Skurugata

Skurugata is a fracture in the granite that runs about eight hundred metres, seven to twenty-five metres wide and up to thirty-five deep, with vertical walls and a floor of fallen blocks that you scramble over rather than walk along. Little sun reaches the bottom, so it holds cold air, and snow and ice can survive in it well into the summer; the walls carry mosses and ferns that need that permanent damp shade. It has the usual associations with trolls and outlaws. Skuruhatt, a hill nearby at 337 metres, gives a long view over the Smaland forest and is the standard combination with the gorge.

Background

The gorge lies in Eksjö Municipality, and a popular theory holds that parallel faulting formed it. Its walls and the stones scattered on its floor are mostly porphyritic rock in grey-brown and dark-brown shades, containing quartz and red feldspar. Halfway along, a loose stone marked by a small sign can be lifted to reveal a guestbook signed by earlier visitors. Early in the season and after heavy rain, parts of the floor may fill with water. The area is a naturreservat, so camping, fires, motor vehicles, litter and damage to plants are not allowed. A hiking trail of 2000 metres leads through the gorge and on to the hill of Skuruhatt.

Source: Wikipedia, "Skurugata"

Highlights

• A cleft eight hundred metres long - up to thirty-five metres deep.
• A floor of fallen blocks - scrambling rather than walking.
• Cold air held at the bottom - ice can last into summer.
• Skuruhatt nearby - a view over the Smaland forest.

When to go

May to September. Two to three hours.

What to expect

The floor is loose rock and genuinely awkward - not a stroll. It is wet and slippery even in dry weather. There is no lighting and little sky. Facilities are a car park and nothing else.

Nearby

Eksjo is south-west; Vimmerby is east.

Key facts