Accessibility

The national park's two entrances are Entré Skäralid and Entré Röstånga and are easy to get to by public transport, with a bicycle or with a car. Both entrances have large parking areas with parking spaces for the disabled and accessible trails.

We would like to remind you that in winter there is no snow shovelling or anti-slipping carried out on trails or rest areas.
Snow shovelling and anti-slipping measures will only be carried out around the visitor centre and the accessible parking spaces that are there.

Entré Skäralid is alongside road 13/108 about 5 kilometres north of Röstånga and about 5 kilometres south of Ljungbyhed. There are bus stops (route 518) on either side of the road near to the entrance. But if you come from the south, you will have to cross a fairly busy road.
If you come by car, when you turn off the main road, you will come to a parking area that can accommodate about 150 cars, three of the parking spaces are for the disabled.

The visitor centre with naturum, national park management office and café is located on top of a hill. The entire building is accessible for wheelchairs and mobility scooters and has 90-centimeter-wide doors, automatic door openers and an accessible toilet where the door is 91-centimeters wide.

For those with a parking permit for the disabled, it is possible to drive all the way up to a parking lot about 5 meters from the side entrance of the naturum/visitor centre. There are three, four-meter-wide accessible parking spaces. We are happy to open the side entrance for you with any form of disability, just ring the visitor centre on the following
phone number 010 224 11 50 and we will come and open.

To the main entrance of the visitor centre/naturum, from the car park, there is about 30 meters of stone paved walkway and a 2-meter-long ramp up to the entrance doors.
There is currently no resting plane between the ramp and the entrance doors.

In naturum Söderåsen there is an exhibition about the national park, its nature, geology, and cultural history. There is also a small shop, and different activities for young and old.  It is possible to visit the exhibition with a wheelchair.
The multilingual staff is happy to help with information and will answer any questions you might have. There are also easy-to-read guide folders and other information about Söderåsen to read on site or to take with you.

In the visitor centre, you can also get detailed information about our hiking trails and which of them that are accessible. You can download our hiking trail map below.

• Hiking trail map Söderåsen national park, A3, two pages (PDF)

In addition to the parking spaces at the naturum/visitor centre, there are also three, five-meter-wide parking pockets in the smaller part of the parking area in Skäralid. Follow the signage.
From the lower parking area, it is approximately 150 meters to the naturum via an uphill slope. At present, the slope is too steep to manage on your own if you are in a wheelchair - assistance is needed.
The plan is to make an accessible road up to the visitor centre, but we cannot say when it will be ready.

On the Kopparhatten plateau there are two marked parking spaces for cars with a permit for disabled. One in front of the toilet building and one in front of the parking for buses.

Toilets are available in Skäralid, at Kopparhatten and at Liagården.
In Skäralid, in the naturum there is an accessible toilet. The door is 91 centimetres wide, and the toilet has a seat height of 47 centimetres. There are fold-down armrests.
In the toilet there is also an adjustable changing table (for children) that is 77 by 77 centimetres and a low adult changing table that is 90 by 125 centimetres, at a height of 47 centimetres from the floor. There is an emergency alarm in the toilet but unfortunately no lifting aid.
The accessible toilet in the naturum is open during the visitor centres opening hours.

There is another accessible toilet in Skäralid, below the visitor centre, in the toilet house along Kopparhattsvägen. The door to the accessible toilet is 93 centimetres wide. The seat height on the toilet is 42 centimetres and there are fold-down armrests.
There is also a fold-down changing table for children (64 by 64 centimetres) in the same space, 94 centimetres above the floor in the folded position.

The accessible toilet in the toilet house is available 24 hours a day and has an electric door opener and motion sensors. The door gives visitors plenty of time to get into or out of the toilet before the door closes. The sensors on both the inside and outside of the door detect if someone is standing in the way. This means that the door does not open or close completely if someone is within the range of the sensor.

At Kopparhatten, the toilet is a compost toilet, with a short (15 centimetres), paved ramp up to the toilet door. The door is equipped with a door closer, which means that help may be needed to open the door but that it closes on its own. The toilet has fold-down armrests, and the toilet seat has a seat hight of 48 centimetres.

At Liagården, the toilet is a compost toilet. There is a wooden ramp with a handrail up to the toilet door. In front of the door is a resting plane. The door is equipped with a door closer, which means that help may be needed to open the door but that it closes on its own. There are fold-down armrests, and the toilet seat has a height of 48 centimetres.

In Skäralid, in addition to the visitor centre, there are three accessible twin grills and several accessible bench tables on gravel, but also green areas, a nature play ground with wood chips on the ground and in Skäralid several of our hiking trails start.
Bring your own firewood or charcoal for the grills, there is no firewood in Skäralid,  nor axe or saw.

In Skäralid you will have a fantastic view of the Skärdammen pond, which was built in the 1930s. Nowadays there is also a detour, past the migration barrier that the dam used to be, and the detour helps fish, mussels and other aquatic species to migrate up into the Skärdammen pond and onto Skärån stream, but also help aquatic species migrate the other way, out towards Rönne å and Skälderviken.

