Stockholm is a beautiful city situated on a number of islands. But it is still just that.  A city.  And sometimes you need a day trip to remind you of the natural beauty that Sweden has to offer.

Luckily, in just about 45 minutes Stockholm public transportation will take you to the gates of a primeval forest.  Tyresta National Park.

The National Park is surrounded by a nature reserve, two different things in the Swedish lexicon.  A nature reserve can include private land, a national park cannot.  The entire area includes about 5,000 hectares of, for the most part, untouched forest.

Aside from the hiking trails snaking through the forest Tyresta is a beautiful example of an ancient forest.  The old growth allows for an amazing biodiversity and a sense of nature at its most pristine form.

Just 10 years ago, nearly 10% of the forest was caught in a forest fire, today, that area is still scarred by upended, burnt out trees.  But the land is recovering.  The green shrubbery stretches across the area and the trees are beginning to cast shadows.

Walking along the trail about six kilometers in is Stensjön, literally Rock Lake.  True to its name the bottom of the lake was covered in large smooth boulders.  Apparently, although I did not make my way over to it, an old fortress once stood on the northern side of the lake.

Tyresta National Park offers numerous trails to explore the forest.  To traipse along the ancient rocks.  To see nature revive itself after a devastating fire.  Unspoiled and beautiful, the park is a great day trip away from Stockholm.

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