Kroksjöskogen, Naturreservat

In the Kroksjöskogen nature reserve you will encounter a wild and exciting old-growth forest, with plenty of marshland and a system of lobed lakes. Like little gnomes' beards, many branches are draped with various hanging lichens, and on the ground the ice sheet has piled up lots of large boulders.

The pheasant forest

The Kroksjöskogen nature reserve is located on the edge of the Kilsbergen mountains in the lake-rich and coarse-blocky area known as Fasaskogen. The inaccessible terrain is probably one of the reasons why the forest here has escaped large-scale forestry. Therefore, today there is a varied and species-rich old-growth forest with trees of different ages as well as both dead and dying trees. Pines dominate on hills, bogs and rocky areas, while spruce thrives better on hollows and slopes. Deciduous trees such as aspen and birch are abundant in places.

Bergslagsbygd

Kroksjöskogen is located in an area with a long history of mining. Large quantities of charcoal were needed in both smelters and forges. In the reserve there are traces of charcoal kilns where charcoal was produced, which was an important source of income for many of the local crofters. Driving carts and chopping wood were some of the other activities of the crofters.

Many hanging lichens

Closed spruce forests in wet hollows provide a stable high humidity, which many mosses and lichens depend on. Among other things, green shield moss and wood moss grow here. Typical of Kroksjöskogen and other parts of Fasaskogen is the abundance of various hanging lichens, such as yarn lichen.

Dead wood lives

To the delight of many rare species, there is plenty of dead wood. If you are observant, you will find fungi such as wood ticks and wool ticks. Inside dead wood live many different small animals and other organisms, species that cannot survive in today's large-scale forests. These small animals are a great larder for woodpeckers and other birds. If you are lucky, you may see capercaillie and wolverine living here in the forest.

Accessibility

Kroksjöskogen belongs to level 1 in the County Administrative Board's leveling of the county's nature reserves, which means that the reserve has a wilderness character and lacks outdoor recreation facilities except for the marked path that passes through the western part of the reserve.