Guided tours in Tananger

Tananger, with its special and unique history dating back to the beginning of the 17th century, is a favourite area for guided walks. The idyllic settlement, the historic houses and all the exciting events that have taken place here make for a special experience.

I have several unique themes and trails that can provide different and educational experiences. As the first and largest town centre in Sola, it was also here that central functions for administration and communication were first established, such as the courthouse, customs station, telephone exchange, pilot and pilot station, bus company, post office, shops, bakeries, inns, hotels and several fish reception and salt works. All of these have their own very special and exciting history.

The historic Tananger

A walk through Tananger's oldest buildings. We will hear about events related to Tananger, specific buildings and people. The tour can start from Den gamla vakthyttå on Risberhaugen, or from Hab'n by the statue of the girls on Flatholmen and go all the way to Kystkultursamlingen, or the other way round. History dating back to long before the first permanent settlements in Tananger, up to the advent of oil, interspersed with lots of events and episodes make the tour an engaging and exciting experience.

Stone Age settlements, possible berths for Viking ships, events in the Middle Ages, activities and events during the Great Northern War, the Napoleonic Wars and the First and Second World Wars are spiced up with daily life and special events.

The maritime Tananger

Tananger is based on seafaring and fishing. That's why there are so many exciting events associated with pilots, fishing and, not least, strandings and shipwrecks. The history of the pilots is closely linked to Tananger's history. The pilot officer has been here since the pilot service was organised, and the last three of them lived in Monsa House, at the bottom of Hab'n. Losaloftet, Oldermannsbakken and losutkikken are traces of this activity. So are the old guard hut and, not least, the Losen statue that was erected on Risberhaugen by Tanangers Minne in 2000. Countless strandings and shipwrecks have occurred both in the archipelago off Sola, but also inside Tananger harbour itself. The fishing of lobster, herring and other fish has also given rise to plenty of exciting and sometimes tragic stories.

Tananger at war

A tour focussed on the various wars that the residents of Tananger have experienced over the centuries. The tour starts at the old guard hut at Risberhaugen and goes via Habn out to Melingsholmen. We start with the Great Nordic War and the tragic end of a Swedish privateer ship at Flatholmen, via the Napoleonic Wars when several small gunboats were stationed in Tananger, along with the associated signalling station. During the First World War, several different warships were stationed here as neutrality guards. The Second World War is probably the most dramatic part of Tananger's history with a number of exciting events, including Sjøleik, which escaped from the harbour in 1941 to Scotland with 18 men and one woman on board.

Tananger's oldest buildings

We take a walk around the harbour in Tananger and look at the oldest houses and special buildings. Everything from the Monsa House, which was built in the early 18th century, to private homes, commercial buildings and seaside houses, to the bus garage from 1949 will be discussed.

Rott, the island that time forgot

Rott is actually two islands located just outside Tananger. A half-hour boat trip brings us out to the best natural harbour on Jæren. The island has a colourful history dating back to the Stone Age. Rott has long been a popular spot, both because of its idyllic surroundings, but mostly because of its proximity to various important natural resources. The location in the archipelago was ideal for pilots, fishermen and hunters. There was good agricultural land, proximity to excellent fishing grounds for herring, other fish and the attractive lobster, as well as opportunities for catching birds and seals. Over the years, many boats have been wrecked in the dangerous waters around Rott, which could generate a lot of income. On our walk through Rott's history, we start down in Stra'en and walk on gravel roads surrounded by idyllic stone fences. The walk takes us past the old schoolhouse, beautiful little white houses with manicured gardens, the lodge lookout, the power house and modern farms. We'll look at settlements, burial mounds and other ancient monuments from the Stone Age, Bronze Age, Iron Age and Viking Age. Stories from the end of the Viking Age with an exciting and bloody battle, through the Middle Ages and various wars, dramatic shipwrecks, fishing and hunting make the walk all too short.
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Guided tours by boat

With the help of Hummeren's boat Doffen, or hired boats, we can explore the archipelago outside Tananger. There are several different themes that can be covered, either as a pure guided tour, or combined with a fishing trip, or trip to Rott.

Strandings and shipwrecks in the archipelago

Since 1555, there have been well over 200 shipwrecks in the archipelago off Tananger. The vast majority of these boats were
remaining, while some were rescued. There are some incredibly exciting and dramatic stories to be told about these events. There are several "paths" we can take to cover the most exciting of these shipwrecks.
Some examples are:
- The shipwreck of Klokkeskjær in 1555, with the cathedral bells from Stavanger.
- Nieroth at Flatholmen 1713, Swedish privateer ship.
- The Victoria shipwreck at Kolnesholmene in 1903. The most tragic.
- Bananbåten, a German ship loaded with bananas ran aground in 1939.
- The Apple Boat, a ship loaded with apples that was sunk by aircraft in 1944.

World War II in the archipelago

During the Second World War, the archipelago off Sola was the scene of a number of dramatic events such as aerial combat and air raids, as well as several sinkings of torpedoes, mines and aircraft. In addition, the Germans had a large fort at Vigdel, Sola airport and observation posts on boats Håstein and Tjør. In 1941, the skiff Sjøleik travelled to England from Tananger. Taken together, this is a complete and exciting story about the war in Sola, where you can easily be where it happened.
happened or at least have a good overview of the location.

Lot history

When boats needed help navigating to a safe harbour, or boats were in distress, it was the pilots who had to go out, whatever the weather and conditions. Rott and Tananger have had some of the best and most talked about pilots in Norway. Therefore, there is hardly a place in the archipelago that cannot be linked to pilot history.

Safari in the archipelago

We take a trip past Rott and I tell you about what used to be Norway's southernmost bird sanctuary. During the autumn and spring migration, rare birds are still discovered out here. The tour continues to Tjør where we view the bird mountain out here, with its thousands of inhabitants; cormorant, auk, guillemot, kittiwake, redshank and the sea parrot grove, in addition to a number of gulls. If we're lucky, we'll also be able to see other birds such as gannets, white-tailed eagles, peregrine falcons, petrels and auks. In addition to this, we can guarantee close contact with both sharks and harbour seals. A bustling life that most people have never seen before.

Prices: Guided tour in Tananger 3500,- and guided tour in boat 4000,-.