Kinnekulle - Nature Preserve, Old Towns, Churches; even Medieval

Gotene Area

Kinnekulle 
Osterlund Parish Hunt

1.  Location

We are coming from Mariestad, to the north, toward Kinnekulle, still on Lake Vanern.  There is a sudden plateau rising up in its own flat way, and now comprised of a nature preserve. Go there for hiking, flora-fauna, with the old villages and churches still intact.  The plateau is visible from a distance. With the rest of the land so flat, this does stand out. On the way, south of Mariestad, is the Gotene area. That is where the fine old church, Kinne-Vedum is located, before coming to Kinnekulle area itself.

Kinnekulle, Nature Preserve, plateau

I am confident that some of our photos are mixed - there turned out to be so may fine old churches, and interesting scenes. Need time to research this saint or that, from the symbols.

2.  Orienting for Kinnekulle.

Sibbe the Hitcher went to Kinnekulle just because it was there.  He offers a thoughtful overview of the elk hunting once in the area, the King's preserve around here, and towns like Halleberg and Hunneberg on the lake and inland.  See http://www.sibbethehitcher.com/2009_09_01_archive.html  We are still at Lake Vanern. Kinnekulle area juts out, a peninsula. 

Sibbe says it is possible to see 63 churches from up there, and we believe it.

3.  Churches, churches.

Here is a site for the ones just in the Parish of Gotene, at  www.svenskakyrkan.se/default.aspx?di=720269.  Somebody named Bike Tommy has a fine album of many of the churches, for your overview, at http://www.panoramio.com/user/3186716/tags/kyrka?photo_page=7   For grave hunters, there were three main parishes on the plateau itself, Osterplana, Medelplana, Vasterplana. Then, on the downslope, partially on the flats, were five more:  Husaby (we think that is ours); Kinne-Kleva, Kestad, Fullosa and Fesham.

Fesham. Is that our Forshem?

Get the names before you get there. We think we are looking for Forshem, Husaby, St. Johannes. Looking for the old parish of the Osterlunds, whose Osterlund name (for all the children) we cannot connect to the parents, Kajsa Johannesdotter and Anders Petr Olausson; spellings differ.Petr, Peter, Per, Pehr.



6.  History

This area must have been central to the earliest late medieval conversion efforts of the Catholic Church, later Lutheranized, and the churches are unbelievably old, for the lack of publicity they get. Jaw-dropping medieval churches.  Small frequent parishes, to accommodate people who walk or ride to wagon to church from local farms.At a lake, perhaps the weather was more moderate?

7. Go south.

Beware.  Approach Kinnekulle from the north, and you get no help. Where are the signs to anything?  Our map was reasonably good, still, we ended up on all the back roads, and we finally just drove it like a ouija board. It was only when we  headed out of the area that we saw that all the signs are for those coming north from the south.  So:  go past and south first, find the main access road in, and take it.