Slite skärgård, Naturreservat

The Slite Archipelago Nature Reserve is a large nature reserve of over 6,000 hectares, most of which is water. Slite archipelago is Gotland's only area with an archipelago character and there are high nature values both in the water and on land.

The Slite archipelago is an accessible yet relatively untouched area with a low degree of development that has great value for outdoor recreation. Older facilities such as the quay on the island of Fjaugen and the old fishing huts, which are open for overnight stays, create accessibility for visitors who come by boat or kayak.

The rich bird life, many cultural remains from limestone mining, fishing and shipping, and typical geological formations such as rauks, beach spurs and sea walls make the area interesting to visit.

Below the water's surface, the conditions are also good for a rich marine life. The bottom structure is mosaic-like and is affected to varying degrees by currents and waves, which means that there is a great variety of eelgrass beds, bladderwrack belts and mussel beds.

The reserve also contains several flat beach meadows, including Asunden and Klasen. In spring and early summer, many birds lay their eggs in the ground vegetation. As a visitor, it is good to remember to only walk on designated paths and roads, to protect the birds' nests and eggs.

In the Slite archipelago nature reserve there are around ten islands, two of which have land connections. Some consist of sea walls and rauks, while others have been grazed for a long time, creating meadows and limestone grasslands. Many different birds live on the islands, especially breeding seabirds.

The vegetation on many of the islands can also be strikingly beautiful at the right time of year. Here from Lörgeholm Island. Photo: David Skoog

Asunden has been a protected island in one way or another since 1931 but is now, since 2021, part of the larger Slite archipelago reserve. Here you will find, among other things, one of Gotland's most beautiful rauk areas, located in the northeastern part of the island. Many of the rauks are both tall and have imaginative shapes. In addition to the rauks, there is also a rich flora with, among other things, beach cabbage and luddvedel and a very rich bird life on the beach meadows on the northwestern part of the island. The island is reached via a signposted gravel road from Vägume.

Ytterholmen is an island about 600 meters long and 300 meters wide located just over 500 meters off S:t Olofsholm. The highest parts of the island reach a little more than 15 meters above sea level. In the north and west, the island's beaches are steep and partly cliffy. Towards the south and east, the beach slopes more flatly down to the water. The island is largely covered by embankments of beach cliffs. Here and there, however, the bedrock protrudes as irregularly shaped sections of reef limestone. And especially in the northeast and south there are several high rauks.

The reef is a two-hectare cluster of skerries located in the eastern part of Vägumeviken, which has been protected as a bird sanctuary since 1966. It is forbidden to stay on Reveln between March 15 and June 30.

The island of Furilden is strongly characterized by long grazing. The southern tip of Furilden is part of the reserve and there is old forest, shingle and winding gravel roads.

In addition to the above islands, there are several smaller and larger islands in the nature reserve. Among these we find Grunnet, Majgu, Penden, Lörgeholm, Hojskär, Skenalden, Kitteln, Storgraut, Lillgraut, Fjaugen and Klasen.

Several of the islands in Slite Archipelago have rauks. Here from the eastern side of the island Fjaugen. Photo: David skoog

Many of the islands are quite flat, and have low vegetation. Here the island Hojskär. Photo: David Skoog

The islands differ a lot in appearance from each other. Some are flat and almost completely paved with rocks, others have rauks and collapsed cliff edges. Here from Fjaugen. Photo: David Skoog