Approximately 110 kilometres around, the Utvandraleden, or Emigrants Trail is a picturesque hike giving you a chance to see some of the sights of Vilhelm Moberg’s quadrilogy of tales abut the Swedish farmers and labourers who headed out to the United States in search of a better life.

Unlike many Swedish hikes, this one takes you through firmly settled lands, a lot of the hike is along dirt and gravel tracks that have been used by farmers for centuries if not longer. I did the hike on the Easter bank holiday weekend, and due to equipment failure or, more truthfully, personal failure to check the levels of gas in my camping stove, I only managed half the route and a total of 80km from Korrö to Korrö with the final stretch along main roads.

For detailed information on the hike, see Utvandrarleden's Website

Trail Information

Distance: 110 kilometres

Difficulty: Moderate

Transport: None

Terrain: Various

Accommodation & Shopping

Dångs Bridge

An old arched stone road bridge built in the 1840s, just to the north of the east end of the bridge, a secluded clearing on the waterfront can be seen. This is a good place to camp with a hand made fire pit. The noise and lights from the road can be seen, but there is little better without paying for a campsite for quite some distance.

Abrahamhults Lodge.

With a history going back decades, Abrahamhults was once a dance hall bringing guests in the hundreds every weekend. Recently taken over by a dutch couple who are slowly adding to the facilities Abrahamhults offers sleeping accommodation in rooms and cottages with kitchenette. Shower and WC. Camping facilities, a restaurant and excellent fika.

Åskefällalund

A wooden wind shelter by the shore of Kinnen, with a fireplace and toilet.

Djupasjön,

A large lake offering swimming facilities in the summer as well as a campsite, water, toilet. Note, the water and toilet are only open in the summer months.

Campsite

There is a campsite offering nice views over Lake Flaken with a wild shelter, toilet and fire-pit. It is further along than the map suggests, and I camped at a broken-down shack by the water's edge.

Sights

Korrö Vandrarhem

Starting at Korrö Vandrahem, a small craft village sat on Ronnebyån river, it has had a presence since the 16th century and has a reasonable parking lot where you can leave your car whilst you spend a few days hiking. The restaurant is excellent, recommend the Entrecote.

Head south from the car park and past the lake, under a tunnel and you enter the nature reserve, full of tall trees, lakes, rivers and marshland.

Bro

A tiny village, more like a hamlet, called Bro sits on the Ronnebyån River, with a lake and small waterfall. Even back in 1580, there were a number of mills operating on this river.

Flåboda Hill

Between Vikholmen and Bastsjön, The Flåboda stone circle and picnic area has been there since somwhere between 500 BCE and 500 CE. More recently, the hill has been used to store timber and pulpwood, which were floated to the sawmill and pulpmill in Konga. The floating stopped in the 40s. There are picnic tables and a fire pit here.

Barrow

Just off the road, in a fenced-in area, a series of barrows can be explored. Two larger barrows and numerous smaller ones scatter the field. The stone cist at the bottom of one barrow dates from 1500-500 BCE and archaeological finds show the area has been inhabited for over 5000 years.

Högebomåla.

Off to one side of the trail, a set of building foundations can be seen. Built in 1836 when Södra Sandsjö Church was consecrated by Bishop Esias Tegnér, the owner at the time, Lars Persson, received a medal from the Agricultural Academy for his new design of a corn-drying box. The whole property is now overgrown by forest.

Konga

Konga town is 500-1000m back from the main trail along the main road but has a petrol station with a small store. It is one of the only places on the trail where supplies can be bought, including phone charger cables.

Klostergrottan

A couple of kilometres off the main trail, it is a geological site of interest. Excavation finds have shown that it was inhabited during the Stone Age.

Flatsjön

During the hike, you pass, flatsjön which was a border district between Sweden and Denmark until 1568. The coniferous forest area is known as "Ulvamon" ("ulv" means wolf).

Rammsjö Village

A small hamlet on a fork in the road. there is a camping table with toilet and waste bin. Guides suggest there is a log-bog, but I was not able to find it. The word "Ramm" in Rammsjö originates from the Swedish word for raven. This village has eight-cornered houses east of the road.

Barrows

Just past the road towards Runnamåla a set of barrows, easily mistaken for a stone pile can be seen, dating from the late Stone Age or the Bronze Age.