Kolmården () is a long and wide densely forested rocky ridge that separates the Swedish

provinces A province is an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term ''provi ...

Södermanland Södermanland ( ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latinisation of names, Latinized form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a Provinces of Sweden, historical province (or ) on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Österg� ...

and Östergötland, two of the country's main

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

areas, from each other, and in historic times, along with Tylöskog and Tiveden, formed the border between the land of the

Swedes Swedes (), or Swedish people, are an ethnic group native to Sweden, who share a common ancestry, Culture of Sweden, culture, History of Sweden, history, and Swedish language, language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countries, ...

and the land of the

Geats The Geats ( ; ; ; ), sometimes called ''Geats#Goths, Goths'', were a large North Germanic peoples, North Germanic tribe who inhabited ("land of the Geats") in modern southern Sweden from antiquity until the Late Middle Ages. They are one of ...

History

In early

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

times it was seen as a major obstacle in land travel between the regions, and so the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

was largely used instead. Together with the extensive forests of Tiveden and Tylöskog to its west, Kolmården formed a major impediment for travel between the

Svealand Svealand (), or Swealand, is the historical core region of Sweden. It is located in south-central Sweden and is one of the three historical lands of Sweden, bounded to the north by Norrland and to the south by Götaland. Deep forests, Tive ...

to the north and the

Götaland Götaland (; also '' Gothia'', ''Gothland'', ''Gothenland'' or ''Gautland'') is one of three lands of Sweden and comprises ten provinces. Geographically it is located in the south of Sweden, bounded to the north by Svealand, with the deep wo ...

, which caused peaceful and warlike interaction to be conducted by water. In the Icelandic text '' Sögubrot af nokkrum fornkonungum'', Kolmården between Svealand and Östergötland is described as the border between Sweden and Östergötland (..). It also appears as Mirkwood in some editions of Sögubrot, in the legend of Helgi Hundingsbane and probably also in '' Völundarkviða''.

Geography

The forest is divided between Norrköping Municipality and Nyköping Municipality on either side of the regional border. The Östergötland side has the majority of the population, centred in the village of Krokek. Settlements Strömsfors and Kvarsebo are also included on that side of the border. The Södermanland side has the small settlements of Kila, Stavsjö and Ålberga in Nyköping's Kila district named after river Kilaån that flows through Kolmården towards the

. Today the forest is traversed by the

Norrköping Norrköping ( , ) is a city in the province of Östergötland in eastern Sweden and the seat of Norrköping Municipality, Östergötland County, about 160 km southwest of the national capital Stockholm, 40 km east of county seat Lin ...

– Nyköping

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

, the

– Katrineholm railway, and the E4

highway A highway is any public or private road or other public way on land. It includes not just major roads, but also other public roads and rights of way. In the United States, it is also used as an equivalent term to controlled-access highway, or ...

, all connecting southern Sweden with

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

and the Mälaren region. Along the former there is also a Kolmården railway station, at Krokek next to Bråviken.

Climate

Kolmården has a climate that is a hybrid between maritime and continental with some differences between lower, coastal parts, and the higher forested hills. The Kolmården weather station is located at above sea level and therefore has some orographic lift, resulting in increased rainfall for the region. Its position in a hill lowers daytime highs compared to the municipal seat of

, while lows remain similar to the lower elevation. The elevated nature Kolmården has an effect on rainfall east of it, splitting many fronts in two, creating a micro version of a

rain shadow A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side. Evaporated moisture from body of water, bodies of water (such as oceans and larg ...

. As a result, the climates right on the coastline of Oxelösund and Nyköping become drier than the waterfront next to the Kolmården hills.

Kolmården Wildlife Park

The Kolmården Wildlife Park, opened in 1965, overlooks Bråviken bay. This zoo includes the only dolphinarium in Sweden.

Notes

External links