The Pine Forest, the Sash Saw and the Scots Trade

Herand- Tveiti sawmill

Tveiti sawmill in Herand is probably the last water-powered sash-saw in the country that has been in regular operation up to our time. There has been a sash-saw here since the 1700s, and on the other side of the river there are remains of an even older saw.

Holmefjord

Even though we know of several hundred burial places from the Stone Age in Hordaland, we do not often hit on the Stone Age Man himself. But there are a few.

Halne

At Halnefjorden, a few hundred metres east of Halne mountain lodge, lie the remains of two stone sheds – Halnelægeret. Some generations ago the cattle drovers stopped here in the summer; they were the cowboys of their time. But Halnelægeret already had a long history before the cattle drovers came.

Hopland

The farmhouses at holding No. 15 at Hopland are built together to form a long, continuous building, with dwelling house, hayshed and cowshed built in one row. There have been many such joined structures in the coastal communities, but today there are few remaining. If we travel to the other side of the North Sea, to the Faeroes, Shetland and the Orkney Islands, we find corresponding features in the older building traditions. We find ourselves in a large North Atlantic cultural area.

Mollandseid

In Mollandsvågen, close by the river that runs from Mollandsvatnet (lake) into the fjord, are two water-powered circular saws and a mill. This small industrial centre has belonged to the farms Molland, Reknes and Duesund, which together own the rights to the waterfall

Stølsheimen

The large mountain area between Modalen, the Voss communities and Sogn is one of the finest mountain pasture areas in West Norway. In older times this area was called Steinslandsheimen, in our times it has acquired the name Stølsheimen. Power development and protection interests have been opposed here. The core area of Stølsheimen has now been protected as a landscape protection area, while some of the oldest mountain farms have been flooded. A register in the 1970s comprised almost 40 mountain farm settlements in the central area of Stølsheimen, belonging to Modalen, Høyanger and Vik municipalities.

Fosnstraumen

At the southern end of the bridge between Radøy and Fosnøy archaeologists found an unusual Stone Age settlement. There was a thick “cultural layer” here with the remains of the waste dumps of a hunting people. The place was called Kotedalen. Here they came, one group after the other, and settled for some weeks, some months, or maybe years before they went on, leaving the settlement deserted. Time after time it happened. At least 16 settlement phases have been identified, stretching over 5,500 years.

Grindheim church

The first church at Grindheim was a stave church with a free-standing steeple. The church was first mentioned in 1326, but was probably built long before this time.

Hystad- burial mounds

The biggest collection of prehistoric burial relics in Stord is to be found in Hystadmarka. There are still 16 burial mounds and two stone rings visible here; finds that span from the Bronze Age to the Viking Age in time.