A frozen bike ride through Falun

Posted byMariaPosted inDalarna, Intentional Living, Sustainable options, SwedenTags:, , , , , , , , ,

I woke up early (4.30am) this Saturday morning. I wrote a bit on the school report I mentioned in my coffee share yesterday, and then I felt that I really needed to go outside for a bike ride.

Falun Skate Park. The big house in the background is a school, Västra Skolan, dating back to the early 1900’s.

It was a cold, 26F, morning. The beauty of the morning, and the fresh air definitely made it worthwhile going outside early. My bike tires crushed some ice on the ground here and there.

At Falu Coppermine

I rode my bike up to Falu Copper mine. It was once the worlds largest copper mine.

You are allowed to enter several of the mining buildings, I didn’t do that today, I choose to stay outside. You can walk, or ride a bike around the big mine. It was icy in some spots and I picked my way carefully.

This is the view of the mine from the opposite side of the entrance. I did look with binoculars, hoping to see the Eagle Howls that have a nest on one of the sides of the mine. I wasn’t lucky to see them today. I’ve seen them many times before. They are enormous.

You can see the town of Falun in the background. Notice that some of the roofs on the older buildings are made out of copper.

Looking down into the great pit.

During my ride this morning I also rode through Kålgården, and Östanfors, popular areas with nice walking trails. Östanfors has many old, beautiful red log houses dating back a century, or two.

It’s difficult to find a place in Falun where you don’t see a church, or the ski jumps. Along with the mine (that everything existed around) those are major landmarks of our town. Thank you for coming with me on this cold, but beautiful frozen bike ride through Falun. I better get back to writing my school report. See you later.

Love,

Maria

Published by Maria

It’s all about experiences, and the healing power of nature. Life is about choosing happiness. My gypsy soul have taken me to many different countries, and definitely taught me to be more humble. I enjoy growing my own food, and spending time outdoors. I now reside in the region where I was born: Dalarna, Sweden. I am a mom, a kindergarten teacher, a minimalist and a gardener. Love, Maria

25 thoughts on “A frozen bike ride through Falun”

  1. Falun is such a beautiful town! When I lived there I felt lonely because it was very, very hard to make friends. Maybe I would succeed better now through music and more. Anyway, I still loved the place because of all the beauty there, both in the town centre with all the old buildings, and the walking areas around the town. the old mine area is lovely, and the mine has a very fascinating history too.

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    1. I am sorry to hear that you felt lonely living here. I can see how that could happen. I believe that even though Falun is a small town one could be invisible here. Most people living here either have generations of family surrounding them, attend school, have young families, or work long hours. The cost of living here is crazy high, the housing prices are comparable to Stockholm at the moment. One of the only downsides. I really love my job here, and if I want to keep it long term I’ll have to accept either to keep living in an apartment, or start commuting. If you do decide to come for a visit know that you’ll have a friend here now 🙂

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  4. Such a beautiful village, Maria! I’m sorry that it’s so costly to live there, not unlike Vegas. Is that ski jump used in the Olympics? You look so lovely in the selfie! Have a great weekend. ❤️🇸🇪

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  7. So much beautiful detail in everything about your gorgeous little town. I have gotten a couple of fun close up photos of birds by holding my phone up to binoculars. Thank you for the stunning tour, such a great selfie taker nice to see you all rugged up.

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  8. Beautiful photos!! So fun to see you and your town thru your photos on this chilly but picturesque morning! Reading the comments I didn’t no it was so expensive to live there, so makes me curious is there more affordable places with jobs nearby? It’s like that here as you know, my children can’t afford very easily housing in Southern California it’s gotten soooo darn expensive! So fun to visit with you today! ❤️

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    1. Thank you! I loved taking you on the tour 🙂 Yes, the situation is similar as in SoCal. Falun is the County seat with the biggest hospital, several community colleges, The University, major stores, tourism, winter sports, relatively close proximity to Stockholm, and many job opportunities. Many other places are cheaper, some significantly cheaper. At the moment the price is worth it to me, since my son’s school is only a short walk away. Spending these last years of young adulthood with him, before he moves away on his own is worth everything to me.
      I hope your new week got off to a fabulous start! ❤

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