Vickleby Alvar
Classic orchid area You can really experience the splendour of Öland’s orchids on Vickleby Alvar in May. And the strange Resmo Zone is located a few kilometres out on Vickleby Alvar; this is a water-bearing fracture zone which runs into Resmo spring and which provides a source of water for the whole of Mörbylånga. The …Continue Reading
Trollskogen (The enchanted forest)
Magical forest on Öland’s north-eastern cape Trollskogen (The enchanted forest) is situated at the tip of Öland’s north-eastern cape (nordöstra udde). It is an old grazed coniferous forest that truly deserves its name. It is the home of gnarled windswept pines and old oaks with wide crowns. The magical feeling is enhanced by ivy running …Continue Reading
Södviks sjömarker (shoreline wetlands)
Unique coastal meadows Some of the county’s most beautiful and most valuable coastal meadows, created by millennia of grazing, are located along the shores of Södvik bay in north eastern Öland. The area is a bird habitat of international class. The area’s character The coastline between Södvik and Östra Vässby differs markedly from the …Continue Reading
Södra Greda (Southern Greda)
Lovely wooded meadow A glimpse of paradise! The Södra Greda wooded meadow on an early summer day provides the very best a wooded meadow on Öland can offer! Early summer excursion Swallows and swifts dart around in the air and in the lush greenery of the trees the collared flycatcher sings its somewhat strident …Continue Reading
Stormaren
The deepest lake on the Alvar Stormaren is situated in a distinct dip in the bedrock and is the deepest of the alvar lakes. Stormaren is a bird sanctuary to which access is prohibited during the breeding season. Several seabird species breed here. Grebes, geese, birds of prey Little grebes and horned grebes breed …Continue Reading
Solberga Alvar
Traces of Öland’s golden age Solberga village and its well-preserved farms are located close to the southern end of the Stora Alvar. In June, Solberga Alvar shines with thousands of yellow suns when the hoary rock-rose blooms on the weathered limestone bedrock. Finds of bronze bulls and the many burial sites from the Iron Age …Continue Reading
Rönnerum-Abbantorp
The heart of the Mittland forest Rönnerum-Abbantorp is located in the heart of Mittland (Midland) forest and consists of various deciduous forests, grazed dry meadows, calcareous wet meadows and wetlands. The Rönnerum fornby (ancient village), one of Öland’s most fascinating Iron Age environments, is situated in the middle of the area. Lovely early summer hiking The …Continue Reading
Petgärde and Djurstad
Wetlands with rich birdlife The Petgärde and Djurstad marshes are a preserved part of Öland’s formerly extensive wetlands. Birds such as Montagu’s harrier, western marsh harrier, red-necked grebe, water rail, spotted crake and common snipe breed here. Areas of wetland harvesting The Petgärde and Djurstad marshes were used in former times as harvesting meadows …Continue Reading
Ottenby
Internationally well-known location for migratory birds Ottenby and the southern cape of Öland are one of Sweden’s most visited areas of nature and is the country’s most internationally renowned location for migratory birds. A large number of waders, ducks, geese and small birds rest and breed here every year and a ringing and bird migration …Continue Reading
Neptuni åkrar (Fields of Neptune)
Where sea and sky meet It was Linnaeus who, in 1741, gave the expanse of shingle beach and undulating embankments here the name Neptuni åkrar, and the landscape certainly looks like it has been shaped by the sea god himself. Tourists and locals alike flock here when viper’s-bugloss is flowering against the grey-white limestone. …Continue Reading
Lindreservatet (Linden Nature Reserve)
Meadows and blossoming linden Lindreservatet is one of Öland’s finest nature reserves. It features hardwood forests, pine forests, open pastures, limestone alvar, marshes and vegetation-rich hay meadows. There are large areas of linden in the reserve, which is a rare sight today. Valuable raiding of hardwoods Linden (lime) is a tree species that had …Continue Reading
Lilla horns löväng (Little horn’s wooded meadow)
Agricultural landscape Lilla Horns löväng is a wooded hay meadow and is one of Öland’s few remaining real meadows. Anyone who has ever visited a flowering hayfield never forgets it! The meadow is the mother of agriculture Meadows were the most important type of land in Sweden for two millennia. This is where farmers …Continue Reading
Knisa mosse (Knisa Alvar lake)
One of Öland’s few undrained wetlands Knisa mosse is one of Öland’s few un-drained wetlands. This valuable “Alvar” lake (shallow calcareous lake) survived a wave of drainage measures implemented in the late 1800s, when new farmland was created to feed a growing population. Resource since ancient times Öland’s wetlands have been used by humans …Continue Reading
Karum
Unique farming landscape Karum in central Öland is a unique agricultural landscape with traces from many different periods going back to the Iron Age. The famous and popular Noah’s ark stone ship is located on Karum’s Alvar, one of only a few such alvar areas in central Öland. Fascinating burial sites The sheep-grazed burial …Continue Reading
Jordtorpsåsen
Roam along a magnificent ridge Few places on Öland can compete with Jordtorpsåsen (The Jordtorp ridge) in terms of varied scenery offering recreational opportunities and great excursions. The mighty ridge was formed by rising ancient sea levels, which deposited water-sorted material in a beach embankment. Burial sites and hollow ways Jordtorpsåsen was very important …Continue Reading
