Stråtjära: Church Ruin, Skogbonad and Bergviken

Stråtjära brings together the medieval Skog Church Ruin and the history of the Skogbonad with a bathing area, paddling routes and other activities. This lets you consider cultural history, activities on the water and active pursuits when planning your trip.

Church history and the Skogbonad

The Skog Church Ruin in Stråtjära dates from 1321. It is in Skog parish, in the municipality of Söderhamn in Hälsingland, right beside National Road 83. The parish’s first church stood on Kyrkudden and was called Sankt Olofs kapell. Stråtjära galgbacke is also identified as the execution site of Skog parish.

The original Skogbonad is kept at the Swedish History Museum in Stockholm. Between 1992 and 1999, Elvy and Rune Axman, Margareta and Eie Gisselson, Sune Söderholm, and Ingrid and Sigvard Östergård made a copy using the original sumak technique, also called snärjväv. The information about the original and the copy gives you two different points of reference for the Skogbonad: where it is kept today and its later reproduction using the original technique.

One stage of the Helgonleden pilgrimage route begins at Staffansstenen in Själstuga and ends at the Skog Church Ruin. Skog Church nearby can be visited by contacting the verger in advance; the verger can open the church and tell you about it. Contact the verger before your trip to arrange your visit.

Bathing area and paddling routes

Skogsandbadet is a bathing area in the municipality of Söderhamn. A man-made pier encloses the Skogsand bathing area. Skogsand campsite is right beside the bathing area and offers access to the lake.

The paddling route on Bergviken can be started at the Skogsand bathing area, where parking is available. This route is suitable for both shorter trips of a few hours and overnight trips. You can choose the duration according to whether you want to go for a few hours or take an overnight trip.

Another water route is the canoe route in Ödmården. It can be reached from Bergvik via Stråtjära towards Holmsveden. While both short trips and overnight trips are mentioned for the Bergviken route, the directions for Ödmården describe the route by its direction.

Horse riding and rentals

Stall Stråtjära offers experienced riders bookable trail rides on sturdy North Swedish horses. You can also book riding lessons there to learn more about horses and riding. Trail rides and riding lessons are different offerings: the rides are for experienced riders, while the lessons are for learning about horses and riding.

Stall Stråtjära also rents out bicycles, boats, canoes and fishing equipment. The rental selection therefore includes transport for both land and water, as well as fishing equipment.

Getting around locally

The area around Stråtjära is crossed by Road 272, called Tidernas Väg, and Road 83, called Fjällvägen. The church ruin is right beside National Road 83; the two road names help you make sense of the local names.

More destinations

Discover more destinations: Marmaverken, Söderhamn, Skog, Mo, Norrala, Holmsveden, Söderala, Ljusne

Back to the main travel overview: Söderhamn.