Grain fields as far as the eye can see, farms, roadside stalls. Cozy villages and a very long coastline. We are going on an adventure in Denmark. A country that is often reminiscent of the Netherlands, but is slightly different. We let ourselves be surprised.
After an exciting bike ride in Norway, we stick to Denmark for a few more days. The weather forecasts are better here than in Norway, but after all those rugged mountains it is a culture shock to suddenly be in flat Denmark! And that flat turns out not to be flat at all. Only there for a few days but we still see some nice surprising places!
We start in Hirtshals, drive through the northeastern tip to the west. The night we spend on the island of Mors and the last night in Ballum. If you want to know more about the campsites, read more here.
Natural Phenomena
Today we drove to Grenen for the special natural phenomenon that the Skagerakwater flows against the Kattrgatwater here. Two seas, two colors of water. One wild and the other calm. Many, many people want to see this. It is super busy and in fact it is not very exciting. We enjoy the beautiful wide beach and the dunes but are especially happy to go.
Rabjerg Mile
The second natural phenomenon is much more fun, more beautiful and much less crowded. These are the walking dunes of Rabjerg Mile. Dunes that have shifted more than a kilometer in the past hundred years, 18 meters per year! It’s a beautiful area!
Island Mors
Then it is a long drive to Thy National Park. A large and rugged nature reserve on the west coast. However, the campsites here appear to be full. After much searching and hassle we move to Dragstrup on the island of Mors. A large but quiet campsite with a nice owner, excellent facilities and where we have a field to ourselves.
Cycling in Thy . National Park
It’s cloudy but we’re in a good mood. We go cycling in Thy National Park. A 244 m2 NP with mainly dune landscape. It is known as Denmark’s last wilderness. We put together a route that includes the North Sea Coastal Route and cycle about 60 km.
We start at Sternbjerg, take a look at the Landingsplads of Vorupør, where the fishing boats are pulled ashore by a tractor, we have lunch with wind and sand on the beach of Bogested Rende and then cycle to the surf beach of Klitmøller.
Via the east side of the park we cycle back through the woods. It is a beautiful vast national park! We meet relatively few people. It is especially quiet on the gravel paths in the woods. At the end we take another mountain bike trail. What is striking is that we do not see any animals! That’s a shame, but we still think it’s a nice park.
About six o’clock back at the car. We get tortillas from the Spar and we put them in the oven at the campsite.
Sun Sea Beach…
Packed the tent this morning. The weather seemed fine at breakfast but it is getting grayer.
So we are in less of a hurry to go to NP de Waddenzee. The afternoon sun, sea, beach falls apart.
Hanklit
We drive to Hanklit, in the north of the island of Mors. On the recommendation of the owner of the campsite. This area is characterized by the moler slopes. Moler, is a type of clay, this was formed 55 million years ago. The island did not exist then, there was a 200 m deep ocean. The clay was formed by microscopic small algae. It’s a unique place, it only exists here. It is 61 m high and you can see the different layers that were formed in the Ice Age, the dark stripes are volcanic ash.
We walk around and look for beautiful stones and fossils, which are often found here.
Mennesket ved Havet
We are going to Eshberg. That’s a long way to go.
We have lunch at the Men at sea/Men meets the sea monument. Mennesket ved Havet. A 9 meter high monument.
Ribe
Then we drive on to Ribe. This is the oldest city in Scandinavia. There are many houses from the Middle Ages. The cozy streets are fun to wander through. There are many beautiful gardens and courtyards. And a lot of nice shops and cafes.
We have a drink at a cafe and shop for a present for my mother. We are impressed by the beautiful buildings, doors, painting and other carvings. It is a town with a nice atmosphere.
National Park Vadehavet
We drive on to Rømø, one of the Wadden Islands to see something of the Wadden Sea National Park – Vadehavet. We drive over a long dam to get there. There are more Wadden Islands here, one of them can be reached by ferry, the other by a road that can only be driven at low tide.
We pass through a dune landscape that can be compared to the np Thy. At Lakolk we go to the beach and you can do that here by car! This 25 km long beach is 1.5 to 6 km wide, making it the widest beach in Europe!
There is a strong wind on this enormously wide beach, in addition beautiful skies with dark clouds and a wild sea! How very cool! We enjoy the activity. People go swimming, surfing and there are a lot of kites and kite buggies.
Via the other side we drive back to the dam and then to Ballum camping. Run by Dutch people. Lots of Dutch here. Everything is there, but a bit old stuff and no atmosphere. We cook teriyaki and eat under the canopy. Then tea with games. The sky is threatening but fortunately it remains dry.
Back home
Denmark is easy to drive from the Netherlands. We could be home from Ballum in 7 hours. Were it not for the long-term work at Hamburg. That makes it much longer for us.
There is of course much more to discover in Denmark. We were there for three days and saw some of the sights on the western side of the country. Copenhagen is on the island of Sealand and to the south of it Mons, we would love to visit there next time!
Do you want more about the campsites we’ve visited? You can read about it here.