Magma UNESCO Global Geopark

The Norwegian borders are open from 15 July to certain countries in Europe. Read more: Coronavirus and travelling to Norway. 

Season: All year. In Magma UNESCO Global Geopark, you will experience geology, cultural history and extraordinary nature. The geology in Sokndal, Eigersund, Bjerkreim and Lund is special, and has a characteristic landscape. Geological processes taking place 935 – 920 millions of years ago have left behind an astonishing geological heritage not to be found elsewhere. The Geopark is member of the European network; European Geoparks Network and is the second geopark in Scandinavia. In Magma UNESCO Global Geopark, you can experience activities related to recreation, geology, cultural history and family activities. The park stretches from Lund, Eigersund, Sokndal to Flekkefjord, and covers an area of 2,320 km2. The history of the park started some 1,5 billion years ago, when red, hot magma and sky high mountains characterised the area. Through millions of years, the glaciers shaped the characteristic landscape that you see here today. In other words, Magma UNESCO Global Geopark is a window into the core of the earth. 

What is Magma UNESCO Global Geopark?  
Created by the past, experienced today, maintained for the future. A geopark is a geologically important area with a strategy for sustainable development. To receive the status as a geopark, the area needs to show how the geological preconditions have affected biological variety, agriculture, settlements, industrial growth, communications and culture in this region. European Geopark Network and UNESCO must approve an area for the geopark status. An area that is approved as a European Geopark will automatically be included in UNESCO’s Global Network of Geoparks. The park was member of the Global network in 2014, and has scientifically documented that the geology in Magma is of European significance. The most special feature in Magma UNESCO Global Geopark is the characteristic moon landscape consisting of the rock anorthosite. This landscape has affected the culture and the way of life for centuries. You actually need to travel all the way to the moon to find similar geology. Geologists have visited the area for more than 100 years, and there has been productions of more than 350 scientific geological excavations from here. Geological resources such as iron ores have been, and still are an important economic factor to this area. You can see the connection between variations in the geological foundation and important parts of the development of society. Having the geology as a starting point, you can learn much about settlements, agriculture, industry and culture.

Trollpikken is a phenomenon created by the ice during the last ice age that ended about 10,000 years ago. The formation is located in a beautiful cultural landscape and the rock in the area is called anorthosite. Anorthosite is a deep rock species formed by magma (melted stone) deep below a huge mountain range approximately 1 billion years ago. Long before we knew that anorthosite is the same rock species as the one on the surface of the moon, the area here was called a lunar landscape because it had sparse vegetation and was little fertile. The area is characterised by the fact that it was formed by moving ice and you can find several marks showing the progress of it. Some distinctive marks are rock blocks that have been moved around by ice and are now located all over the landscape.

Trollpikken is also one of these moved anorthosite blocks, but it has moved very little and never came out of place; instead, it got stuck, fell out and was left in its position once the ice melted. Read more and find out how to go there.

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