Kinda: Lake Landscape, Hiking Trails and Culture

Kinda is a distinctive lake landscape: Åsunden and Järnlunden define it, while the Kinda Canal winds through the municipality.

Nature and Trails

The Östgötaleden trail passes through the varied nature and diverse cultural landscape of the area around Kinda. It connects Kinda with Linköping, Åtvidaberg, Ydre and Boxholm; from Kisa, there is also a southern connection to the Sevedeleden trail in Småland.

The Kisa–Horn stage is marked in green and classified as easy. After Horn, the trail continues for another 14 kilometres on an easy hike to the border of Småland, where the Östgötaleden becomes the Sevedeleden.

The Trollegater Nature Reserve contains one of the largest systems of primeval rock caves in Sweden. The main cave is 110 metres long in total and contains passages that require crawling. An approximately 200-metre-long orange-marked hiking trail leads from the car park to the caves. The car park at Trollegater has space for about 15 cars; buses have a separate parking area.

The Östgötaleden hiking trail passes through the 800-metre-long Humlehögsravinen ravine. In the Idhult area, there is also an orange-marked circular trail of approximately two kilometres. The Östgötaleden leads to Klevberget, which rises about 50 metres above Lake Järnlunden, and continues along an approximately three-kilometre circular trail. From Klevberget, there is a view of Borgarmon’s deciduous forests, Hallstad’s meadows and the wide expanse of Lake Järnlunden.

Short trails, circular routes and longer stages offer you different scales for making matter-of-fact comparisons of routes and excursions.

Lakes and Water

The Hallstad ängar Nature Reserve has a natural sandy beach on Lake Järnlunden. On Hackelboön, an approximately 500-metre-long path leads from the car park to a shore with a natural sandy beach that invites you to swim. The first 300 metres of the shore path run along a wide, level path with fine gravel and are suitable for prams or walking frames. For children aged 8 to 12, there are five Nature Agent tasks on Hackelboön.

The beach at Ã…sunden has a sandy beach, jetties, a diving tower, a toilet and an accessible ramp. Kinda offers opportunities for outdoor activities all year round, including hiking, swimming, paddling and nature experiences.

Day trips, evening trips and shorter boat trips are offered on the Kinda Canal with a passenger boat. The summer route Kisa–Pinnarp includes a manually operated cable ferry across Lake Övre Fölingen.

Cycling and Exercise

Kisa MTB Park offers mountain bike trails ranging from blue flow trails to black tracks.

Culture and History

The Kisa Emigrant Museum is located in one of Kisa’s oldest cultural buildings from the 18th century, which was associated with Sundius’ emigration agency. In May 1845, Peter Cassel led the first organised emigration of 21 people to North America. Through exhibitions and sound installations, the museum conveys the stories of individual emigrants and displays photographs, letters, documents and objects from the local area.

Kinda’s local history archive at 3 Torggatan in Kisa contains documents, photographs and films from associations, businesses and private households in the municipality, as well as an extensive collection of letters from emigrants from Kinda, mainly to America.

Tidersrums kyrka is the oldest wooden church in Östergötland and dates from the 13th century. It has High Gothic paintings, sculptures from the early Middle Ages, an altarpiece from 1695 and a depiction of Saint Olaf from the 13th century. The Tidersrums Hembygdsmuseum displays a collection of objects from the local area.

Horns kyrka was consecrated in 1754. At Björkfors Arthouse in Lindgården in Björkfors, Madeleine van Nigtevecht paints colourful pictures and makes ceramics.

The Kinda destination also includes the places Kisa, Rimforsa, Västra Eneby and Horn.

To the higher-level travel overview: Östergötland.

More Destinations

More places within the same destination:

Åtvidaberg, Ödeshög, Valdemarsvik, Mjölby.