The last stage of The Child Wanders Trail in southern Norway

Together with a friend, I have completed the last stage of The Child Wanders Trail. The length is 136 kilometer, divided into 7 stages. The trail has taken us along a historic trail from the era between 1830 and 1910. The term "child wanderer" («Barnevandrer») emerged because these children had to set out on foot to find work. Agder county was at that time, one of the poorest counties in our country. Therefore young children would walk along this trail from west to east to work in the area around Grimstad, where people were more prosperous. The Child Wanders trail represents not only a sad piece of local history, but also a lovely hiking trail well worth exploring. It was not until 2010 that the route became a continuous, marked trail in the footsteps of the children.

Landvik Kirke / our starting point

The whole 136 kilometer trail

We started in Kvinesdal a couple of years ago and completed the 5th state in Kristiansand in August this year. The children walked from west to east in April and returned in October / November. We desided to do as the children (since it is October). So we started at the ending point of the trail - Landvik Kirke / Landvik Church and walked to Birkeland. This part is a 20 kilometer hike. But we lost track of the trail a couple of times. After completing 2/3 we didn't find the next sign. Instead of spending too much time looking for it, we chose another trail to reach the road. In October it gets dark early. We realized that we wouldn't be able to reach Birkeland before dark. We called her husband who came to pick us up.

The trail took us through varied landscape, fields with crops and historic places like Ringsmoen burial ground. The sign indicates that we are standing at a spot on the old King's Road where six burial mounds dating from 200–400 AD have been found. The largest measured 15 meters in diameter and contained the remains of a seven-year-old girl who was cremated 1,800 years ago. The mounds are no longer clearly visible in the landscape.

Outdoor toilet (open)

The child migration in southern Norway was a phenomenon from the 19th century in a part of the country where poverty was extreeme. The causes of poverty have been explained by a strong population growth, small farms and challenges with crops, which were becoming smaller. Many families in Indre Agder (a county in the very south) sent several of their children to the area around and east of Kristiansand. Here they worked on farms that were both larger and more prosperous. The children started to migrate east in April. In October / November they walked back home again. The youngest of the children were no more than 7 years old. They walked in groups and could walk up to 20 kilometers in a day. On the farms they came to, they worked with everything from cooking to barn management and herding.

In the 19th century, the farms surrounding Grimstad were large and prosperous. They were characterized by a combination of agriculture and shipping or shipbuilding. Grimstad is located by the sea and benefited greatly from the shipping industry; the area consequently experienced an economic boom, making it an attractive place for these young children to seek employment.

The sign says that «Kjerringfallet». Translated it means something like «The Old Woman's Fall». It used to be dangerous to travel here. There is a steep drop on one side of the road. It is therefore assumed that an accident once occurred here, hence the name. The initials and the year were carved by the man who improved the road and made it passable for horse and carriage.

We took the wrong path here..

As we continue, we walk uphill, which gives us the last good views of farmland. But we did take the wrong path here. It was quite a strenuous walk in deep forrest to find the right trail again.

Back on track again. The trail is easy to follow for a long time. We saw lots of giant mushrooms, but didn't dare to touch. Non of us have any knowledge of mushrooms!

Next stop is by Lindvannstemmen. We need to cross the river to continue our journey. The current is strong here, and we were quite alarmed at the thought of having to cross it! Fortunately, it turned out that the trail leads up along the river to a newer bridge. A sign indicates that it was built in the 1930s. The dam was constructed to collect water for timber floating.

«Stien husmannsplass». The route we follow is an old track known as "Stien" (The Path). According to sources dating back to around 1600, the path is more than 1,000 years old. When we arrived here it was already late in the afternoon and we could not find the right trail. At this point we desided to take the shortest trail to the road where her husband could pick us up.

While we waited for her husband, the light was already fading. But, we will go back to Birkeland and walk the 7 kilometers to Stien husmannsplass and return back to Birkeland. We are not going to give up that part.

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