An old map of the area shows how it looked before the bridges to Valsøya were built. Hestholmen is a separate island and the fjord between Valsøya and the islet was a favourite fishing spot for local fishermen.

1957 - 1970

My father and mother took over the farm in 1957 and farmed it up to 2003. He cut down the forrest around the farm in the 60-70s with with the help of Jostein Dyrset and Tadek Hytura, good assistants with a excavator and labor.

He worked in milk production for most of the time as a farmer and there was a lot of tough financial times because of was difficult farming without a bridge or a ferry.

The delivery of animals to the slaughterhouse took a very long time. We had to transport the animals down to the dock and wait for the ferry that went to Henset Arasvik at the end of the day making the whole process very long and very difficult.

At Valsøya in the 70-80s, there were 4 farms in operation with mainly milk production and a small farm with some sheep.

1960 - 1980

There were 7-8 children who grew up at Valsøya when I was little and we got strong in life that has characterised us since. We have become independent, solution-oriented and adaptable.

When we grew up on Valsøya, the only means of access to the mainland was by boat to reach school or the shops as there was no bridges like today. The school boat drove us to Otnes every day and picked us up after the end of the day. If we wanted to join in any sporting activities or visit friends we had to use a rowboat or motorboat from Otnes and then we had to walk or ride a bike from there onwards.

One day Kristin and I were on our way home from music practice where we rowed from Hestnessletta. It was winter and the ice was settled on Valsøybotn Fjord. But Lars Botten had to have open water to safely drive his boat. This evening, the rain came to full speed in the fjord and with the incoming tide we heard the ice hitting the boat like crazy and making a horrible sound. We just got to Lamholmen and tied the boat safely to the shore. From there we ran home and jumped into a hot bath feeling safe and warm again.

My father had a wooden boat with a small 4hp motor that was not connected properly to the boat. Once we managed to get the engine started my sister Kristin held the engine down, and I drove the boat .From this point forward it became very short and much easier for us to get to Otnes.

1980 - 2017

After many years of struggle, the first bridge came to Valsøya in 1986, and in 1994 the big bridge was built and we received all the traffic between the surrounding towns and Trondheim. The National Road Administration established the road and bridge over to Valsøya and gave us the opportunity to establish business activities on Valsøya.

There was a lot of talk around town about what the new area would be used for. Several were interested and many had plans.

As the bridges were built it became clear that the area where Valsøya is today belonged to Olav Strand, my father. We all wondered what we were going to use the area for and my father was unsure and not able to make a decision.  He wondered how nice it would be to have a proper flat under the steep hill, where we often wandered with off-road wagons when harvesting.

The National Road Administration had made a great new picnic area and we saw that there were a lot of new people coming there and stopping on their travels. We thought, could we use this for something in tourism?

Today

Today Valsøya has expanded to be the centre of the Valsøya region complete with apartments, pod cabins, camping spots, boat marina, large restaurant and bar, island with large glamping tent for functions, eco tours, functions, annual music festival and the latest addition a climbing park by Høyt & Lavt.  Valsøya has been working with Snøhetta Architects to redesign the entire park to provide the best possible experience for all its guests.  Magny's is more passionate today about Valsøya than ever before and has many big plans for the future.