise of commercial trade, Nyksund became an important centre for hundreds of fishermen coming to exploit the rich cod fisheries

Cod fisheries

Cod fisheries are fisheries for cod. Cod is the common name for fish of the genus Gadus, belonging to the family Gadidae, and this article is confined to the three species that belong to this genus: the Atlantic cod, the Pacific cod and the Greenland cod....

nearby.

As bigger vessels and road transportation rendered the port obsolete due to its shallow waters and poor road, Nyksund became an isolated outpost with a dwindling population. Finally, measures were made to shut the place down. During the 1970s, the city became a ghost town.

With the turn of the century, after 30 years of erosion, the lights are turned back on in Nyksund. New citizens are finding the old houses worthwhile. In 2003, the main obstacle to new activity in Nyksund is inadequate communications infrastructure; be it roads, wire or postal service. Modern Nyksund boasts a summer population of 30 to 40 people and about a half- dozen hardy souls remain throughout the harsh winters.

• Nyksund.no
• http://www.nyksund.org
• http://www.nyksund.com
• nyksund pictures