The Swedish region of Södermanland has beautiful lakes scattered all around. Here we would here like to mention one of them, Gisesjön. This lake is in the parish of Västerljung and is within easy reach of both Trosa and Vagnhärad.
We visited the lake at the beginning of August 2019 and our Little A was more than happy to swim in the clear water. Well, that was until she got cold and wanted to get up. It was a windy morning and the sun was not yet warm enough to heat us.
Nynäs Nature Reserve
The southern part of Gisesjön where the main parking is, forms part of the Nynäs Nature Reserve. In fact, this spot is the 3.000-hectare reserve’s northern edge. The reserve was established in 1971 and has the Nynäs Castle in its center.
To read more about the Nynäs manor and the reserve, check out the manor’s official webpage here >>
Gisesjön is an oligotrophic lake, which means that is not very nutrient. There is little animal and plant life in the lake, which in turn makes the water very clear. However, this doesn’t mean that the lake is dead. Instead, it is inhabited by specialized plants that prefer the sunlight that goes far below the lake’s surface. Birds like the arctic loon and osprey thrive around the lake.
Swimming in the Lake
Gisesjön offers the possibility of either swimming at the small sandy beach or taking a short hike to one of the several cliffs. The beach is very easily accessible.
The parking lot is large, but even with a lot of cars people are able to spread out over a wide area. From the parking lot, there is a small wooden footpath built all the way down to the little sandy beach. The path first passes by the lake’s viewpoint erected as a Christening gift to Prince Alexander. The prince is the son of Prince Carl Philip and the Duke of Södermanland. Further down at the beach there is a wind shelter with the fireplace and of course the lake itself.
There are also walking trails in both directions that will take you to the many cliffs along the lake’s shore.
Hiking along Sörmlandsleden
Sörmlandsleden is a 1.000-kilometer-long hiking trail winding through the region of Södermanland (Sörmland for short). It is split up into around 100 sections and is marked with orange signs with an “S” as well as orange rings on the trees along its path. At Gisesjön you find section 54 that goes between Karlfors kvarn and Gisekvarn. The section is 8.5 kilometers long.
Read more about Sörmlandsleden on their webpage >>
Getting to Gisesjön
If you are not walking along Sörmlandsleden, then you will probably go either by car or bike. There is a large parking lot at the lake, at the end of a small gravel road. There are signs to Gisesjön along road 219.
