Holiday apartment in Smedjebacken: Iron culture, forests and waterways

Smedjebacken has a history closely linked to iron and mining, as well as extensive forest landscapes. The canal system of the Strömsholm Canal begins at the harbour; at the same time, the harbour lies 100 metres above sea level, making it one of the highest harbours in Sweden. Between historic industrial sites, art galleries, lakes and hiking trails, the municipality presents a diverse picture.

History and culture

Malingsbo Herrgård is a well-preserved Carolinian manor house on a hill between Lake Malungen and the Hedströmmen River in Smedjebacken Municipality. The manor house is considered a well-preserved example of the manor-house architecture of its time, bears witness to the region’s formative mining industry and was declared a listed building in 1935. Industrial history is also present at the harbour: the preserved locomotive depot has served as an exhibition venue there since summer 2016, particularly for industrial and cultural history exhibitions.

Iron ore has been mined at Flogberget since the 16th century. The silver mine in Stollberg is already mentioned in a charter of privileges issued by King Magnus Eriksson in 1354. Flogberget Mine offers guided tours, while an observation tower in the form of a headframe stands at the summit of Stollberget. From there, the view extends far towards Smedjebacken and Ludvika.

In the centre of Smedjebacken, Konsthall Meken is dedicated to contemporary art, design and handicrafts. In addition to exhibitions, it organises workshops and other cultural experiences. The Kulturstråket along Kyrkogatan comprises older houses, meeting places and art galleries connected with contemporary art and cultural history. Kyrkogatan historically connected Smidies-backen, the harbour and the church village. This resulted in dense development with shops, residential buildings, a fire station, industrial buildings belonging to Smedjebackens valsverk, and buildings associated with the railway and harbour.

The history of the locality also includes Norrbärke hembygdsgård. It is located in a cultural area that includes some of the few surviving buildings of the village, which was severely devastated by a fire in 1717. Söderbärke hembygdsgård has a summer café in the baking and brewing house. The studio of Johan Ahlbäck at Vasagatan 18 can be visited by prior arrangement. During the summer, a guided tour of the public artworks in Smedjebacken Municipality can also be booked.

Nature and hiking trails

Malingsbo-Kloten is a large, hilly coniferous forest area. There are several hiking trails there, and visitors can hike, paddle and fish in the area. The Malingsbo-Klotenleden is approximately 45 km long. A shorter loop is Milslingan: the trail is 10.5 km long and runs in and around the town of Smedjebacken.

Jätturn Nature Reserve offers mighty forests, rocky elevations, meadows and beautiful lakes along its hiking trails. At Jätturn, a circular trail of just over 1 km, partly reinforced with wooden walkways, leads around the lake. Visitors can also rent a boat there, row across the lake and enter the cave by boat.

Several trails combine landscape and industrial history. The 4 km-long Schisshyttans vandringsled follows the traces of the iron industry from the 17th century onwards; along the trail are remains of forges, small steelworks, workers’ housing, dams and blast furnaces. Sméleden is a 42 km-long hiking trail that runs from Björsjö northeastwards through the municipality to Jätturn and Lake Tunsan.

Waterways and harbour

The Strömsholm Canal was built between 1772 and 1795, primarily to transport bar iron from Bergslagen to Lake Mälaren. Along its approximately 100 km route, the canal has a total of 26 locks, in which boats are raised or lowered by around 100 metres. Today, the Strömsholm Canal is used for tourism.

The harbour of Smedjebacken marks the beginning of the canal system. Canoes and rowing boats are rented in the harbour area. The Strömsholm Canal is used for tourism.

For further local navigation, you can switch to Söderbärke and Smedjebacken.

For the higher-level travel overview: Dalarna County.

More destinations

More places within the same destination:

Gagnef, Hedemora, Falun, Malung-Sälen, Älvdalen, Rättvik.