Högenäs orde
A magnificent view Few places are as lovely as Högenäs orde. From the beacon on the ridge there is a magnificent view of the glittering Baltic Sea and a mild vanilla-like scent of blooming kidney vetch and breckland thyme wafts up from the open pastures in the early summer. It’s a place that is made …Continue Reading
Hulterstad Alvar
St. Bernard’s lilies and black-tailed godwits Hulterstad Alvar is an open and beautiful area of limestone where first hoary rock-roses bloom in June and biting stonecrop lights up the expansive gravel alvar areas later in the summer. In the western parts, there are flat rocky areas of limestone and karst fissures where the St. Bernard’s …Continue Reading
Horns kungsgård (Horn’s crown demesne)
Öland’s nature in a nutshell Horns kungsgård, which is located at the northern end of Öland, can be said to sum up much of Öland’s natural beauty and uniqueness. Most of Öland’s various habitats are represented here. Ancient monuments tell a story At Horns kungsgård, you can experience ancient history in the heart of …Continue Reading
Halltorp
Huge trees and rare beetles Halltorp Nature Reserve hosts one of northern Europe’s most valuable hardwood forests and the area has one of the country’s richest selections of species. The large old oak trees in the reserve provide habitats for our three largest beetles – the great Capricorn beetle, the stag beetle and the hermit …Continue Reading
Gynge & Möckelmossen
Alvar flora and migrating cranes Anyone who travels along the classic route between Resmo and Stenåsa will encounter a magnificent limestone alvar landscape. Maybe the Gynge Alvar and the Mysinge Alvar will be the first contact with the Stora Alvar’s barren and unique beauty. Gynge Alvar The Gynge Alvar has traditionally been grazed by …Continue Reading
Eckelsudde
Paradise for birds and seals Along with Beijershamn, Eckelsudde is a prime location along Öland’s west coast for resting and migrating birds, as well as being the home of a colony of 50-80 harbour seals. This equates to a quarter of the harbour seals in the waters of Kalmar Sound. The colony also includes grey …Continue Reading
Dröstorp
A limestone experience The Dröstorp Nature Reserve welcomes visitors to the topographically most varied parts of the Stora Alvar area of limestone, including many geologically interesting features and a very rich flora and fauna. Alvar hiking Walking from Skarpa Alby along the winding alvar track out to Dröstorp’s deserted village in May when early-purple …Continue Reading
Böda East Coast
Sandy beaches, dunes and fields of shifting sand As you let the fine sands of Böda run between your toes, you may perhaps think about the fact that these small millimetre-sized grains of sand are remnants of mountain ranges formed billions of years ago and which have slowly been eroded by rain, snow, ice, wind …Continue Reading
The west coast of Böda
Windswept old pines The nature reserve Bödakusten Västra (West Coast of Böda) stretches from Byxelkrok in the north to Byrum in the south. Here you can walk in the windswept old “kingdom” of pines, experience the mighty dunes and caress soft pebbles. The area includes a stone circle and the remains of lime kilns. …Continue Reading
Byrums Raukar (Limestone tower rauk)
Peculiar stone statues At Byrum you find Öland’s most famous and best shaped rauk area. The peculiar stone statues have been chiseled out over millions of years by the ocean’s constant movement against the limestone. The bedrock of Öland For 490 million years ago was the land mass that Öland belongs to at the …Continue Reading
Bjärby & Lilla Dalby Alvar (moor)
Grasshoopers and a deserted village “Lilla Dalby” and “Bjärby” alvar is varied with wetlands, wooded ridges and open rocky Alvar. The landscape is scattered with rocks and boulders since the inland ice retreated. Alvar flora The thin soil has been grazed for thousands of years. Here grows spiked speedwell, Dropwort, Small Pasque Flower, Bulbous …Continue Reading
Albrunna lund (grove)
A deciduous forest oasis on the edge of the Great Alvar As a green oasis between the “Alvar” and arable land lies Albrunna lund (grove). Here you can hide away for a moment from the midday heat outside on the “alvar” and enjoy the rich birdlife and flora. Broadleaf forest and meadow Albrunna lund …Continue Reading
Beijershamn
the former harbour area that has become a paradise for birds Beijershamn is, together with Ottenby, one of Ölands best and most well known bird habitats. A failed harbour project in the 1850s led to the area becoming silted up, which subsequently resulted in the development of reedbeds and coastal meadows that provide a perfect …Continue Reading
Vickleby ädellövskog (Vickleby broadleaf forest)
“The most beautiful grove you’ve ever seen.” When Linnaeus in the 18th century rode through Vickleby he regarded it as “The most beautiful grove you’ve ever seen.” The ground in Vickleby hardwood forest in May is a sea of kidneywort, wood anemones and yellow anemones with hints of purple corydalis and spring pea. Öland’s …Continue Reading
Naturum, Ottenby
Naturum – visitor centres in nature A naturum is a visitor centre with activities and exhibitions, located in connection with several of Sweden’s national parks and nature reserves. Here, you will be welcomed by friendly, knowledgeable staff that will answer your questions and guide you through the area’s interesting sights. The nature experience starts at …Continue Reading