Akkavare is a hillside village on the southeast slope of Mount Akkavara. Hedvallen Nature Reserve lies five kilometres to the northeast. This means two distinct focal points are available for a stay: the village’s settlement and building history, and the landscape of the reserve. When choosing a holiday rental, you can first consider whether the village’s history or the nature around Hedvallen should shape your trip more.

Traces of a long village history

Pehr Christjersson Brännare was Akkavare’s first settler and arrived in Akkavare in 1801. Brännar-Pehrs Storstuga was completed in 1835. These two milestones are 34 years apart, marking the early beginnings of the settlement and a later phase of building. Akkavare’s original schoolhouse was used as a school from 1910 to 1936. The prayer house was built in 1957–1958. The former prayer house is now a modernised community hall. The historical connections thus span early settlement, the school years and the community hall’s present-day function.

The local history also encompasses film and cultural landscapes. Scenes for Kay Pollack’s 2004 film “Såsom i Himmelen” were shot in Akkavare. A long stone wall bears witness to the work involved in creating usable farmland. These represent two distinct aspects of the village’s history: a connection to film and a trace of agricultural work.

A tower and changing uses

An air observation tower built during the war still stands on the mountain above Akkavare. It has been modified and extended. There is a weather shelter and a fire pit at the tower. Its history connects its original purpose as an air observation tower with later changes to the structure.

The history of the mill can also be traced through several stages. A mill was built in Akkavare in 1868, taken out of service in 1928 and later moved to Lake Dyras. It now stands there as a hunting and fishing hut. Its history thus includes not only construction and closure, but also a subsequent change of location.

Two distinct phases followed one another in timber processing. A mobile sawmill began operating in Akkavare in 1939. In 1947, a permanent Lundbergs sawmill facility was completed beside Akkavare station. Akkavare gained a railway connection when the Inlandsbanan was built in the 1930s. This sequence makes clear the difference between the mobile sawmill and the later permanent facility.

Hedvallen and the surrounding area

Hedvallen Nature Reserve lies five kilometres northeast of Akkavare. Its landscape features include old-growth natural forest, small pools and marshland. In the area around Akkavare, Hedvallen is also a summer residence and a calf-marking site for the Östra Kikkejaurs sameby. Both the natural environment and reindeer husbandry are part of the description of the area.

For geographical orientation, it helps to treat Akkavare and Hedvallen as separate points of reference. Akkavare is six kilometres north of Arvidsjaur on Route 45; the nature reserve lies northeast of the village. When choosing a holiday rental, these location details can help you match the location of a particular listing to the focus of your trip: would you mainly like to learn about the village’s history, or is the landscape of Hedvallen your main interest?

Discover more destinations: Arvidsjaur, Glommersträsk, Abborrträsk, Moskosel.

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