Rombaksbotn
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Right here, you can probably find Norway’s shortest and strangest town history. For five years there was a bustling community here in Rombaksbotn made up of the construction workers who were building the Ofoten line. The town could be found at the bottom of the fjord below us, and yes you heard correctly …found! The town disappeared just as quickly as it had sprung up once the construction of the railway was complete. There was a separate quay here which distributed supplies to both the Norwegian and Swedish railways. Creating a proper Swedish–Norwegian environment and it is this that has contributed to the somewhat special Narvik dialect. During the hectic construction period there were several thousand Rallar working in this area in the mountains. Every weekend the city was invaded when they all came down from the mountain to let off steam. Today, there are only memories that are left but the town is still a popular start and end point for hikes along the Rallar road. The town also did not manage to avoid the dramatic acts of war. On the 13th April 1940 three German destroyers ran aground and sank. The crew escaped up the steep mountainside on the north and continued further on to the Norwegian army camp in Bjerkvik where they acquired Norwegian uniforms and weapons. They became part of the 2600 strong German force under the command of General Dietl who became known as the ‘Mountain Navy’. They would later come into battle against Norwegian and Allied forces.