St. Olavskleiva

Pilegrimsleden crosses the Orkla River and then climbs up to Slipran farm. Here, the trail from Berkåk Station joins the main trail. At the farm, the path levels out, crosses the Slipra River, and passes through a nature reserve before reaching Olavskleiva.

Olavskleiva descends steeply to Flå. At the top of the hill, there are four marks in a stone, said to be traces of St. Olav, or more precisely, the hooves of Olav’s horse. From here, there is a magnificent view over the Orkla River and Orkdalen. Just below, an ironworks was established in 1852. Perhaps it was Olavskleiva and the traces of Olaf’s horse that gave the ironworks its name: St. Olav’s Ironworks. At the works, a blast furnace and a smithy building were constructed, along with a coal house, forges, and housing. The author Olav Berkaak wrote a novel about St. Olav’s Ironworks; in 1953 he published the book Snow and Fire, which deals with the tensions between peasant culture and industrialization. But St. Olav’s Ironworks did not last long; it was closed already in 1865.

Up in the hillside, before beginning St. Olavskleiva, there is a nature reserve. It was established in 1987 because the area is rich in thermophilic, deciduous forest and other thermophilic species. Here you can find, among other things, hazel, elm, and alder, together with wild garlic, spurge laurel, and musk.