The
"town" on the Arctic Ocean At
the beginning of century, Nyksund fishing station was the
second largest fishing village in Vesterålen. By
the 1960s, it had become a ghost town, and later came to be
the symbol of changes in the basic struture of the coastal
fishing community in North Norway. Concurrent with the demise
of Nyksund, there was growth in the village of Myre. A number
of businesses were developed around Øksnes-Langenes Fishing
Industry, a cornerstone firm established in the mid 1950s.
Today, Myre is one of the nation`s largest fishing ports. The
building pattern in Nyksund is reminiscent of a town. The long
stretch of connected quays
reinforces this impression. The village had few resources
apart from its proximity to the fishing grounds. The soil was
unproductive, there was no fresh water supply, and the
inhabitants had no possibilities of collecting peat or wood
for fuel. Even so, a blacksmith, a baker, fish buyers, and
traders all established themselves here. During
the season, tailors, shoemakers, itinerant artists, and lay
preachers arrived. Large numbers of fishermen moved into the
numerous shanties. The fishing village was owned by the State,
so that business concessions and hire of the fishermen`s
shanties were obtained relatively cheaply. A
special characteristic of Nyksund is that the q
uays have been constructed on two levels, completed just after
the turn of the century. The q
uays were constructed in this way so that they could be used
at both high and low tide. These q
uays were primarily places of work, but they also functioned
as social meeting places both for permanent residents and
itinerants. In
the rough male atmosphere in the era of the nordlandsbåt,
there were often rows and q
uarrels. The spirits counter in the local shop was visited
regularly, a fact that often resulted in fist-fighting. A
rumour arose that the Devil disguised himself as a black dog,
to bare his teeth "in good company". Another
superstition has origin in the story of a stormy winter night
in Nyksund, when the sea crashed ashore and demolished a
shanty, sweeping with it into the wild waves a young boy. The
boy`s life could not be saved. Ever since, whenever a storm is
abrew, one can hear a mysterious, screeching cry, like that of
a wounded otter, in the old fishing village. New
fishing technology and an active policy of relocation
subsidies from the state combined to depopulate the village by
the end of the 1960s. Early
in the 1980s, a German educational sociologist conceived the
idea of using Nyksund as an international retreat centre for
young people. He was the heart and soul behind the Nyksund
project for several years. By the end of decade, there was a
direct bus connection between Berlin and this remote fishing
village. Hundreds of young people came here from Europe for
work and play. The international experiment was never fully
accepted by the locals in Øksnes, and in 1990 Norwegian
authorities took over the project. The
light, the natural surroundings, and the buildings of the
village attract photographers and painters to the area. The
village has several times been the location for film and video
productions. For example, the film "After Rubicon"
was partly filmed here in Nyksund.
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