From Dairy to Gathering Place

Since 2010, Mikael and Carina Berger have created a vibrant meeting place in Skebokvarn – offering everything from a canoe centre, hostel, café and kayak workshop.

The story of the Old Dairy in Skebokvarn dates back to the early 1900s, when the merchant Wesentius Gustafsson ran a small dairy in his shop. As the demand grew, a new, larger dairy was built – one of the village’s biggest construction projects. Using sand hauled by horse and sleigh across the frozen Lake Båven, the dairy was completed in 1923. Milk from local farms was delivered here to be processed and sold, but the dairy operations were short-lived and ceased in 1939.

The building found new life later in many forms: as a carpentry workshop, car paint shop, ice cream factory, pizza bar, youth centre and industrial packing production. For decades, it was a natural gathering point in Skebokvarn.

In 1976, Anders Hansson started an outdoor centre with canoe rentals in the old dairy, laying the foundation for today’s operations. In 2008, parts of the building were converted into a hostel by Kenneth Broberg – and in the summer of 2010, Mikael and Carina took over the reins.

Since then, they have further developed the site into what it is today: a canoe centre renting Canadian canoes, kayaks and equipment; a cozy hostel with 11 beds; and the business Kanuk of Sweden AB, where Mikael and Carina manufacture canoe accessories and sell kayaks and Canadian canoes.

Mikael, former world champion in canoeing (1985), has a lifelong passion for paddling and outdoor life and manages the canoe operations. Carina is in charge of the hostel and ensures guests have a calm and pleasant stay – close to nature and Lake Båven. The café is currently closed, but during summer, ice cream and cold drinks are available near the hostel.

Welcome to a place where history, craftsmanship and nature meet!