Nature

You will likely have lots of time for quiet contemplation along this stretch of Skåneleden Trail and you will likely not meet many fellow hikers. The trail starts easy along the foot of the ridge, between the forested slopes and the open plains, and through the little community of Maglaby with its carefully managed meadows where globe flower, dropwort and yellow rattle grow.

You enter majestic beech forests as you near the Klöva Hallar Nature Reserve. Some 150 million years ago Skåne was not as geologically calm as it is today. Tectonic plates were colliding and volcanoes were erupting. The Klöva Hallar fault opened up when the horst formed and it cuts into the ridge for approximately 4 kilometres. At times, you have breath-taking views down the steep sides of the ravine and the path can be tiring. 

The ravine was filled with ice during the last Ice Age. Glacial melt deposited the esker called Soffebacken in a small ribbon across the top of the ridge and it can be seen today on both sides of the ravine, as can giant rock formations. Because the slopes are steep and relatively inaccessible, there has been a continuity in the microclimate in the ravine. It is one of Sweden’s absolutely richest areas for fungi, but many lichens, mosses and insects also thrive here, and have probably done so since the last ice age. There are trout in Klövabäcken Creek which runs along the bottom of the ravine, and mink can be frequently seen playing along its banks.

Cultural History

The landscape at Klöva Hallar was not just the result of geology and the Ice Age. The giants Blink and Börta used to live here and are responsible for some of the enormous rock formations – if you believe the legends. This family of giants has since relocated and now live in a cave deep under mystical Odensjön Lake.

Many years ago, houses normally stood in neat rows in the villages, but today there are few of these types of villages left. Maglaby is one of the few remaining. The village is surrounded by the remains of ancient agriculture, with fields for cultivation close to the village and common grazing lands further away. At Klöva Hallar you can find the remains of a three-storey dancehall and restaurant, opened in 1930 and burned down in 1977. On the slope between the dance restaurant and Klöva Hallarna, the path is quite challenging – why not pause to catch your breath and notice the old stony road you are travelling on? In some places, it has been worn down several metres by centuries of traffic.

Just up from Klöva Hallar is where Grassa Johanna lived in a shack, little more than an old wardrobe and a pile of twigs and branches. She made her living picking mushrooms and berries, and washing clothes for people in the village and became known Åsakärringen, or roughly The Old Woman of the Ridge. To this day when fog lies around the ridge, the locals say that Åsakärringen is washing laundry, and they know that the weather will soon be fair.

The campsite at Krika Skog at the edge of the forest is waiting for you shortly after you pass the Soffebacken esker.