Höskrinda

Swedish unused word for quite some time, höskrinda. And two of them. Spotted while walking across the farmer's field near Kalvsvik a few days ago. This land is used by Rolf Norlin from Hammarby gård, a farm a few kilometers from here.

Beware of the Unicorn

Just a heads up. If you ever find yourself near Kalvsvik, a rural part of Österhaninge, known for an old runestone, the mystery rock, (I guess I should visit that one and show it to you), an old farm, and the remains of an old hillfort there are also a number of unicorns hiding in the forests. So if you are out on a trek and you suddenly find yourself face to face with an unknown white animal with a horn it is probably just a unicorn!

New Homes

Brand new houses, (the red ones), at Kalvsvik in Österhaninge. If you climb up the hill you can find the remains of an old fort from way back when.

Half a barn

A bike ride through a rural part of Österhaninge a couple of days ago. I couldn't walk up the hill at Snörom as it was a horse pasture so I continued on to Kalvsvik where there's a little cliff overlooking the fields and what not and while sitting there I noticed that something was up with the old barn.

The scent of Summer

If you know me you know that I can't just pass an opportunity to photograph a blooming canola field (Rapsfält). So a few of days ago while out driving with a couple of mates we stopped at two blooming fields so that I could get my photos. But the light was wrong, it was late in the afternoon and I had to shoot into the sun to get the snaps that I was after. However, the following day I took my new bike down to one of those fields and this time I got the colors I was looking for. These fields can be found at Kalvsvik, across the road from the Husby GC. I have been here many times before as I find the hill that you can see here to be very photogenic in both Winter, Spring, Summer and Autumn. I usually bring a light lunch with me and on this occasion I ate it while keeping an eye on the sweaty golfers out on the course. The third photo shows Kikarberget, a hill from where you have a decent view of the surrounding rural landscape.

Ice Age Remnant

On a hillside in a forest in rural Österhaninge you will find this big rock. Or more precisely this cracked glacial erratic. It is five meters high and you can walk right through it. It has a few different names in the local folklore. One is Wolves Rock. It is said that back in the day when we still had wolves here (up until 1860 or thereabouts),this was a place where you on dark nights could hear the wolves howling.

Watch Out For Unicorns

I had noticed this sign a number of times before I decided to take a photo of it a couple of years ago, but the sign is still there, I saw it only last week and figured then that it would be perfect for this months theme day, which is Funny Signs. The unicorn sign can be found at Kalvsvik in rural Österhaninge. And as you can guess there are a few horse farms in this area. This is close to the art gallery, so it is possible that whoever it was that designed the sign, got the inspiration from the annual art promenade that takes place here.

This is actually one of my more popular flickr photos. 79 people call this a favourite and it has gathered around 10 000 views.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants of the theme day.

The Light at the End of the Tunnel

This is the view from the pedestrian tunnel under the motorway at Kalvsvik. Used mainly by horse back riders and the odd photographer. I came from the Österhaninge side on this visit. I have previously showed you a lot of things from this part of Haninge. Including the Swimsuit Model. A house high up on a hill. A field of Yellow. And the Unicorn Sign, just to mention a few.


Skywatch Friday.

Swimsuit Model of the Day

At the Kalvsvik Horse Centre I noticed this sexy babe posing on a ladder at the coffee veranda. She was dressed in her swimsuit and had her nails painted red. I decided to walk over for a chat. Unfortunately she wasn't very talkative. I asked if the water wasn't a bit too cold for a swim, but she didn't feel like talking. All I could get her to say was her name. So say hello to Rut, the Swimsuit Model of the Day.

On top of the hill

This hill at Kalvsvik in Österhaninge is called Kikarberget. Which could translate to Lookout Hill or something like that. On the top, not far from the mystery rock, you will still find some remains of an old hill fort. The name Kalvsvik is said to come from Kalsvi which was the name of a farm here, some 700 years ago. Long before that Kalvsvi could have been a place for offerings and rituals. There are a few rune stones nearby, here's one . There's also a big ancient grave field in the area and a possible offering stone on another hill.

Autumn Road

A beautiful autumn day. I took a lengthy bike ride in the sunshine. This is the old gravel road at Kalvsvik. It dates back to the Viking era. If you follow this road you will pass the horse farm at Kalvsvik where there's a rune stone. Then if you turn right there's a pedestrian tunnel that will take you to a nature reserve. That's what I did. I then continued to a nearby lake where I met fellow flickr photographer Kenny Lex and also one of my Strangers, Juha.

Lotta

This is Lotta. I met her at the Gullringskärrets nature reserve today. She was out riding on one of the family's horses, Wille. The horse seemed a bit nervous (they were fixing a gravel road nearby), so I called out to let them know I was there, and that's how we started talking. Lotta comes from Stockholm and has her horses at the Lövhagen stable at Kalvsvik. She's been show jumping with her other horse, Cheila Rose with some good results. Lotta works as a dentist in a private practice. She told me that she's always been interested in different sports, and these days the horses took up most of her free time. Lotta got a scholarship to the University of South Carolina where she took the Pre-Med course and during that time she also played tennis for the school.

This is my 71th photo for the 100 Strangers project. You can see the rest of my strangers in my Set.

Living among the trees

A little red house among the trees. This is Kalvsvik in Österhaninge. An rural area with a few horse farms and a runestone. This photo was taken from the hill where I took the birch tree photo. Bigger photo. In the forest behind the house there's a mystery rock.

Walking in a nature reserve

Bigger photo.

Walking in nature looking for signs of spring. In Jordbro, at Gullringskärret, a nature reserve. The same path were you will find the Art Promenade in the summer time. I you are interested I have photos from the 2006 promenade and the 2005 version. The girls are on their way back to the stables at Kalvsvik in Österhaninge a rural area with many stables . This road dates back to the Viking area. There are runestones and other remains all over the place.

Kalvsvik

All the snow gone! 7 C in Haninge today and a clear blue sky. I stopped at Kalvsvik in Österhaninge at the riding centre for a few photos. It's called Kalvsviks Ryttarcenter. On the old viking road at Kalvsvik I met Gerd and Winnie. Gerd lives in Stockholm and have her horse here at the riding centre. If you take the freeway from the nations capitol to Kalvsvik, it's no more than 15 minute ride.

Runestone

A runestone in Österhaninge, not very long from the ancient grave field in Jordbro. The inscription reads: Ödgunn and Arnggärd had this stone raised after their brother. The stone was found in 1956. It had probably been standing at an old bridge close to a little river. Today it stands next to a horse farm on the old road in Österhaninge. This place was very popular with the vikings and you can see lots of remains in this area.