The old Stadsberga Farm

As promised here are a few more photos from Stadsberga, the little village in rural Österhaninge. By chance I met the birdwatcher Henrietta on a recent bike ride. And when we realised we here heading the same way we decided it would be fun to hang out for a few hours. Going on a photo shoot with a birdwatcher can be interesting. Every time Henrietta noticed a bird, a butterfly or even a cool cloud(!), she had to stop and have a closer look through her binoculars. Once we got to the village we decided to check out one of the three farms namely Stadsberga Gård. I don't know the owner of this farm so I don't have so much information about the place, but it does look like your typical farm from way back when with a few old barns, big storage silos and more. The big red building on the last photo is Årsta Säteri which once was the largest wooden building in Europe. More photos from Stadsberga (from my visit with Jim), to come.

Stadsberga

This is Stadsberga, a small rural village in Österhaninge. Surrounded by history. There are ancient grave fields and rune stones here and there. It's close to Årsta Castle, Årsta Säteri, Alvsta, Ormsta, and many other interesting places that I have documented over the years. Bigger photo.

Another rural bike ride

I took another rural bike ride on one of my old bikes the other day. Around Österhaninge. The first photo shows a late blooming canola field near a nature reserve that I sometimes visit. Further down the road, we come to the Medieval church with the leaning tower. The third photo was taken from the road that leads to my favorite beach, Årsta Havsbadsvägen. The newly paved road is Dalarövägen. A very busy road during the Summer and horrible if you are a cyclist. Next up Årsta castle which today sits in the middle of a golf course. Then we see the huge stable at Årsta Säteri. There used to be a sign by the side of the road claiming that this was the largest wooden structure in Northern Europe. And lastly, a look at the unknown village, as I sometimes call it. Stadsberga.

Pastoral Idyll

I really love riding my bicycle. I prefer rural areas and gravel roads where there's no traffic to speak off. Over the last week or so I have been busy pedalling up and down most of the old roads in Österhaninge, shooting farm buildings, runestones and the odd Baptist chapel. All scenes that you will see on this blog in the next week or so. This is a view that I have come to really enjoy. This is Stadsberga. A small village with three farms, two of which you can see here. Remember Stig-Arne? The man you saw with my friend Jim at the old Smitty a few days ago. He lives in the farm house to the very left. On the other side of the big tree you can just see part of the Bakehouse. It is more that 300 years old and the bake oven is still there although the building today serves as a private home. Next is the stable and above that is the old barn where you can see something a bit different. To the right is Stadsberga Gård which I visited with Henrietta a couple of days ago. If you climb the steep road you will get up to a number of small red cottages that you can rent for the summer. All in all this is an idyll.

♥ I've got a shexy smile ♥

This is Gæi. An Icelandic horse that I met at the Västergården horse farm the other day. A real poser me thinks. The farm is located in a rural village in österhaninge called Stadsberga. Bigger photo.

Betania

Time for another visit to rural Österhaninge. This time to a place called Beteby. Not far from Stadsberga, and it was after a visit to that village that I decided to continue down the gravel road for another kilometre or so. I have noticed a few unusual looking buildings here on previous visits, and luckily for me I saw the owner out working in the garden, so I walked in and introduced myself. This is Betania. The name comes from the biblical village Bethany. Today a private home, but once upon a time this was a Baptist Chapel. I was invited to have a look inside, and the old building hasn't changed much since it served as a chapel. The other building also has an interesting history. It is a "loftbod" from 1880. And it has travelled a long way, 930 kilometres. Originally it stood in the village Bodsvedjan, outside Boden, not far from the Fortress. Many years ago a young girl used to sleep in the hut. But when she grew older and moved south she decided to take the old loftbod with her. So today it stands in the garden at Betania. When it was first built it was most likely used for food storage.

Moo!

There's something special about cows. And as I live in an area with quite a few farms, I do see a lot of cattle on my journeys around Haninge. And as with many other things I have to stop for a closer look and some photos especially as these cows are very photogenic. The top photo was taken near Alvsta on a recent bike ride with my friend Jim. This is Scottish Highland cattle, also known as Kyloe. Just after I took this shot Jim was on his way into the pasture to check out a standing stone, but as that got the attention of the herd, he was quickly back on the other side of the fence!



