# Driva

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River in Trøndelag, Norway

Driva Driva river in Sunndalen Location Country Norway Counties Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal Municipalities Oppdal Municipality, Sunndal Municipality Physical characteristics Source Dovrefjell mountains • location Drivdalen, Trøndelag • coordinates 62°17′48″N 9°34′50″E / 62.2966°N 09.58055°E / 62.2966; 09.58055 • elevation 891 metres (2,923 ft) Mouth Sunndalsfjorden • location Sunndalsøra, Møre og Romsdal • coordinates 62°40′35″N 8°32′42″E / 62.6764°N 08.54502°E / 62.6764; 08.54502 • elevation 0 metres (0 ft) Length 150 km (93 mi) Basin size 1,511 km2 (583 sq mi) Basin features River system Driva

The **Driva**[1] river runs through [Trøndelag](/source/Tr%C3%B8ndelag) and [Møre og Romsdal](/source/M%C3%B8re_og_Romsdal) [counties](/source/Counties_of_Norway) in [Norway](/source/Norway). The headwaters lie in the [Dovrefjell](/source/Dovrefjell) mountains in the south, from where it flows northward, downward through the [Drivdalen](/source/Drivdalen) valley in [Oppdal Municipality](/source/Oppdal_Municipality). When the river gets to the [village of Oppdal](/source/Oppdal_(village)), it turns westward and heads down the [Sunndalen](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sunndalen&action=edit&redlink=1) valley to the [Sunndalsfjorden](/source/Sunndalsfjorden) at the village of [Sunndalsøra](/source/Sunndals%C3%B8ra) in [Sunndal Municipality](/source/Sunndal_Municipality). Some of the other villages along the river include [Grøa](/source/Gr%C3%B8a), [Hoelsand](/source/Hoelsand), [Lønset](/source/L%C3%B8nset), and [Vognillan](/source/Vognillan).[2] The [Norwegian National Road 70](/source/Norwegian_National_Road_70) follows the river for most of its course.[3]

[Vinnufossen](/source/Vinnufossen) (waterfall); the Vinnu river is a tributary to Driva.

Many of the tributaries on the west side of the Oppdal valley are dry since the waters in [reservoirs](/source/Reservoir_(water)) formed from the many mountain lakes in that region flow in pipes through the mountain to the Driva [hydroelectric](/source/Hydroelectric) power station at Fale in [Sunndal Municipality](/source/Sunndal_Municipality). The largest lake in the reservoir system is [Gjevillvatnet](/source/Gjevillvatnet) which is about 20 kilometres (12 mi) long and about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) wide.

## History

Before the last ice age, the river Driva drained northwards from Oppdal and joined the [Orkla](/source/Orkla_(river)) river. The uppermost part of the river in the Sunndalen valley which included the tributaries from the lake [Gjevilvatnet](/source/Gjevilvatnet), [Dindalen](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dindalen&action=edit&redlink=1), and [Storlidalen](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Storlidalen&action=edit&redlink=1) then drained eastwards to Oppdal and joined the older Driva there. The ice age changed the course of the Driva and today, these three tributaries still flow eastwards until they meet the (now) westward-flowing Driva.

Pilgrims followed the Driva on their way to the [St. Olav](/source/Olaf_II_of_Norway) [shrine](/source/Nidaros_Cathedral) in [Trondheim](/source/Trondheim) during the [Middle Ages](/source/Middle_Ages). As a result of the heavy stream of pilgrims who followed the [Pilgrim's Route](/source/Pilgrim's_Route) prior to the [Reformation](/source/Protestant_Reformation), king [Øystein](/source/Eystein_I_of_Norway) erected mountain stations where the pilgrims could find food and shelter. [Kongsvoll](/source/Kongsvoll), located along the Driva River in the upper [Drivdalen](/source/Drivdalen) valley, was one of these stations, another was [Drivstua](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Drivstua&action=edit&redlink=1) ([no](https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drivstua_Fjeldstue)).[4]

## Angling

The river runs slowly the last kilometer to the fjord

The Driva was formerly an excellent [salmon](/source/Salmon) river, but the [parasite](/source/Parasite) [Gyrodactylus salaris](/source/Gyrodactylus_salaris) has decimated the salmon stock. It is an excellent [sea trout](/source/Sea_trout) river, usually ranked number 1 or 2 in all of Norway, by total catch. Salmon and sea trout migrate up to [Mågålaupet](/source/M%C3%A5g%C3%A5laupet) (approximately 80 kilometres or 50 miles) and at optimal water discharge probably even further. Especially for sea trout this is an unusually long migration, although the majority of trout in Driva do not wander so far.

The only tributary with a run of [anadromous fish](/source/Anadromous_fish) is the Grøvu, a river that enters from the south/west soon after Driva has reached the Sunndalen valley. Grøvu is also Driva's biggest tributary, and well known for the "Åmotan", a part of the Grøvu valley where 5 rivers meet, 3 of them coming down dramatic waterfalls. Grøvu is also world-famous for extreme kayaking or [river rafting](/source/Rafting).

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["Informasjon om stadnamn"](https://stadnamn.kartverket.no/fakta/799421). *Norgeskart* (in Norwegian). [Kartverket](/source/Norwegian_Mapping_Authority). Retrieved 2025-01-12.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Driva"](https://web.archive.org/web/20160303223354/http://www.yr.no/place/Norway/M%C3%B8re_og_Romsdal/Sunndal/Driva~194692/) (in Norwegian). [yr.no](/source/Yr.no). Archived from [the original](http://www.yr.no/place/Norway/M%C3%B8re_og_Romsdal/Sunndal/Driva~194692/) on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2010-12-05.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-snl_3-0)** Askheim, Svein, ed. (2017-12-19). ["Driva"](https://snl.no/Driva). *[Store norske leksikon](/source/Store_norske_leksikon)* (in Norwegian). [Kunnskapsforlaget](/source/Kunnskapsforlaget). Retrieved 2018-01-23.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Welle-Strand, Erling (1996). *Adventure Roads in Norway*. Nortrabooks. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-82-90103-71-7](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-82-90103-71-7).

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Driva](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driva) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driva?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.