Malselvfossen

Malselvfossen is not tall, dropping about twenty metres, but it runs for six hundred metres of broken cascade across the width of a large river, and in 1991 it was voted Norway's national waterfall. The Malselva is a serious salmon river, and to help fish past the fall a ladder was cut into the rock in the nineteenth century and later extended; at around two hundred metres it is one of the longest in Norway, and salmon can be watched making their way up it in summer. A viewing area, paths and a small campsite sit beside the fall. The river is also known for a local specialty, salmon fished from small boats using traditional methods on the pools below.

What you actually see

• The long cascade - six hundred metres of broken water across the river.
• The salmon ladder - a rock-cut fish pass around two hundred metres long.
• The leaping fish - salmon working upstream through summer.
• The viewing paths - walkways and platforms beside the water.

When to go

June to August, when the salmon are running and the facilities are open; flow is highest in early summer with the melt. The fish are most active in the evenings.

Honest expectations

The fall is broad rather than high, so it does not photograph dramatically. Rocks near the water are wet and slippery. Salmon sightings depend on the run and the year, and the fishing season is regulated with licences required.

Nearby

Bardufoss lies north; Ovre Dividal National Park and the Malselv valley run inland to the south.