I shot the second photo close to Stadsberga, but it is actually from the same pasture, and the cattle all belong to the nearby Årsta Säteri. This was from a bike ride just two days ago with Henrietta, a birdwatcher I have met a few times. We stopped at a few interesting places and I will show some photos from our trip in a day or three.

A Recent Drive

Took a drive with Hasse and Jujja on Thursday. We made stops at two different castles. It was a hot day so there was also a visit to the kiosk at Årsta Brygga were we tested the ice cream. We then stopped at the tiny hamlet Stadsberga, (canola photo), where Jujja and Hasse discussed this recently made runestone by Kalle Runristare. We also left some books at a bus stop near the beach at Årsta Havsbad before heading out to the Gålö peninsula, and nature reserve, where we checked out the cliffs at Oxnö, and a farmers field where a military jet plane crashed into the ground from 5000 meters back in the 1960s. After that we stopped for lasagne and coffee at the Stegsholm farm. It was a good day.

A Road Less Travelled

We celebrate the National Day of Sweden today so I figured I would show you something typical Swedish and also the Swedish colors of blue and yellow. I took these photos over the weekend. What you see here are the blooming canola fields from Årsta Säteri. The picturesque village in the background is called Stadsberga.

Location, Location, Location

Next to Årsta Säteri, (the big farm building you can see in the below photo) in rural Österhaninge there are three row houses like this one. Constructed in the mid 1980ths. If you enjoy golf, horseback riding, swimming in the sea, or sunbathing at the beach, this is where you should live. It's no more than 100 meters to the nearest stable. The second nearest is at the beautiful little village known as Stadsberga. And I'm guessing the people that live here often find golf balls in their gardens as the closest of three golf courses are no more that a short pitch away. The old Årsta castle where you can wine and dine is only a few hundred meters away. I took a great photo of the castle last year for this blog. You can see it here. And to my favorite beach, it's no more than a kilometre.

Sixteen Recent Snaps II

The wooden bench on the beach at Årsta Havsbad. Buildings at the Berga Military Base. Guy with chainsaw was busy cutting down trees and building benches. Red berries against a blue sky. Hay bale in front of the repainted Church School. Street lights at the ferry port. Two ferries at the same port. Tracks on the ice made a nice pattern, seen from the dive-board. Boat leaving the Berga base. Silo at the Stadsberga village. Detail on the roof to the Årsta castle. Dive-board steps. Stable at Årsta Säteri. Trygg Hansa life buoy on a pier. Old cottage turned into Paint Ball Headquarters. New house near the golf course at Årsta.

Årstavillorna

Location, location, location. A rural setting near Årsta Säteri, Årsta Castle, Stadsberga, a couple of golf courses, and no more that a short bike ride to the beach and the ferry to the archipelago. Årstavillorna dates back 25 years or so. Built on a property where there used to workers quarters before.

Bring Your Own Anvil

Are you a licensed Blacksmith? Looking to rent, or even buy, your own smithy? Well, if so, this could be your lucky day because no one is currently using the old forge at Stadsberga in rural Haninge.

The old Smitty

In rural Österhaninge near the Hårsfjärden bay there is a picturesque little village called Stadsberga. I have visited the Västergården farm before, so you know at least one horse that lives there! And I have shown you the beautiful rural road that leads up the Middle Farm. A few days ago Jim and I decided have a closer look at the Mellangården (Middle Farm). Luckily for us we met the owners, Ulla and Stig-Arne Skärbäck. They bought the place back in 2001. As Ulla disappeared into the stable with one of her horses, Stig-Arne gave us a guided tour around the old farm. So you can expect a few more photos in the next week or so. But today I will show you the old smitty. It's around 300 years old and in need of restoration. Stig-Arne and his wife have been busy fixing up all the buildings at the farm, but have yet to start with the smitty. We climbed (!) in and sat on the floor (mind your head), as Stig-Arne and Jim discussed all the stuff in the smitty. What you see here is a Fältässja, (a forge). A tool that the smith used to heat up the metal. This is a portable version and I believe it was foot-powered. It's hard to understand, but the smitty was in use up until 25 years ago.

