Vallhagarleden

People have lived in the area around Vallhagar for thousands of years. Experience nature and history by walking along the slightly longer trail or take a shorter stop at the remains of the Iron Age village.

Join us on a 4.5 kilometer hike around the valley. The trail takes you through a historic landscape - even the road you walk on is part of the historic environment. It already existed in the 17th century.

Vallhagar house foundation area

Vallhagar is a well-researched archaeological site. The remains found indicate that people have lived here since the Iron Age (around 200 BC). From that time there is a village with 5 or 6 farms with 3-5 houses on each farm.

In the picture below you can see an illustration of what the houses and farms may have looked like. The houses were built on strong stone foundations. The roofs were covered with ag or turf and were supported inside the houses by two rows of posts. The hearth was in the middle of the floor and the smoke had to find its way out through openings in the gables. One can imagine that it was dark in the houses because there were no windows.

Today, the stone walls are a beautiful feature of the historical environment on Gotland. When the vastarna were built, it was not for aesthetic reasons. The stone walls had an important function in keeping the animals out of the important harvest of the fields. The animals walked freely and the fields were fenced in, contrary to how we usually do today.

Good to know for you as a visitor

• To get to the house base area and the information sign, you need to pass the stile.
• Parking is available adjacent to the start of the trail and the house grounds area.
• The area is grazed with lambs, think about showing consideration.
• We would like to warn visitors that there are many ticks in the area.
• It is possible to walk between Vallhagar and Sällegravfältet