Nature

The narrow, gorge that is the Rövarekulan Valley is lush with life! Nightingales, warblers, grey wagtails and kingfishers are just a few of the birds who nest here. There are mussels and trout in the river, and in spring you can sometimes see hordes of toads along the riverbanks. Of course, toads need to eat and there are plenty of insects here for them to feed on. The vegetation is rich too and includes the wild garlic that sells for a small fortune in the grocery stores and best restaurants.

You cross the meandering Bråån River with its shale-covered banks. Shale forms when clay particles sink to the bottom of a sea and thanks to the many graptolite fossils found in the shale, it can be reliably dated to 400 million years ago. Graptolites are extinct marine creatures that floated in colonies, with the individuals all joined by a type of nerve cord. Today you find thick-shelled river mussels and fresh water limpet on the loose patches of shale. Heron fish and white throated dippers dive. You can find almost 400 species of ferns and vascular plants in the Rövarekulan Valley and droves of spring flowers. 

Once you leave Rövarekulan, you are up on the agricultural plain which extends south. The rest of your hike is an easy one, as you follow along small roads and forestry tracks to the little town of Löberöd, where this section of trail ends.

Cultural History

Rövarekulan literally means “Thieves’ Hideout”. In the 1600s, Kungsvägen, or the “King’s Highway”, passed through the Pinedalen Valley and carriages were robbed from time to time. The thieves were said to escape with their plundered goods to Rövarekulan. Legend also has it that hidden somewhere deep in the ravine is an iron door which was the entrance to the hideout. But Rövarekulan was also a part of the Löberöd estate, alternately owned by Danish and Swedish nobility. There are a couple of memorial stones in the ravine, raised to commemorate visits of royalty and nobility, who often showed great interest in this special place. Near the Rövarekulan parking, the Bråån River is shallow and inviting. Why not take off your hiking boots and splash about a bit. Maybe you’ll find a fossil graptolite.

The first manor house in Löberöd was built in the 1600s, but there was no village until the 1800s. In 1866, the estate owners helped fund the Löberöd railway station, and a village quickly sprang up around it. The stone arch bridge over Bråån River was built in 1870 by Otto Ramel, a resident of the estate, and restored in the 1960s.

Today, no trains pass through Löberöd. But there are good bus connections, a grocery store and places where you can sit down and order coffee and a sandwich, which also helps make this relatively short stretch of the Skåneleden Trail an easy one.