The Kopparhatten road also starts from Skäralid. The road will take you up to the Kopparhatten viewpoint either on foot, by bus, car, or any other vehicle. It is an approximately 2-kilometre-long paved uphill road. From the accessible carpark to the viewpoint, it is approximately 160 meters. The path there is relatively smooth, but there may be stones and roots. The path to get to the view point and the wooden ramp (deck ramp) there, should be suitable for a wheelchair or for someone with walking difficulties to use. With assistance it is of course easier.
The viewing ramp is about 100 meters long with a slight incline, a resting plane and the view over the rift valley is fantastic.
There is currently no edge board or path signage that will make it easier for the visually impaired to find their way to the viewing ramp from the car park.

At the rest area Liagården, along the Hjortsprångsrundan trail, there are three wind shelters and five fireplaces/grills. There is longwood that you can saw and chop yourself. Feel free to bring charcoal or your own firewood if it feels easier. 

The nearest parking area to Liagården is 800 meters away along a gravelled forest road. You will get to the car park by driving up the Serpentinvägen road or walk (roll) along  the white connecting path, which passes Liden and Killahuset. The path will then take you further up along Gamla vägen. You will avoid traffic, but it is a steady climb, which can be exhausting and very difficult if you, who are in a wheelchair, will not have help.

The water in the well at Liagården is currently up on a hill and is not accessible. We hope to make the water at Liagården available to everyone in a near future.

There are about 50 kilometres of hiking trails in the national park. Under Experiences - Hiking and hiking trails, there is more information about the various options

• Experience - hiking and hiking trails (different webpage)

Below is some information about the accessibility of some of the national park's trails and places to visit.

In Skäralid, there is an 800-meter-long trail with information signs, around Skärdammen pond. The signs give information about the various nature in the national park. Along the trail there is also a themed quiz. Quiz themes will vary throughout the year.

Skärdammen-runt trail starts at Skärdammen pond, about 100 meters from the visitor centre. The trail is partly decked (with wood) partly paved with gravel. The wooded parts have a railing on the side facing the stream. Where there is no railing there will be a low edge board which will help those who are visually impaired.

On the Kopparhatten plateau there are old hard-made forest roads that are level and suitable for hiking, walking, or rolling along. These roads do not form circular routes, which means that you must take the same route back.

If you want to hike with a stroller, or if you have a wheelchair suitable for terrain, there are different options to choose from. There is a folder with a map of various suggestions for hiking trails suitable for walking with a pram.

• Hiking with a stroller (PDF)

Entré Röstånga is in the northern parts of the village of Röstånga, where road 108 joins road 13. The entrance is situated behind Röstånga Gästis, ICA, the bus stop, and a large parking area which is about 100 meters from the tourist information.

The tourist information is accessible for wheelchairs and mobility scooters and has a 98-centimetre-wide entrance door, automatic door opener and an accessible toilet with a 90-centimetre-wide door. The toilet is available when the tourist information is open.

In the tourist information you can get information and answers to questions about the national park or other tourist and visitor destinations.
There is an accessible exhibition room inside the tourist information where the theme of the exhibitions varies during the season.

It is possible to drive almost all the way to the entrance door, where there is a parking space for the disabled about 12 meters from the entrance door. The substrate is partly hardened gravel partly cobblestone.

In addition to the toilet inside the tourist information, there is also a toilet in Nackarpsdalen valley.
The toilet in Nackarpsdalen is a compost toilet. There is a ramp up to the toilets with a rest plane just in front of the doors.
The toilet door is equipped with a door closer, which means that help may be needed to open the door but that it closes on its own. The toilet has fold-down armrests. The toilet seat is at a height of 48 centimetres.
It is about 350 meters from the tourist information down to Nackarpsdalen and the toilets. It is a long sloping hill, and it would be good to have assistance when going down or up.
There is no toilet at Lake Odensjö.

There is a municipal toilet at the large car park in Röstånga, but it cannot currently be considered accessible. The toilet has a small, low threshold (4 centimetres), a door that is 90 centimetres wide and a toilet seat with a seat height of 41 centimetres but no fold-down armrests.

In Nackarpsdalen valley, in addition to an accessible toilet, there are large green areas, meadows, shady oaks and several accessible fireplaces. There is also a barbecue hut and several bench tables with a gravel base.
Bring your own firewood or charcoal. There is no firewood in Nackarpsdalen, nor is there any water. Bring your own water to quench both thirst and fires.

At Lake Odensjön there are a few bench tables and a bench, but accessibility is not entirely good due to stones, roots, and the fact that it can be wet during certain periods of the year.

In Nackarpsdalen valley and all the way to Lake Odensjö, you can make your way on hard surfaces. It is approximately 1100 meters from the large parking area at the tourist information to the lake.
The initial section, from the tourist information down to Nackarpsdalen is somewhat inclined and for wheelchair users it is probably good to have assistance with you.
There are benches placed along the road towards Lake Odensjö where you are welcome to rest and enjoy the scenery. The road towards the lake is gravel, even but not always flat. It can go both up and down and there is a difficult curve. The reward of arriving at Lake Odensjö is worth the effort.

If you want to hike with a stroller, or if you have a wheelchair suitable for terrain, there are different options to choose from. There is a folder with a map of various suggestions for hiking trails suitable for walking with a pram.

• Hiking with a stroller (PDF) 
  
  

Other entrances, visitor destinations, places of interest and car parking areas in the national park are not currently accessible.
If you have any questions about accessibility in the national park, please do not hesitate to contact us.

• E-mail: National park management office