Ekkerøy is one of the oldest fishing villages on the Varangerfjord and belongs to the municipality of Vadsø, whose capital is around 15 km away. It is a bird paradise and the suffix "øy" means that it was originally an island that offered shelter and therefore good chances of survival for the diverse bird life. Now the area is connected to the Varanger Peninsula by a narrow isthmus and migratory birds also like to winter here.
Even the drive to the bird paradise is spectacular, as you are flanked by hunting sea eagles along the road. Well-marked hiking trails start at the edge of the village and you can quickly reach the plateau from where there are fantastic views of the nesting rocks of the thirteen gulls. A tour is a few kilometers long and rewards you with sightings of a wide variety of birds. It is worth taking a break at a wooden beacon that used to be used as a navigation aid before the beacon appeared. This type of sea mark was in use in Norway from about 1830.
