Tag: Sweden

A day at Ericksberg

While in Sweden, I spent two days in the field with Michael. I wrote about the first one here…..

Visiting the Swedish Countryside

I hadn’t planned to go two days in a row but our hosts, Stefan and Sophia, INSISTED that I go on this particular day.

So…..I went….and man, were they right!!

We drove to the Ericksberg Hotel and Game Reserve and were met by our guides for the day…. Albin (an apprentice gamekeeper) and Sophia.

The Ericksberg property is gorgeous with stately buildings ……

….. classic Swedish architecture……

…..and stunning grounds……

As we left the vehicle and struck out on foot, I was met with one of the rockiest areas I had ever seen…..

After a few minutes of scrambling over these boulders, I found a stick to help me in my journey. It wasn’t a great stick, but it did the job. Then, a little later, I found a better stick so I traded in the original one for a “new and improved” version!!

These rock formations were spectacular…..

One of the reasons we were visiting the property was to see the Swedish Fallow Deer. They were extremely skittish and, although we saw a bunch thru our binoculars, none were close enough to photograph. Here is what they look like…..

They have “Palmate Antlers” and the coat coloring, especially during this season, is dark with white spots. They were exciting to see!!

The property also has a large population of Red Stag……

Since it was the middle of the rut (mating season), the bulls were VERY vocal. In this video, you can hear one calling out to the ladies to say that he was “ready to go”, and then another one answering “Don’t THINK about taking my woman”!!

When this video was taken, we were behind a large group of rocks and the Stag was on the other side. Have a listen!!

It was SO cool to be that close.

In another instance, we could hear the “paddles” banging together as two males had a tussle with each other.

My biologist husband, Michael, was very excited by this pond of Lilies…..

Apparently, they are a rare version….although they look pretty normal to me!!

The Ericksberg property is committed to the conservation of animals that are native to Sweden and have a large population of Mouflon Sheep…..

…. and an even larger population of Wisent (European Bison)…….

Isn’t this baby cute…..

A face that only a mother could love!!

The only animal that isn’t native to Sweden is the Pere Davids Deer…..

These are native to China but are virtually extinct there. Ericksberg is cultivating this population with the idea that they will be returned to China to repopulate their native lands.

Our morning excursion ended with a Smorgasbord at one of their restaurants…..

The Swedish people love to eat game animals and this Wild Boar was amazingly tender and flavorful. I also couldn’t resist all of the grilled veggies!!!

And, since I am crazy about sunflowers, here is one of my favorite photos from the day…..

Our final act on the property was to visit the gift shop and Michael couldn’t resist trying on a typical Swedish cap and assuming his best “thoughtful” pose….

It was a very nice day that ended with Swedish Meatballs for dinner…..

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Michael and I love to travel and see new parts of the world and then I love to take those memories and turn them into quilts!!! I hope that you enjoy traveling along with us!!

Be sure to subscribe to the blog so you don’t miss a single trip!!

Visiting the Swedish Countryside

On my recent trip, I spent two days with Michael in the Swedish Countryside.

The weather was about 10 degrees warmer than average and was GORGEOUS.

The first day was spent at Jordberga Gods (FYI, ‘Gods’ is Swedish for ‘Estate’), a gorgeous property just outside of Malmo. It was founded in 1355 and the current guardians keep a great emphasis on agriculture, while using the estate’s grounds, halls and living quarters to host everything from groups of hunters to large wedding parties.

When we arrived, the fog was on the verge of lifting, and I was happy to get this shot…..

This tree had so much character!!

I loved the collection of hats and other “hunting apparel” in one of the offices…..

The buildings on the property are amazing, from the main house…..

….to a “cottage” just down the road…..

We were joined in our excursion by Stefan and Sophia and their cohorts, Paris and Lilly…..

We were on the lookout for birds in the area and were greeted by this massive flock of Eurasian Cranes…..

Oh the racket when they took off!!!

We also came upon a covey of Hungarian Partridge…..

….when Paris spotted them, it was time for them to fly for the hills!!

We started walking along the plowed fields of the property, enjoying the gentle curves in the land……

….and, every once in a while, noticing a red barn in the distance…..

There were also random copses of trees that provided some shelter …..

As always, while Michael is looking for wildlife, I am looking for plants and other beauties!!

I kept seeing bushes with lovely flowers and red berries…..

After translating the Swedish term “nypon”, I learned that these were Rose Hip bushes….a new plant to add to my list!!!

I was truly enamored with the berries….

As we walked, I was often lagging at the back as I stopped to take photos of…..

Dried Thistle…..

…..tiny Daisies……

….. the ubiquitous Dandelion…..

…..and a bit of Queen Anne’s Lace….

When I saw this flower, I was instantly reminded of my round robin quilt…..

“Vila Do Conde Friendship Garden”

….and the Queen Anne’s Lace that Ruhanna added to the garden……

At lunchtime we drove about 10 minutes to the coast….

….where we stopped for a “typical” Swedish treat….. “Räksmörgås” which is a Swedish Prawn Sandwich……..

It was very tasty but I was surprised to find that there was a boiled egg underneath the prawns!!

So….this was day one in the countryside. Stay tuned for day two (it has trumpeting Red Stag)!!!!

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Michael and I love to travel and see new parts of the world and then I love to take those memories and turn them into quilts!!! I hope that you enjoy traveling along with us!!

Be sure to subscribe to the blog so you don’t miss a single trip!!