Rösjö Marsh

Rösjö Marsh is the largest wetland in Skaraborg County and a vast and solitary wilderness. It is rather hard to access, but from the point of view of the birds, it is conveniently situated only a few kilometres southwest of Lake Hornborga.

There is an unwelcoming approach to Rösjö Marsh from Skara as you need to negotiate many kilometres of unprepared forest roads, many of which are blocked by road barriers. If you really do prefer solitude, it is well worth the effort to persevere and make your way through the cultivated forest until the ground feels soft underfoot and you can smell the marsh myrtle. Soon, the vast expanses of marshland open up before you with its straggly pines and birches anchored in tufts of grass. Looking towards the expanding horizon it feels as if you are on a distant moon. In order to really get the feeling of walking on the moon, you need to consult an aerial photograph and look for open ground. Most of the forest around Rösjö Marsh has been heavily farmed, and large expanses have been drained to promote growth, especially in the south where the forest is dense.

Only a small part of Rösjö Marsh is in Skara Municipality, the rest lies within the boundaries of Vara and Falköping. For a more pleasant approach, you need to arrive from the direction of Vara and park at Bastöna heritage museum, a grey timbered farm that remains unchanged since it was built in 1860. From there you can follow a well-trodden trail leading to a deserted cottage with enormous lime trees and an orchard. The path continues to the marsh. The more adventurous can do a five-kilometre walk around Lake Rösjö.

Because Rösjö Marsh is so hard to get to for humans, it is popular with birds that prefer peace and quiet. Many species normally associated with Sweden’s mountainous north breed here. These include golden plover, wood sandpiper and curlew. It is also popular in summer with cranes and whooper swans that come to pause on the islands in the marsh. But then they are less likely to show off than in spring, so they are harder to spot.