Vinstra

Vinstra is the name of both a village and a river in Gudbrandsdalen. The village lies in Nord-Fron municipality in Oppland County, Norway. The administrative centre of Nord-Fron, the population is 2449. [http://www.ssb.no/beftett/tab-2005-06-03-01.html] The village has rail connections via the Dovre railroad and has a high school. Highway E6 goes through the village of Vinstra.

The Vinstra River comes from the west and flows into Gudbrandsdalslågen at the village of Vinstra.

Vinstra and Peer Gynt

Peder Olsen Hågå from Vinstra was the model for the main character in Henrik Ibsen’s dramatic poem “Peer Gynt” from 1867. In Sødorp’s old cemetery stands a monument to Peer Gynt, and each year since 1967 the Peer Gynt rally has been held on the Peer Gynt farm, Hågå. The farm consists of 15 old buildings, and the rally includes, among other things, an open-air performance of the play. In addition, from Vinstra begins the “Peer Gynt Way” through Gålå to Lillehammer and “Peer Gynt’s Seter Way” via Rondablikk to Kvam.