Meldal
Meldal is situated in the middle of the long valley called Orkladalføret between Orkdal and Rennebu. It is a fertile farming area and the river Orkla, one of the country's best salmon rivers, runs through the valley.
In addition to fishing, you can experience many different types of culture. For example, take a trip on the museum railway, walk the Pilgrim Trail (Pilegrimsleden), visit the protected mountain summer farm Valåskaret or enjoy the varied countryside. The Old Mine; guided
tours, concert hall, restaurant. The Museum Center; Mining and Railway Museum for Løkken Verk.
Name
The Old Norse form of the name was Meðaldalr. The first element is meðal which means "middle" and the last element is dalr which means "valley" or "dale". The municipality is named this probably because it is located in the middle of the Orkdalen valley.
Thamshavnbanen Railway:
the oldest AC-powered railway in the world, 100 years in 2008. Restaurant car.
Vålåskaret – a cluster of summer pasture farm buildings beside the road between Rindal and Meldal. Extraordinarily beautiful location with a fantastic view of the mountains.
Parts of the mighty mountain range of Trollheimen can be enjoyed from the car. At Resvatnet, a summer pasture farm still is intact. Good facilities for outdoor swimming by Resvatnes p-place. In the mood for a small hike? Walk to the summer pasture farm. Park by the road block on the road to Jøldalshytta and walk ca. 30 min. You may continue to Jøldals - hytta (ca 4 – 5 hrs). On the old road to Meldal you can see several traditional farms.
THE OLD MINE
The municipality is most renowned for its mining activities at Løkken Verk, being the birthplace of the Orkla mining company, now Orkla group. The Old Mine is called "Cathedral of Work and Toil". You can hardly find a more honourable name of what used to be the old miners' place for work from the middle of the 17th century until a couple of centuries later. To keep himself and his family alive, the miner would here fight a daily battle against the resistant ore. The ore was extracted by the firesetting method. Big fires were lit alongside the rocks to make them crack. After the flames died and the smoke was ventilated, the miner went to work with his pick, breaking loose stones where the rocks had cracked. In this way the mine slowely but surely grew.
Meldal bygdemuseum (museum village)
Meldal bygdemuseum is an open-air museum with approximately 20 well-preserved wooden houses with detailed interiors. Amongst other things there is a "trønderlån" - a main building in the style of the Trondheim area, a cotter's farm from 1920, a hut with an open fireplace and a mountain farmhouse. The museum is situated in an idyllic setting with a pretty view over the village and surrounding mountains. Large parts of the museum's collection of artifacts originate from Eilert Støren's private collection. He was medical officer of health from 1889-1929 and one of the open-air museum's pioneers.
ORKLA Industrial museum preserves industrial and technical pieces of historical interest in the districts of Orkdal and Meldal, developing these into objects of attraction, and it also presents the local history of industry and labour in an informative, exciting manner.
Contact Orkla Industrial Museum / Orkla Industrimuseum
Torfinn Bjørnaas plass 2, N-7332 Løkken Verk
Open: 01.05.–31.08. Main Seaseon with ordinary opening hours. Groups on request all year. The Museum Center is open all year at working days.
Guide: N, GB, D
Signpost: N, GB, D
Situated: Løkken Verk, 65 km from Trondheim
Tel: (+47) 72 49 91 00 Fax.: (+47) 72 49 91 01
E-mail: post@oi.no
Website: www.oi.no
Opening times:
Open June, July, August (except Monday), 12-16. The museum receives groups by reservation all year round. It is also possible to order rømmegrøt (sour-cream porridge), coffee and cakes. The main building, Solberglåna, can be hired for meetings and parties.
Tel.: 72 49 75 20. Meldal Kommune, tel.: 72 49 51 00. www.meldal.kommune.no
