In 1877, Edvard Wibeck was born in a small village not very far from Store Mosse, and even as a child he was interested in animals and nature. At the age of twenty he fell in love with Store Mosse and during his life he traveled around the country doing research, writing, lecturing, photographing, influencing and working for change. He was often seen with his bellows camera documenting the nature and birdlife in and around Kävsjön.

Edvard Wibeck was described as a straight-backed and matter-of-fact man – a tall pine tree in a low-growing thicket. He had no fear of hardships, as can be seen from his notes:

“To make my way through the bottomless lake to the crane’s nest had its difficulties, of course, but at my age at the time, 25 years old – it was no great problem to crawl naked out on the net of rushes and roots in the loose mud and sand.”

As early as 1905, Wibeck proposed that the area should be protected, and in 1950 he submitted a proposal for Store Mosse to become a national park. Many of the letters Wibeck wrote to authorities and decision-makers are preserved at Jönköping County Museum – along with photographs, notes and drawings from the bog.

In 1982, ten years after Wibeck’s death, Store Mosse became a national park, the strongest form of nature conservation we have in Sweden. The establishment of Muddus National Park in 1942 is also merited to Wibeck.

In addition to nature conservation, Wibeck also had a commitment to beards, which was the theme of the last lecture he gave. Wibeck himself had never shaved and considered the beard to be a man’s greatest adornment.

Here in the national park, we continue to work with commitment and curiosity in Wibeck’s spirit. From the birdwatching towers around Lake Kävsjön, you can observe the rich birdlife, and inside the Store Mosse visitor center you can read about contemporary bog research.