baumzaehlen - Primeval Forests & Their Trees

Gutulia National Park, Norway

The park (23 km²), right on the Swedish border, includes one of the largest old-growth forests in Norway. To the east the park is adjacent to the larger Långfjället Nature Reserve of Sweden. The park is said to be ”virgin forest” ^{1 2} but old cut stumps and trunks can be seen here and there. However, the forest shows the classic characteristics of old-growth forest like old trees, and abundant standing and fallen dead trees. In the main the forest regenerated following the last major fire in the 1860s but there are also much older Pinus sylvestris (Scots pine) trees that have survived the fires. The forest has been saved from logging because transporting timber was difficult before³. The park is still used for reindeer grazing.

Elevation ranges from 615 m to 949 m (Gutulivola). The forest resembles the lowland forest many hundreds of kilometres to the north. Open P. sylvestris forest is the dominant type. Moist sites are covered by dark Picea abies (Norway spruce) groves; here in the mountains P. abies has narrow crowns like P. obovata (Siberian spruce) in the north. Stunted Betula pubescens var. pumila (Arctic downy birch) is quite abundant, too. Tall Betula trees are missing here, even in the lowest elevations. Other tree species are rare. Altogether there are about 10 tree species, all very easy to identify. The tallest trees are P. abies, about 30 m tall at the lowest elevations. Unlike in northern Fennoscandia (see Urho Kekkonen National Park), Betula does not extend above the coniferous species. As individual trees, P. sylvestris reaches the highest elevation, actually the top of Gutulivola. Individual P. abies and B. pubescens reach about 900 m. At higher elevations, there are plentiful fens. Slopes are gentle, the mountains (fells) resembling those in Lapland.

There is only one marked hiking path at the lowest elevations but reindeer trails abound. Off-trail hiking is quite easy although the forest floor is rather stony. Camping is free throughout the park.

References:

1        http://www.miljodirektoratet.no

2        Schmidt-Vogt, H. (1991): Die Fichte, Band II/3. Verlag Paul Parey.

3        Gutulia National Park, pers. comm. (2018)

Official site:

http://www.miljodirektoratet.no/no/Tema/Verneomrader/Norges-nasjonalparker/Gutulia/