Summer vs.Summer

Time for another Different Seasons diptych. Two years separate these two photos that show the winding dirt road that leads down to the Stadsberga village in rural Haninge. I shot the left part of the diptych in late July of 2009. The photo to the right is from this past weekend. On a fun note, as I took that photo a cyclist came towards me. He stopped, and we started to talk about how much fun it is to ride your bike on these old roads. Ten minutes later we were having coffee (me), and a hot dog (the former postman), at one of the four golf clubs in this area. He knew practically every road around here and told me about a shortcut that I will have to try sometime this summer.

Middle Farm

As I came down the gravel road towards Stadsberga, I stopped and shot some photos that I used for a great panorama. This is three of those photos. This is Mellangården, a horse farm run by the Skärbäck family. Their stable is just to the right and you can see it on the panorama. Bigger photo.

Modern Day Rune stone

Do you have your own Runestone? Didn't think so. Lotta and her family at Västergården horse farm in the little rural village of Stadsberga does. The inscription reads Lotta o Joachim o Therese o Richard, alla Carlsund, lät resa sten o bygga hus på egen mark. Kalle rista. Which translates to Lotta, Joachim, Therese and Richard, all Carlsund, had the stone raised and the house built on their own land, Kalle did the inscription. Kalle is Kalle Runristare. There are Icelandic horses at the farm I will show you more photos later in the week.Bigger photo.

Summer Is Nearly Here

Nylända gård in Österhaninge. Next to a popular golf course. A short bike ride from Årsta castle where we can enjoy lunch. An equally short ride to the ferry port if you want to hit the archipelago. Just around the corner from the ferry port is the beach in case you want to cool down in the sea or work on your tan. And if you need a place to stay there's a few cottages at Stadsberga (also just a few hundred meters away).

A Double Invitation

The top photo shows Gammelgården (it means the old cottage). It is situated in a beautiful part of Österhaninge, only meters away from the tree lined aveny that leads down to Årsta Castle. It is the oldest building in Haninge. The current castle is from 1650, and this cottage that once belonged to the castle is supposedly older. I have never been inside, but by chance I met the previous owner, Louise, nearby on Friday. Together with her friend Helén she was having a picnic in the sunshine near Stadsberga with their respective newborns, Sigge and Emma-Li. I stopped and was just about to ask them for a photo when Louise said: no photos please. That surprised me, but I don't give up that easy and we ended up chatting about this and that for ten minutes and Helén figured a photo of them then and there would be just fine! They offered me coffee, but I had just had a cup with flickr friend Jim at a cafe in Västerhaninge so I declined. Helén's boyfriend is Louise's brother so the girls are sisters in law. They used to play in the same korpfotboll team (7 player soccer for amateurs), but as they are newly mothers, promenades is what they have time for these days. It was when I asked where they lived that I learned that Louise had just sold the old cottage. Luckily for me she still has the keys as the new owners have yet to move in, so weather permitting I might take a bike ride down to the old cottage later today for a closer look. I took the top photo a couple of minutes after my meeting with the girls in case you are wondering. They were going one way and I the other, and as the weather was great I figured the white cottage would look good against a blue sky so I stopped by for a a few quick photos. Oh, and if you would like to see how it looks near Helén's place, press here to look at a big panoramic view over the Blista Bay.

An illiterate did this

I biked through some of the rural parts of Haninge yesterday, on what must have been the first day of Summer. If you ride right through the old village of Stadsberga, the road turns into a gravel path and if you continue over a little hill and down on the other side, you will be at Beteby, and that's where you can find this runestone of sorts. It has been suggested that an illiterate person, possibly called Björn,living at the farm here a few eons ago had the runestone made. The runes doesn't really say anything understandable. But it does have the familiar snake and also a cross. Maybe he, and I am pretty sure it was an old Viking, just wanted to have a runestone at his home to feel more important.