Refugeemarch - The closest sunday to 8th of may

During the war in 1940-1945, many had to flee to Sweden. A number of the escape routes passed through Marker municipality. Many in the village were active as refugee escorts and couriers. For a number of years, Rødenes IL has organized the refugee march on the 2nd Sunday in September. Starting from Skogstad farm in Rødenes, you follow two of the refugee routes, one towards Sweden and another back.

In 1999, a map was published for the border areas in Rødenes and on the Swedish side with some of the refugee routes marked.
Some of these paths have been marked, and more will be marked. Information boards about these routes have been set up in both Rødenes and Øymark. A memorial stone for the refugeehelper Ole Borås (1899-1944) has been erected by Rv 21 at Kroksund mill in Rødenes.

The first refugee march along this route took place in 1982. The refugee march roughly follows the route used during the war by, among others, the border guards Arthur Gåseby and Iver Skogstad. Hundreds of people take part in the refugee march. Now organised the closest sunday to 8th. of may.

The trail starts at Skogstad Gård. The refugee helpers took the route marked on the map, which was probably a safer route during the war. In connection with the refugee march, it now takes a road to the right a little east of Svartvannet, and goes straight to borderstone no. 35. From here you can take the Hansebakkveien back to Skogstad. When we come to a marshy area on the road to borderstone no. 35, there is a sign for a marked path to Wittenbergtoppen and further around the top itself, down over the border and north to a well-known cave, or cave in the mountain. It is called both the Wittenberg cave and the spirit cave. You can imagine for yourself what has happened here.