Photo. Mother Nature`s own creation in the forest of Råde in Norway.
Sometimes challenging and exhausting, but highly driven by inspiration from the environment itself, and in the end: mostly a pleasure! It`s a fairytale diverse old growth forest which has changed in composition and extent over time as a result of both natural and human-influenced processes. The most common are oak, pine and birch. Small and tall trees, some have fallen. Trees are in all sorts of shapes and sizes.
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Our path leaded us to the mine Åkerberggruve, which is located in the municipality of Råde, Østfold county in Norway. For around tree hours, our path took us around in the wild forest. Along the way we crossed a frozzen creek, a streaming creek, observed a small mysterious cabin, Moss covered stones, green mountain ridges, different kind of trees, strange art shaped by Mother Nature and the silent pond Isebakktjern.
The mine Åkeberggruva, is a closed feltspatgruve mine, which operated from about 1880 to the beginning of the 1900s. Here it was taken out feltspar and quartz glass for use in the glass- and porcelain industry. The mineral was brought down to the place Solli by horse and sleigh for shipment from there. We needed to "climb" little bit to reach the cave higher up on the mountain ridge.
The caved looked huge from inside. Sunrays lit up some parts of the cave so it was not totally dark there.The cave gives a good shelter when it`s poor weather. It`s possible to stay overnight in the cave, which has two large openings and a high "roof". There is established a bonfire place inside the cave.
On the top of the mountain rigde - just above the cave - there are some nice viewpoints of the wild landscape in Råde. To reach the top, you need to climb - if you dare. We started our tour from the area Kleiva and Engen, which is located near Slangvold in Råde, not so far from the municipal boundary against Sarpsborg. A walking trip from here takes around 20-30 minutes in a little bit challenging terrain. An alternative route to this old mine is from the place Solli through the pond Isebakktjern.
A vast, unspoilt forest wilderness offer trekkers plenty of opportunities to appreciate the beauty of the nature, from mysterious trees and mountain streams to
Stein Morten Lund, 4th January 2015
Additional information
Råde is a municipality in Østfold county, Norway. Slangsvold is a settlement and a 5 km-long valley located in the north-eastern part of the municipality of Råde in Norway. Slangsvold has about 100 inhabitants. The principal industry of Slangsvold is farming; other industries are a bus company, a quarry, a concrete mixing plant, and two ground work construction companies. Råde is one of eighteen municipalities in the county of Østfold, centrally located to Moss, Sarpsborg and Fredrikstad which are the major towns in the county. As of the 1st of October 2011, the town has a population of slightly less than 7000, according to Statistics Norway – SSB.
Råde is one of eighteen municipalities in the county of Østfold, Norway, centrally located to the largest towns in the region; Sarpsborg, Fredrikstad and Moss. The town has idyllic surroundings and is very popular during the summer. This becomes evident as many people travel to Saltholmen, located in the village of Saltnes, to swim at the beach and enjoy the lovely views of the Oslo fjord. The 20 km long Coastal Walk Trail, which passes through the outskirts of thw town, is also a popular venture all year round. Are you interested in culture/history? If so, there are many monumental sites for you to see, many of which date back to the 12th century. For more information, see Visit Råde`s website.