The sun woke me up from my sleep telling me that it was time for the second day of my road trip. I was surprised that I had slept so well in the car and as the sun was raising the ferry to the island of Öland was preparing to start its boarding. I still had no clue if there would be space for me onboard, but it didn’t really matter. Either I would go to Öland, or I would continue southward along the coast. Little did I know what surprises and happy coincidences lay ahead of me on this day.
Öland has been on my wishlist for a few years. One of the reasons is that my ancestor Olof Johan Erlandsson (1854-1933) came from the island. He grew up at Himmelsberga in Långlöt Parish, a farm that is today the regional museum. Considering that I was just a kid during my last visit to the island at the end of the 1990s it was definitely time to return.
The Ferry to Byxelkrok on the Island of Öland
Watching car by car boarding the ferry and then the many cyclists it looked like a grim outcome for me. I really thought that the ferry would be more than full and that I was going to have to opt for my alternative option. However, as the last possible passenger, I was waved forward. My car was allowed to board and we barely fitted in the last available space on the car deck. We were soon embarking on the short passage across the Kalmar Strait to Byxelkrok in the northern part of Öland. The view of the sea meant that I actually posted a photo on Facebook to tell people of the nice morning endeavor.
The Baltic Sea really offered the best possible conditions for a crossing this morning. The water was almost mirrorlike and the sun was bright. The view of the harbor was soon replaced by that of open water with Öland barely noticeable at the horizon. We passed by the island of Blå Jungfrun and soon arrived at the fishing village of Byxelkrok. The long sandy beaches of the island were on full display already and the morning sun meant that many of the locals as well as visitors started to wake up for a day in the sunshine.
The Northern part of Öland
After arrival at Byxelkron, I decided to drive a bit further north on Öland. Well, as far north as possible actually. At its northern tip, there is an impressive lighthouse named “Långe Erik“. In English, the name is “Tall Erik”. There is actually a lighthouse also on the southern tip of the island that is named Långe Jan. The area at the northern part of the island is really beautiful for walks and the lighthouse is a nice addition. I decided to walk a bit along the coast and even though there were many tourists it was possible to just watch out over the water and not hear more than the birds and insects.
Revisiting Childhood Memories
It was during my walk at the northern tip of the island that I got a reply to my post on Facebook. It was a “syssling“, the Swedish word for a 2nd-cousin, that invited me for a coffee at her summer cabin. I had never met her before, but we got into contact regarding my heritage research during the last few years. Once she sent me the address it felt familiar.
As I mentioned earlier, I had been to Öland before during the late 1990s. At that time we rented a summer cabin close to the coast from my father’s cousin. We actually did this for two succeeding years. I have since forgotten where exactly we spent these two summers and I had no clue who we rented it from. In any case, that address just felt familiar. So I actually went into my photo archive and found an old photo from our trip and sent it to my 2nd-cousin. I’m not sure which of us was the most surprised when it turned out to be the same place, even though the house had been updated.
So from the northern tip of the island, I continued a bit south to meet my 2nd-cousin for the first time in real life and to revisit those old childhood memories. It really is an interesting feeling to stand at the gates of a summer cabin that is just so familiar, but still so different. Time flies, but parts of this place had really frozen in time. It’s just incredible to actually stumble upon an opportunity like this. My heritage research has really paid off in all the amazing meetings it has created. This is just one of several such meetings, we even met some even more distant relatives during a trip to San Francisco prior to the pandemic.
Following in the Steps of my Ancestors
The family heritage research had not only gotten me in contact with some amazing almost lost relatives. It has also given me a few locations around Sweden that are of high interest, where my ancestors have lived for several generations. One ancestor of mine left Öland during the 19th century. He was born and raised by a maid who lived at the farm Himmelsberga. His mother and grandmother also came from this part of the island, around the parishes of Långlöt and Runsten. I made sure to stop by the center of both these parishes to see the churches where my ancestors most likely spent part of their lives. But it was the farm Himmelsberga that was my main destination.
Himmeslsberga still exists today but it is no longer active as a farm. Instead, this is today Öland’s Museum. Can you imagine the luck that your ancestors’ former home has been turned into a museum? Sadly the museum didn’t have much information about the servants that once lived here, but it was still an indescribable feeling to walk around and letting the mind piece in the gaps.
Returning to the Mainland
After an interesting day, I left Himmelsberga behind but I do hope to return. It was now time to return to the mainland. I made two shorter stops on the way. The first was at an old fortress named Borg that offered some impressive perspective of how large the forts could be also several centuries ago. Then there was a short dinner stop in Färjestaden, the largest town on the island.
Then eventually I was driving back towards the mainland and I knew that I had one of the most impressive sights in Sweden ahead of me. It was time to cross the Öland Bridge. With a length of 6.072 meters, this was the longest bridge in Europe for 26 years after its completion in 1972. The feeling when crossing these long bridges is hard to describe. The Öresund Bridge is, of course, even more impressive. But the Öland Bridge really has its charm and especially so when finding a good spot to just watch it stretch out over the Kalmar Strait.
My evening consisted of a walk through the town of Kalmar, famous for its castle and summer events before I started to look for somewhere to spend the night. I actually continued a bit further down the coast before finding a camping in Bergkvara. This time I opted to pay for a spot for the night so that I would get access to facilities such as a shower. Driving around sleeping in your own car usually is not recommended if you value your personal hygiene. Luckily this was a nice option en route, but my camping neighbors might have been wondering what I was doing as I didn’t put up a tent or anything else. Either way, I got a good night’s rest before it was time to continue my adventure.
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