I had finished my business early and had a long sunny day ahead of me. So I decided to walk home. I had taken the commuter train to Liljeholmen, half way to the centre of Stockholm. Google suggested a route along the freeway. I aimed for a scenic detour along the Mälaren shoreline to get away from the noise of the city.
After a while I entered Sätraskogens Nature Preserve, a strip of land next to Lake Mälaren. Separated from the suburbs, trains and roads by a ridge, Sätraskogen is an oasis of calm and quiet.
What was once the easiest and fastest way to get to the city centre, the scenic waterways of Lake Mälaren now opens to spectacular views from the path along the shoreline. Here you will find scenic lighthouses, wooden mansions, leisure harbours, a public beach and ruins of an ancient hill fortress.
Cafe Lyran at the northeastern end offered a traditional home cooked lunch in scenic 19th century wooden mansion inspired by the Swiss alps. A string of these appeared along the Mälaren shoreline for successful business people of Stockholm to show off their wealth and good taste. Lyran is an exceptionally well preserved example and open to the public.
Nearby lies Bellman's Cave. Carl Michael Bellman (1740-1795) is the national poet of Sweden. According to local legend, Bellman hid in the cave when his creditors came to collect what he owed them. Once an amusing feature of the English park next to the manor, it was scarred by a 1960s maintenance road next to it.
Opposite the waterway the island of Kungshatt rise prominently. Literally meaning the King's Hat, the island is named after a Viking Age king who presumably made the jump off the cliff with his horse to escape his pursuers. Only he dropped his hat at the top of the cliff. A copper hat has marked the location for centuries, a landmark for sailors.
A slow and pleasant alternative to the crowded commuter trains and rush hour packed freeways. Well worth a detour.