Late June is when the young eider ducks first go swimming with their mums. I had hoped to see some moving around between the small islands and skerries that characterize the Vegaøyan landscape known as 'Strandflat'. But it was not to be, and neither did I see any Stone Age graves. I may have spotted an Eider house from a distance on one of the islands (it may just have been a pile of wood as well), and I did pass a few interesting older farmhouses on my 9km walk up from Rørøy ferry dock to the Vega World Heritage Center. It is mostly the landscape though that is memorable and the ferry ride alone makes a trip worthwhile.

The narrative of the eider down harvesting tradition is a compelling story, but this is not a great WHS. Both regarding (1) composition and (2) presentation:

1. As Nan already hinted at in his review, the core zone and the OUV don’t match – at least not on the main island of Vega (the other islands are practically off-limits, they seem “better” but how are we to know). The core zone on Vega island comprises everywhere where no people live and where there are no roads. The OUV however is purely cultural, about the traces people left behind such as old dwellings, eider houses. The photos in the nomination dossier mostly are either of natural features or of cultural elements in the buffer zone.
2. The island receives 40,000 visitors a year, but there isn’t a lot organised to make it interesting (they could look for inspiration at Red Bay which is as remote and intangible). The WH Center is a large building in a great spot and must have cost quite some money, but its contents aren’t worth the entrance fee. Improvements could be made by adding a WHS bike or hiking trail or offering scheduled boat cruises around the islands. You now only can visit a very expensive private eider farm on Lanan (costing over 600 EUR for the transfer alone). 

Practicalities

I used the same approach as Nan, but it seems that transport options have worsened since he went there in 2020. Look at the ferry schedule before booking a flight! The (pedestrian) ferry between Brønnøysund and Rørøy dock on Vega Island now is very inconvenient for visits on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. The more pleasant 8.30 and 10.20 departures are only available on Tuesday and Friday. Also, the tourist office isn’t so flexible anymore about rental bike bookings: I could only get one between their opening hours of 9-16, which of course didn’t match with the ferry schedule on the day I visited (Wednesday). So I had to do it all on foot (I walked over 20 km), which would have been dreadful if it had been raining. There is a taxi service on the island, which could be chartered for those less mobile. Buses only run once or twice a day.