SS Bjoren

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SS Bjoren is a wood-fueled steamboat on Byglandsfjorden in Bygland, Setesdal, Norway. Built in 1866 at Akers Mekaniske Verksted (yard number 35), she is about 21 meters long and weighs around 26 tonnes. She originally carried up to 92 passengers and had a 14 bhp engine; after extensions in 1897 and 1914 and a new boiler, she now has a 42 bhp engine and can carry 55 passengers.

Bjoren first operated at Kilefjorden on the Otra river, but after the Setesdal Line railway opened to Byglandsfjord in 1896 she moved to Byglandsfjord and stayed there until 1957. With buses and a new road reducing the need for the steamer, she was stored, eventually sank, and fell into disrepair.

In the 1970s local people started a preservation effort, supported by the government. The boat was restored by Drammen Ship Repairs and returned to service in 1994. Today Bygland municipality owns her and Bjoren AS runs her, with help from the Friends of Bjoren. She is the world’s only wood-fueled steamboat still in regular service and serves as a floating technical museum and cultural heritage site. She sails on Sundays in July.