Lingarö, Naturreservat

In Lingarö Nature Reserve you can hike over high rocky knolls that plunge steeply down to the sea. But there are also old fields, dry rocky areas and lime-rich coniferous forest with green moss mats. The reserve is located about 5 kilometers east of Hudiksvalls and covers 39.9 hectares, of which 29.1 hectares are land and 10.8 hectares are water.

Several marked paths make it easy to find your way around the nature reserve. If you come from the parking lot in the north and choose the path that goes closest to Lingaröviken, your hike begins in a dramatic landscape with large boulders, beautiful rocks and gnarled pines.

From Skorvberget you have a nice view out over Hudiksvallsfjärden. Feel free to stop at the top of the hill, take out your lunch bag and enjoy the silence. Look out over the sea with all the islets, skerries and blue heights. If you leave the path and head higher up the mountain, you can wander among lichens, mosses and centuries-old pines.

Orange thorn fungus and night violet

If you continue hiking or enter the reserve from the south, a real "magic forest" awaits you. There are old trees, tall blueberry bushes and orange thorn mushrooms, one of the many fungi that benefit from the calcareous soil. The orchid night-flowering violet has also been found in the limestone barrens.

In the middle of the nature reserve, the forest opens up in small glades. The area is called Otterskär and was once a sea bay. Local farmers used to grow crops and make hay for their animals here. Now ferns and other tall vegetation are spreading around the old arable land, which is surrounded by a deciduous forest with high natural values.

Standing and dead trees

In parts of the reserve there are plenty of standing and lying dead trees in various stages of decay. The dead wood is an important habitat for fungi, insects and birds.

Orange thorn fungus grows in moss-rich, lime-affected coniferous forest such as here in Lingarö. When young, the hat is light in color and later turns orange-brown from the middle. The foot is 2-10 centimeters high.