Höglandsleden etappa HÖ14 Forsa - Vikskvarn - A part of the Småland Trail

Stage HÖ14 is approximately 12 km long and mostly passes through a forest landscape.

At the trail entrance in Forsa lies Toftabadet, which features a wind shelter, a grill area, and the opportunity to swim.

Along the trail, you will pass through Mattarp’s beech forest, nature’s own columned hall. This magnificent beech forest covers about two hectares! Mattarp’s beech forest is the highest located self-planted beech forest in the country and one of the northernmost beech stands in Europe. Pollen analyses show that beech trees have been present here for 400 years. The beech forest was mentioned in writing as early as the 1600s. The beech trees were not to be cut down because the pigs that grazed here in the summer would eat the beech nuts.

At the Vikskvarn trail entrance, you can step into a bygone mill era. Only the ruins of the old Vikskvarn remain. The stream flows through the ruins and has exposed the geologically interesting Almesåkra Formation, a 700-800 million-year-old sedimentary rock series, making the mill ruins a classic study location for bedrock geology. The mill is located in a picturesque gorge south of Almesåkrasjön.

In the Vikskvarn Nature Reserve, there is a small overnight cabin, a grill area, and an outdoor toilet.

The trail is relatively easy to walk, but there is a more significant ascent closer to Vikskvarn.