Trespassing

One of the hardest things I’ve had to get used to in Norway is their “right to roam” law.  There is no such thing as “no trespassing”– all their land is open for anyone to traverse over, as long as no harm is done in the process.  Norway doesn’t have lawsuits like America does, so this works fine for them.

All shoreline is also open to absolutely everyone, and it’s illegal to put up a fence or other barrier to keep anyone from accessing it.  If a person builds a house two feet from the water, it’s perfectly legal for someone to stand in front of that house and go fishing, or even cozy up to their porch and have a picnic, if they want. 

Norwegians aren’t rude or inconsiderate, so I’m sure not many would impose on private property so much when the homeowners were present, but when they aren’t there – it’s a different story.

One time we were on a long road trip with some cousins and we stopped in a very quaint little fishing village for lunch.  There were no convenient spots in which to have a picnic because of the rocky shore, so the cousins just walked around until they spotted a nice house where no one seemed to be home.  They knocked, just to be sure, then took up residence on their back deck overlooking the harbor.  Both Kory and I gasped at such a daring move, as we sheepishly sat down on someone else’s picnic table, but apparently, it’s not that uncommon of an occurrence. 

When we’ve been up hiking in the mountains and have taken new trails back down, we often end up behind someone’s house.  My instincts are to go back up the trail and find another way out, but Norwegians just tromp on through the yard to get to the street out front.  It just seems so wrong. 

One time we couldn’t find the beginning of a trail to a popular destination we wanted to see, so we stopped to ask a local farmer where it might be.  He pointed in the direction and then led us to and through his barn and on in through the goat pen and up a steep hillside.  And that, honestly, is the way everyone must go.    

The only law in Norway protecting private property that I’m aware of, has something to do with not setting up a tent and camping overnight within about 35 feet of a building, but otherwise, camping for a night is allowed just about everywhere, even in someone’s goat pen.  And if you slip and hurt yourself on a pile of goat droppings, it’s your own darn fault, not theirs.