Trollskogen ("enchanted forest" or "troll's forest") is a windswept, grazed pine forest and nature reserve in the northeast corner of the

Baltic Baltic may refer to: Peoples and languages * Baltic languages, a subfamily of Indo-European languages, including Lithuanian, Latvian and extinct Old Prussian *Balts (or Baltic peoples), ethnic groups speaking the Baltic languages and/or originati ...

island Öland, Sweden (

Böda socken Böda socken is a former socken of Åkerbo Hundred on Öland, Sweden. Since 1974, it's part of the Borgholm Municipality on the island of Öland, Sweden. It covers 107 square kilometers and had 773 inhabitants in 2000. History The oldest parts of ...

, Borgholm Municipality). The forest is on a promontory with an exposed

shingle beach A shingle beach (also referred to as rocky beach or pebble beach) is a beach which is armoured with pebbles or small- to medium-sized cobbles (as opposed to fine sand). Typically, the stone composition may grade from characteristic sizes ranging ...

on the eastern side, the side of the Baltic Sea, and a sheltered bay on the western side, of

Grankullaviken Grankullaviken (or Grankullavik) is a shallow bay at the northern tip of Öland, Sweden, located in Böda socken, Borgholm Municipality. The bay is almost completely enclosed by two headlands and a few small shoal islands (Stora grundet, Borren, ...

bay. The reserve, formerly a ''Domänreservat'' (protected by the Swedish government forestry agency), is part of the

Böda Kronopark Böda kronopark is a Kronopark and currently an Ekopark on Öland, Sweden, north of the village of Böda. It has 6000 hectares of mainly coniferous forest and takes up most of the northern part of Öland, except for the northwestern tip. Its eas ...

. Its southeastern boundary is also the north border of the nature reserve Bödakusten östra.

Description

Öland has a unique ecology containing many endemic and rare plants not found anywhere else. Trollskogen is characterized by its

lichen A lichen ( , ) is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi species in a mutualistic relationship.shingle beach A shingle beach (also referred to as rocky beach or pebble beach) is a beach which is armoured with pebbles or small- to medium-sized cobbles (as opposed to fine sand). Typically, the stone composition may grade from characteristic sizes ranging ...

) have been deformed by the wind. The interior of the forest contains pine trees, up to 200 years old, interspersed with old oaks, a remnant of the former grazing pastures in the Boda forests. Today, cattle still graze here, ensuring the biodiversity of the ecosystem, native grass and herb diversity. The western edge is formed by the grazed and forested areas of the

bay. The old oaks and pines are a rich habitat for lichens, insects, fungi, and mosses. The rich flora of the reserve includes endangered and rare species such as Pachyphiale carneola,

Calicium abietinum ''Calicium abietinum'', commonly known as fir pin or black stubble, is a crustose lichen that is found growing on trees throughout much of the world. The species is found in North America from Mexico to Canada, England, Central Europe to Central ...

, and

Sphinctrina ''Sphinctrina'' is a genus of lichenicolous fungi, usually not lichenized, in the family Sphinctrinaceae. Its species are most commonly parasitic on lichens of the genus ''Pertusaria ''Pertusaria'' is a large genus of warty crustose lichens ...

. More common plants include burr chervil, Prince's pine, and Baltic wormwood.

History

The oldest human traces in Trollskogen are some 15

cairn A cairn is a man-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. The word ''cairn'' comes from the gd, càrn (plural ). Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehis ...

s and

stone circle A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The be ...

Grankullavik Grankullavik is a village on the Grankullaviken bay in the north of Öland, Sweden, in the Böda socken, Borgholm Municipality. From 2007 to 2009, Destination Gotland operated a ferry in the summers from Grankullavik to Visby Visby () is an ...

, formerly called Örboviken, was a naval base in the 15th century, dominating much of the central Baltic Sea. Traces of fortifications remain to the east and west, and a stone wall (possibly used to demarcate a hunting domain), some long and dating from the reign of King John III (1537–1592), remains to the south. The eastern shore is the site of the wreck of the ''

Swiks The ''Swiks'' (or ''Swix'') was a three-masted schooner from Åland that sank in the Baltic Sea, off the island of Öland, Sweden, on 21 December 1926. History ''Swiks'' was built in Upesgriva (between Ventspils and Riga; see Mērsrags), Latvia ...

'', a

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

that was wrecked on the coast on 21 December 1926; its crew of seven escaped in a lifeboat.

Visitor information

The area has three hiking trails, with signage, one of which is accessible for

strollers Various methods of transporting children have been used in different cultures and times. These methods include baby carriages (prams in British English), infant car seats, portable bassinets (carrycots), strollers (pushchairs), slings, backpacks ...

. A nature center at the parking area provides information on the area and its surroundings.

References

External links

Trollskogen visitor's brochure, EnglishTrollskogen
on Global Species {{coord, 57.3501, 17.1233, display=title, region:SE_type:forest Öland Nature reserves in Sweden