Nackareservatet: 16km hike from Saltsjö-Duvnäs to Erstaviken
It was a beautiful, sunny day yesterday and I decided to capitalize on it by making a long journey through the forests of Nacka kommun’s nature reserve. I took the Saltsjöbana a few stops further than mine and got off at Saltsjö-Duvnäs station, which is right on the edge of the wilderness.
I couldn’t believe how colorful some of these photos turned out straight from the camera, but it really was a pleasant day.
I recorded the GPS coordinates of my hike using the “My Tracks” android app, and embedded the map below. It’s interesting to see the meandering path that resulted from me avoiding the trails at all costs, and forging my own way instead. I find that trailblazing is more adventurous and the isolation more relaxing.
Starting at the train station I quickly came to the freeway which I had to cross. Those towers in the background are the tallest in Nacka and you can see them for miles.
These pictures were taken at about 13:20 in the afternoon, and it’s mindboggling to an American how there can only be a handful of cars on the freeway, suited perfectly by a mere two lanes in either direction. Anyone who’s found themselves in gridlock on LA’s eight lane freeways knows what I’m talking about. Sweden is so tranquil.
This tower is right behind me from the picture above.
Some random graffiti I found on a rock.
Greeeeeeeen.
This road ran perpendicular to my path so I crossed over and kept going.
Nacka’s towers.
Freakish nightmare.
This lake was a welcome change in scenery.
I sat on the dock for a few minutes.
I moved on and started walking up the hill to the side of the lake.
Perhaps a mast once stood here.
Straight from the fucking camera, it really was this outstanding. I don’t ever want to live somehwere without a forest nearby, which is a far cry from the suburban town I grew up in.
This is the best kind of forest to walk through, where the ground is soft and green and the brush is thin.
Now eventually I came out of the forest to edge of this gigantic field. I’m not sure if it’s private farmland or what the deal is because there’s huge acreage but not really animal fences or cows grazing or anything like that. It provided a welcome relief for my feet though being able to walk on the grass.
Not photoshopped! I almost considered reducing the saturation because it looks a bit too outstanding （゜◇゜）
Me again. In the distance you can see these large sand traps like what you’d expect to find on a golf course–if the fairways were made of sand. It’s not like we’re in a desert so it was a confusing contrast to the lushiousness of everything else.
I crested a small ridge and startled a pack of deer, which according to Wikipedia is actually called a herd of deer. Anyway that’s the most deer I’ve seen together in one place so that was pretty cool.
Ooo and what mysteries have we here.
Someone’s personal bomb shelter. I want one.
I finally arrived at Erstaviken, which is essentially a bay of the Baltic Sea. The water was cool but not cold, and I would have jumped in if I had a towel.
Victory!
I think it was about 12km at this point and my feet were killing me, so I just chilled for about an hour and enjoyed the ocean.
Peace and quiet–nothing is better.
After satisfying myself with the beach, I started heading in the direction of the Saltsjöbana.
This is my favorite picture of the day, SFTC.
This small lake was a bit higher than Erstaviken and there was a waterfall by the bridge, but also something else to the left.
This was kind of neat. There was a deep foundation to a no-longer-standing building, fenced off with barbed wire.
I wonder what it used to be.
Here’s a rodent skull I found.
These next two photos are heavily photoshopped because the sun was glaring in the lens and they turned out terrible… but this last lake was a pretty way to wrap up the water bodies of my trip.
I’m basically walking back to civilization now towards Solsidan where the train goes.
This path is actually familiar to me from a prior trip I made to Solsidan, the photos for which I havn’t created a blog post out of (this sentence would be an incorrect choice on the STAR test ;)). The last time I was here I was also trying to find the train, but my phone was almost dead and it was dark outside.
I decided some pics from my Solsidan Adventure would make a cameo appearance.
Ya this trail is far too spooky at night! Instead of walking down roads already travelled, I went off to the side a bit. Here’s a baby ladder completely uneccessary.
Car road.
This pic turned out great.
Ah yes, another place I have memories of.
I was scared and lost last time I was here, and totally missed the train stop that is just nearby. The lesson learned is to make it home before it gets dark 🙂
I arrived at Tattby just as a train pulled into the station, unfortunately going the wrong direction.
♥ the Saltsjöbana!
And Sweden. The end.
