When we went to continue our adventure in Sweden last fall with the house in Knåpbodarna, we heard the story behind the cottage and this is well worth it. The house was built in 1972, with the original foundation and beams from 1908. For the last at least 15 years, an old lady has lived there. The entire cottage was set up for her rather lonely life there. Lonely, but perhaps that is entirely the wrong word. Indeed, the house and the story around it did not exude that. It exuded more of a robust self-assurance, of a woman who wanted to live independently in the midst of nature with her dog, cat and chickens into old age.
How did she do that?
For us Dutch, this may not sound so special, but I (by now a quarter Swedish…) know it is. This lady lived there all year round, including the winter season which is long in Sweden. And as you can read/see in the photos and also in my other blog, these are not “fluttery winters” here. About a meter and a half of snow, between -10 and -20 is quite normal. So how did she do it? What makes the cottage so great for us and for the rental we want with it is that it is a back to basics house and remote, in the middle of pristine nature. That’s nice for us if you adjust to that and want to enjoy the peace and quiet. But for someone who lives there all the time and is elderly; how did she do it? Really deep respect!
I am fishing at the lake
The old owner was forced to leave the house because unfortunately, due to old age and physical complaints, it was no longer possible for her to live here. As when we started the house in Krusbo, we first took a leisurely walk in and around the house. I imagined stepping into this lady’s life story for a moment and felt the respect and care for her place here. Everything still exuded this brave woman. From the chicken coop outside, the pathway to the neatly tended outhouse, the wood stock perfectly arranged in large and small logs, to the fence for the dog and in the garden remnants of a once beautiful garden with flower beds. On the coat rack on the covered porch hangs the dog leash and her raincoat still ready for the walk. As a reminder, I see on a nail on the door a kind of cardboard which is described on both sides. In Swedish it says on one side; ”I am fishing by the lake” and on the other side ”I am with the Magnusson sisters.” The neighbor from a short distance away managed to tell us that she went fishing almost every day to catch her own trout for dinner. Together with our dog, I grab her leash and raincoat, walk down the path to the lake, and I promise in my heart to take good care of the old owner of her much-loved spot.
Experience it too!
You can do as the old owner often did, walk down the path to the small lake, get into the boat at jetty and go fishing at the lake. In the evening, prepare your home-caught fresh fish on the BBQ; enjoy! Do you also want the real experience of this typical Swedish nature cottage; then book quickly the vacation home in Knåpbodarna.