Le Nord de l'île

Northern Gotland – rocky cliffs magically lit

In northern Gotland, the landscape is starkly beautiful and understated. Here the gravel tracks are a brilliant white and the shingle beaches seem to stretch for miles. The cliffs stretch all along the coast. Quarrying has dominated the landscape and local industry from time immemorial.

Slite is home to Cementa, one of the world’s largest cement works and one of the biggest employers on this part of the island. Here there are plenty of shops, a port, a holiday village and good bathing just a stone’s throw from the centre. The islands just off Slite have made the town a favourite among boating and kayak enthusiasts.

Lärbro is centrally situated on northern Gotland. Grocer’s shop, keep-fit centre and a museum housed in an old army hospital.

Fårösund, at the far north of the Big Island, as the residents of Fårö call it, has flourished during recent years. Those who predicted a slow decline following the departure of the Gotland Coast Artillery Regiment in the early 2000s got it completely wrong. The area where the regiment was once stationed today accommodates a film studio, a sports facility, a folk high school and numerous small businesses. New homes are going up along the water, while the old fortress has been converted into an exclusive hotel.

Culture and history on northern Gotland

Four or five kilometres north of Visby lies Muramaris, an artist’s home built in Italianate style in the early 20th century. Today’s amenities include a restaurant, a holiday village, an art gallery and a beautiful baroque garden. Signposted from road 149.

After a further five kilometres or so, you reach Krusmyntagården, a Gotland herb garden right by the shore. From here it’s not far to the Lummelunda Cave, one of Gotland’s greatest tourist attractions. The cave is famous for its stalactites, created by drops of water falling from cold underground nooks and crannies, and runs for several kilometres right into the rock. Both Krusmyntagården and the Lummelunda Cave are signposted from road 149.

One of the most popular songs sung in Swedish schools at the end of the summer term, Den blomstertid nu kommer, was written here on Gotland, more specifically at Hångers Källa in Lärbro. Even today, cool water bubbles from the spring. Signposted from road 148, just south of Lärbro. At a beautiful spot along the same road stand the ruins of Gann Church, which was abandoned sometime in the 16th century.

According to legend, the Norwegian king Olaf Haraldsson, or Olaf the Holy, landed at St. Olofsholm, in the parish of Hellvi, at the beginning of the 11th century to Christianize the people of Gotland. Parts of the church built to commemorate the event survive to this day.

Northern Gotland has any number of museums. Bunge Museum, just south of Fårösund, illustrates the everyday life of peasants, fisher folk, smallholders and other residents of the farms and villages from the mid-17th century until the end of the 1920s.

Groddagården, in Fleringe, is a well preserved farm where local musician Grodd-Ole, a skilled fiddler, ran an inn back in the 18th century. The Bläse quarrying museum tells the story of how limestone was quarried on the island in days gone by. The old steam train is still running but now takes passengers rather than truck-loads of stone.

Vike Minnesgård in Boge is a typical early-19th-century coastal farm with old-fashioned buildings, a herb garden and a beautiful meadow

Northern Gotland’s beautiful countryside

High above the old fishing village of Lickershamn rises Jungfrun (The Maid), Gotland’s highest sea-stack. The view out towards Ihreviken and Häftings cliff in the north is magnificent. Ihreviken is a long sandy beach ideal for bathing and is one of the locals’ favourites.

Another place affording a splendid view of the sea is the high cliff just east of the fishing village at Hallshuk in the parish of Hall. On a clear day, you can even see the Digerhuvud sea-stacks at Fårö. Signposted from road 149 just south of Kappelshamn. Small, hardy pines seem to cling to the ground along the shore of Stenkusten (the Stone Coast) and Sigsarve. The silence is broken only by the sound of the waves, and it’s easy to find a spot all of your own. Few people leave the Stone Coast without pocketing a pebble to remind them of the beauty of the place.

Falholmen, immediately outside Ar, is a small island to which you can wade when the tide is out. Svarvnäset, in Fleringe, is the part of the Stone Coast that runs between Ar and Bläse. Here, the open landscape, with its stones and exposed rock, is almost reminiscent of the prairie. Sitting here on a summer night, you’ll hardly have time to watch the sun go down before the light reappears in the east.

From road 148 at Rute, turn off towards Bläse. At Bläse, head north towards Svarvnäset. The road to Furillen runs along a narrow neck of land, the only land joining the peninsular to Gotland itself. If you’re exploring Furillen by bike, you’ll find secluded bays and places with magnificent views. Here, too, limestone was quarried during the last century. Today, viper’s bugloss and wild strawberries grow in the old quarries, and the factory is now a world-famous hotel.

There are several träskar* on northern Gotland. Both Tingstäde and Bäste träsk offer great bathing, and the water is often warmer than the sea. Träskmyr, in Lärbro, is a breeding ground for cranes.

Valleviken, in Rute, is a paradise for bathers and boating enthusiasts. Here you’ll find a guest harbour, a fine bathing beach, a restaurant and a holiday village.