Lazy breakfast on a Tuesday morning before going for a day out by the North Sea:
We began from driving to the Hanstholm WWII museum where we could see guns exhibited outside. On the photo below I’m sitting on a Russian 122 mm field gun captured by Nazi on the Eastern front who brought it to Denmark in 1944. That gun was constructed in 1931, and had a range of almost 21 km:
The bunkers in the Hanstholm area were part of the biggest and most extensively developed of all Nazi coastal batteries constructed in Denmark. The guns had a range of up to 55 km.
There is an interesting museum, and when open – one can go to the bunker under the ground and see how the soldiers lived there, and learn how this site was operated.
Jens and I visited the Hanstholm harbour, but it was so cold, we quickly left:
After Hanstholm, we were going to visit Cold Hawaii, buy some fish in Nørre Vorupør, discover Stenbjerg – a former landing place for coastal fishermen, see Lodbjerg Lighthouse, and drive further south to the Agger Harbour from which one can take a ferry to Thyboron:
Cold Hawaii was dramatic, as always. We had a stroll on the beach, and I played with some rocks:
The wind was strong, and everything was sanded, especially the boats left on the beach:
Cold Hawaii is a surf paradise. Since 2010, the village has been hosting the PWA World Cup.
Jens by a column covered with labels from different countries:
We drove further to Vorupør where I knew we could find good fish. The typical dunes landscape of Thy:
On the beach of Nørre Vorupør, we walked along the fishing boats. Nørre Vorupør is one of the last places in Denmark where the boats are still towed ashore and launched with a wire and a winch:
We bought fish in one of the fish shops, and a couple of fish balls for lunch by the sea:
Next stop was Stenbjerg Landingsplads which is a former fishing village located between high dunes:
The wind was so strong there, with gusts up to 45 knots, and that created a sand storm of an unimaginable magnitude. Jens refused to leave the car. I pulled a hat down my face, and went to the beach:
Needless to say, it was extraordinary beautiful:
I took many pictures, but they cannot describe the wild nature of this place.
Only once did I experience wind that was stronger, when I did the W-trek in Torres del Paine, Chile, one of the most beautiful treks in the world, in a group of international travellers. The wind would knock us down to the ground there at times; we hided behind big rocks and waited for it to lessen before continuing.
Whilst driving to the Lodbjerg Lighthouse, we saw a small church by the road. It was Lodbjerg church, the next smallest in Denmark. The church is in the late Gothic style, and was probably built between 1490 and 1540:
The church has two late Gothic frescoes: Mary as the Queen of Heaven and a snake in the desert:
Lodbjerg Lighthouse was closed for visiting due to COVID-19, but there was something interesting to see by its foot.
The place on the photo below is the remains of a 5200 years old burial place:
In 2012 – 2014, the mound was examined by archaeologists, and the excavation revealed a burial chamber with a 2.5 m corridor, and different items from the (very) old days.
We god back home, tired after driving 200 km, and full of interesting experiences. Jens liked most the Hanstholm WWII museum and Vorupør with its fishing boats. I remembered most the Stenbjerg landingsplads, the former fishing village with its small whitewashed houses and empty beach with enormous waves.
The fish we bought in Vorupør tasted delicious:
Next morning we were going to Sindal, and used the rest of the evening for planning.