Altaelva

Altaelva is the third-longest river in Norway's Troms og Finnmark county. The river starts in the mountains and lakes of Kautokeino Municipality, close to the border with Troms og Finnmark county and Finland, just south of Reisa National Park.

The 240-kilometer-long river then flows north into Alta Municipality, where it empties into the Altafjorden in the town of Alta. On its way from the high Finnmarksvidda plateau to the sea, the river carved out Sautso, one of Europe's largest canyons. Along the river are the villages of Kautokeino and Masi, as well as the town of Alta.

The river was the site of the Alta controversy concerning the construction of a hydroelectric power plant in the 1970s and 1980s. The Alta power station was eventually built in 1987, creating the river's lake Virdnejávri.

The river is one of Norway's best salmon rivers, known for its large-sized salmon. Salmon weighing up to 33 kilograms (73 lb) were caught in the past, and fish weighing up to 24 kilograms (53 lb) are still caught today. On the river in 2011, 1,082 salmon (7 kilograms (15 pound) or larger) were caught.

Length: 240 km (150 mi)