Lighthouses along Lake Tinn

The lanterns along Lake Tinn lit the way for transport on the Rjukan Railway. The historic lighthouses are still standing today, and can be experienced all year round. Part of exciting excursions both along the shores of Lake Tinn and on the water itself.

Hydro’s historic transportation of fertilisers and raw materials between Rjukan and the sea consisted of several stages. A 30-kilometre train journey was one of them. Lights along the quayside were crucial to operating a railway across the water on a narrow lake in Telemark.

The lighthouses are also part of the Rjukan-Notodden Industrial Heritage Site. The many traces of the railway across Lake Tinn were formally inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List of the World’s Inalienable Cultural Heritage on 5 July 2015, together with the power plants, industry and factory towns of Rjukan and Notodden. There are ten lighthouses that are still standing in their original locations. The eleventh lantern was moved in connection with the construction of the Tinnsjøveien road. The planning and implementation of repair work on the lanterns is underway.

Experience Lake Tinn all year round

The area around Lake Tinn can be experienced all year round, and the same applies to the historic lighthouses. Of course it is easiest to reach them from the water! Some places are more inaccessible and steeper than others. It’s not difficult to spot the lanterns, and the museum has cleared the surrounding vegetation in recent years.

The lighthouses from Tinnoset to Mæl are found at: Tinnoset, Brennemo, Raua, Fanteneset, Stangodden, Kvartsbruddet, Langøya, Ormsodden, Urdalsodden and Håkanes. Skurvodden’s lantern has been relocated to the marina at Mæl. There are also two floating spar buoys for marking shallow waters, at Kleivagrunna and at Fanteneset.