the gateway to the land of waterfalls
In the Viking Age, Sande was strategically located by the Gaularvassdraget, where travel took place both along
the water and through the valley. Archaeological findings show that the area was settled very early, pointing to
Sande as an important place to stop and establish a home. The river and lakes were key routes of transportation,
and the village became a natural meeting place for travelers between the fjord and the mountains.
During the Middle Ages, this role continued. The church became a gathering point, while the routes through the
valley connected the surrounding communities. Travelers, merchants, and local farmers met here, and the
landscape around Sande was marked by activity and movement.
In the 19th century, Sande became even more clearly a hub within Gaular. With new roads, a school, a municipal
center, coaching stations, and increased trade, the village became an important stop for those traveling through
the region. Traffic moved both east–west through the valley and north–south toward the fjord.
Today, Sande is centrally located in Sunnfjord, where roads still intersect and connect different parts of the
region. From old routes along the river to modern transport networks, Sande has long been a place where people
pass through, meet, and continue their journey.
The farm Sanda sits centrally in Sande, between fjord and mountain, with roots reaching back to the earliest
times. The name can be traced to the Migration Period before the Viking Age, indicating very old settlement.
People have lived from the land, forest and river here for centuries, and archaeological finds from the Iron Age
show the area was in use long before the first written records mention the farm.
Story coming soon.
Long before the church was built and before the name Sande was recorded, people made a home here. Archaeological
traces from the Late Iron Age — burial mounds and cooking pits — tell of people who viewed the Gaula valley as a
place to live, cultivate and thrive. Monuments still stand between the parsonage, school and hotel from more
recent times as quiet witnesses to those early settlers.
Story coming soon.
In the 19th and 20th centuries old Sande became a village centre with shops, a bakery, café, municipal office,
post office and bus station. Bridges and roads brought nearby farms closer together and life in the street was
shaped by trade and meetings between people. For many, Sande was the place where roads met — where people
shopped, heard news and took part in small and large community events.
Story coming soon.