Holmedal: Knife-making, church history and mountain scenery

In Holmedal, Helle’s knife production, the history of Holmedal Church and hiking destinations such as Nykshytta and Moldura sit side by side. These different themes can help you decide whether the village fits the focus of your trip: here, industrial history and ecclesiastical heritage meet a day cabin and a peak in the local mountains.

Helle and knife production

Helle’s production, warehousing, marketing and sales departments are located in an old brick factory by the fjord in the village of Holmedal. The factory shop can be visited Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 15:00. Check whether visits are possible and confirm opening hours before travelling.

For groups of 10 people, Helle offers a guided tour of the production facilities by prior arrangement. The tour shows how a Helle knife is made from start to finish. The factory shop and the tour are two different ways to visit: the tour offers insight into the manufacturing process, but requires advance booking.

Holmedal Church and local history

Holmedal Church is a wooden long church in the village of Holmedal, in the municipality of Askvoll. It was designed by Eilert Christian Brodtkorp Christie and consecrated by Bishop Peder Hersleb Graah Birkeland on 24 November 1868. Its design, architecture and consecration date place the church building within a specific local history.

The organ and the memorial stone also tell of different periods. The organ dates from 1881 and has 11 stops; in 1919, it was brought to Holmedal from Sandviken Church in Bergen. A memorial stone to six men from the Holmedal parish who died in the Second World War of 1939–1945 was unveiled by the church on 29 August 1947. Together, the building’s history, the organ’s later journey and the remembrance of the six men form part of the same local story.

Another historical landmark is the standing stone at the Bakke farm. It stands beside two burial mounds by the sea, adding a feature of the coastal landscape to the church’s history.

Nykshytta and Moldura

Nykshytta is located by Nyksvatnet in Holmedal and is an accessible day cabin for hikers. There, you can eat a meal you have brought with you, warm up and browse books. The route to the cabin is about 2 kilometres long and takes approximately 45 minutes at a normal walking pace. These approximate figures help you estimate how long the walk to the cabin will take.

The turn-off for the Moldura trail is 100 metres from Nykshytta. Moldura is the highest peak in Holmedal. From the summit, the described view stretches across the mountain scenery from Jostedalsbreen to the North Sea; visibility depends on conditions. The information about the route to the cabin and the turn-off answers different planning questions: both an approximate distance and a walking time are given for the cabin route, while the turn-off is located by its distance from Nykshytta.

Discover more destinations: Bulandet, Askvoll, Kvammen, Værlandet, Atløy, Stongfjorden, Korssund.

Go to the main travel overview: Askvoll.