Walk through the most beautiful archipelago in the world from island to island. The route will take you from Turku Cathedral on the Finnish mainland, through the Finnish archipelago, through Åland – the islands of peace- and on to Sweden. Once in Sweden you have several alternative routes to choose from to reach your final destination of Trondheim in Norway.
The sea route begins in Finland’s former capital, Turku and passes through historically interesting areas in the archipelago of Finland and Åland. You can be very flexible when planning your journey. Do you want to walk the entire distance? Do you want to walk some of the legs and choose bus transport for others? Or would you prefer to divide the route up for several occasions? A hiker on St. Olav Waterway does furthermore have the added bonus of resting during the crossings on water. During these you will be transported on board road and passenger ferries.
St. Olav was one of the most important medieval Nordic saints, and the Olav cult was something that the Nordic countries had in common during the Middle Ages. There are several St. Olav’s Churches in Finland and Åland, including ones in Nagu, Jomala and Njutånger. You can visit St. Olav’s church on your way from Turku to Hudiksvall. The municipality of Jomala on Åland even has Olav in their coat of arms.
Photo: Jouni Lappi, St. Olav Waterway
A pilgrimage route through coastal Ostrobothnia in northern Finland. Connects up with the Norwegian-Swedish route St. Olavsleden, which leads to Trondheim. The route runs from Karleby at the north end, to Kristinestad at the south end – both marked towards the city of Vasa in the middle. All toghether, the route consists of about 480 km of hiking trail through Ostrobothnia, divided into 21 walking stretches of a distance suitable for one day, called “day stages”. From Vasa, you can take the ferry over to Sweden.
Historically, after the death and canonisation of Olav, the Olav cult spread quickly in the eastern part of the Svealand during the beginning of the 13th century, and was established in the Bothnia region in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. Several medieval sculptures and other sources testify to the fact that there was an Olav’s cult in Ostrobothnia. The route passes several churches dedicated to Olav, and/or churches with altars or church art depicting Olav.
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