Hike in Kosta
Kosta is rich in nature. Here there are cozy coniferous forests, flowering meadows, and lush birch forests. Around Kosta there are several hiking trails, from one to 16 km. Welcome out into our fantastic nature!
Around Kosta there are six nature reserves with a feeling of real wilderness with marshes, forests, lakes and waterways. There is also a very rich bird and plant life here.
Downloadable hiking trails in pdf format
- Stampasjön 2,8 - 8 km
- Stockmyra Brännan
- Visjön, 7 km
Stockmyr Brännan
Stocksmyr-Brännan offers the visitor a feeling of wilderness with large marshes, forests, lakes and waterways. The reserve covers 2,300 ha of land and water and is the county's largest.
The marshes in the reserve are among the finest in the county, where you can see silesian hair, marsh lily, missne and orchids. The open marshes attract birds and in the spring you can hear redshanks, greenshanks and great sparrows. If you walk in the forest, the woodpecker can be seen and during the spring nights the call of the barn owl gives the visitor a feeling of wilderness. At sunrise, the bird life is at its most intense and you hear the crow and the lesser woodpecker call, accompanied by the whistling of the sparrow owl, the tireless play of eagles and the call of the crane.
The area also has a rich insect life and in old, littered and sunlit pines, for example, the larvae of the ragbuck find food and in rough birches live the black-eyed woodpecker, which thrives especially well in burnt wood. In the finest swamp forests, you can find old firs where yarn lichens and other bearded lichens drape the branches.
The forests get their wealth of species through the diversity of different environments. Many species benefit from sparse, sunny forests with lots of deciduous trees. The trees must be allowed to grow old and die. The dead wood in particular is vital for many species that have the wood as their nursery or growing place. The northern part of the reserve burned almost 100 years ago, and traces of that fire can still be seen through the unusual growth of birch and aspen. Another species in the reserve that benefits from fire is the heather, whose seeds germinate after the fire has passed.
Caution - Parts of the trail pass through wind-sensitive forest with large amounts of dead tree trunks that can fall. In windy weather, we therefore do not recommend visiting the reserve.
Svarta leden
Trail marking: Orange
Length: 16,2 kilometer
Visjön slinga
Trail marking: Blue
Length: 1,6 kilometer
Nässjön slinga
Trail marking: Blue
Length: 2,5 kilometer
Braåsenleden
Trail marking: Orange
Length: 3,3 kilometer
Stig till fågeltornet
Trail marking: Yellow
Length: 260 meter
Björksjöstigen
Trail marking: Yellow
Length: 250 meter
Vandringsled
Trail marking: Blue
Length: 80 meter
Accessibility adapted
Visjön
North of Kosta lies the 200-hectare area of Lake Visjön, which became a nature reserve in 1996 - a popular destination that is easy to reach by car. A hike on the eight-kilometer path around Lake Visjön offers exciting forest scenery and wonderful views over the lake and its islands. At the Visjön nature reserve you will find primeval forest and open marshes. A typical nutrient-poor Smålands lake surrounded by mixed coniferous forest.
The marked path starts at a rest area at the outlet of the lake. It is Visjön itself and its surroundings that constitute a nature reserve, and the aim is to preserve a typical nutrient-poor Småland lake surrounded by approx. 100-year-old coniferous forest that will be allowed to develop freely. Even older pines are found on the islands and along the beaches and in the reserve are also found in primeval forest, swamp forest and open marshes. To the west of the lake Visjöåsen rises about 10 meters above the water surface. It is a cobblestone sauce that was formed when the ice cap melted about 12,000 years ago.
In the Visjön nature reserve, among other things, blue moss, large reef moss, yarn lichen, old spruce lichen, long-leaf moss, blood lichen, wavy silk moss, gritty blue lichen, sooty lichen, bleak tarr, white sedge and deep-leaved lichen grow, and several species of white moss grow on the bogs.
Trail marking: Orange
Length: 7,7 kilometer och 260 meter
Skärgöl
Nature reserve Skärgöl is located in Lessebo municipality, on a hill just north of Kosta. The reserve consists of hay meadows and both open and wooded pastures with a long history. The 21-hectare area has been protected since 2013 and is part of the EU's Natura 2000 ecological network.
In the nature reserve there are a number of cultural-historical remains such as house foundations, wells and springs, stone tips, cultivation mounds and older fields. The old country road that runs through the area is bordered by stone walls and an avenue of older deciduous trees. The vegetation in the area is varied and some parts have a very species-rich flora with, for example, cat's foot, old man mower, cuckoo flowers, Virgin Mary's keys, aspen grass and hay fever. On the trees in the pastures and on the trees in avenues with oak and ash there are pitted beard lichen, small pale spike and shadow orange lichen.
Tikaskruv
A little over half a mile southeast of Kosta lies the Tikaskruv nature reserve, a small area of pasture with impressive older trees and with an interesting plant and animal life. The reserve is 15 hectares in size and protected since 2010.
The nature reserve consists partly of pasture with many older trees and bushes and partly of spruce plantations with interspersed old deciduous trees, mostly oak. Many of the trees in the area are between 100 and 400 years old. In order to save the old oaks and preserve the natural values that belong to them, the spruce plantation must gradually be restored to tree- and shrub-bearing pasture.
Tikaskruv's old deciduous trees are an important habitat for many common and unusual insects, wood fungi, mosses and lichens. In one of the old oaks, for example, the rare noble golden beetle has been found and on some of the trees the magnificent lung lichen grows. In spring and summer, there is a fine grove flora in the pasture with, among other things, blue sedge, spring pea and water lily.
Tiafly
The sparsely pine-covered and completely untouched Tiafly bog is not so well known. But there is a lot to discover here! A rich bird life, rare lichens and mosses and not least a very beautiful and varied nature!
Pine bogs, mixed coniferous forest, sparse deciduous forest, swamp forest, open marshes, areas where 150-200 year old pines grow, a lake and a small area with noble leaves - yes, everything is within the Tiafly nature reserve. The area has been protected since 1939 and became a nature reserve in 1996. The nature reserve has a rich birdlife and is an important area for forest birds such as grouse and grouse. Here you can also find a variety of rare lichens and mosses, such as large reef moss, long-lobed moss, blue moss, cat's foot moss, grainy blue moss and old spruce moss.
Lövsjö ängar domain reservation
The more than kilometre-long and marked hiking trail through the nature reserve takes you through a landscape with open fields, meadows, grazed pastures, large oaks and lindens, as well as stone cairns that bear witness to the farming efforts of old.
The 18-hectare Lövsjö meadows became a nature reserve in 1996. The area has been fenced agricultural land for hundreds of years, traces of which can be seen through many large stone cairns. In addition to more open lands, there are many large trees here, including oak and linden, with large crowns. The large meadow and grove flora, together with many different types of deciduous trees, create an environment that favors many bird and insect species. In the reserve there are, among other things, virgin flax, solvände and meadow sedge. To imitate mowing, the meadows are grazed after midsummer, which means that many species have time to flower.
Trail marking: Yellow
Length: 1 kilometer
Barbecue areas and packed lunches
Most of the hiking trails have barbecue areas and shelters from the wind. The trails have easily accessible parking and clear markings to easily get around. Ready-packed lunch bags are available for purchase at Kosta Lodge.
