When I opened the hangar doors, I saw a new airplane in our hangar – Vagn’s Rans 6:
I was happy when Vagn told me, he bought that hangar place. I’ve known Vagn for many years, we’d had many good flying trips together in his Rans 6, before I bought my Aeroprakt. It was nice to see that he moved in.
That day I decided to go to the island of Ærø:
But not the usual stuff, like Ærøskøbing or Marstal. I had missed being in the nature, and wanted to experience other places on the island I hadn’t seen before. Biking or hiking, or both… I started from flying over the island and saw the Søbygaard first, the last ducal farm on Ærø:
The barn was built by Duke Hans the Younger (1545-1622), as part of an enormous estate complex. The main building and the later constructed breeding buildings are located on two artificially created islands covered with impressive stonework. Today, it is an experience center with different activities.
I continued to Søby, the northernmost town on Ærø, known from the 13th century:
I haven’t been to Søby yet, and was so fascinated by its shipyard, I made a couple of rounds to better see it from air:
It had 3 docks – and I have big respect for people working in such places, because it is a very hard work. I myself worked as a factory worker in my younger years, and know what it means.
Rise church from air – I was going to visit it later that day:
In the airport, I took a bike and headed on the road. The road was ok, but rather bumpy and going uphill:
Biking by one of the creeks, I was striked by all those alluring colours and reflections in the water. I stopped, and took lots of pictures from different angles:
My first stop was going to be Rise church, but I did deviations from my route and saw other interesting things, too.
The Rise church has a long history. Built in the end of 12th century, it was later expanded twice.
I wanted to see its altarpiece from the 14-15th century, but someone was playing music and practicing singing.
I didn’t want to disturb them and quickly left. I can see the church another time.
Biking to the Voderup cliff, my next stopover, I saw a sign indicating there was a historical landmark. It showed up to be a huge memorial rock:
It was one of those places on Ærø, where you could see the sea from both sides of the island. “Almost like on Easter island”, I thought. On Easter island, you can take a horseback ride to the highest point of the island somewhat in the middle, where from you would see the Pacific ocean around the island from all sides… Quite spectacular.
Biking further, I noticed an old transformer station, which reminded me of another island in Denmark, Langeland:
If you are curious to learn what those transformer stations are used for on Langeland, read here.
Voderup cliff was much better than I expected. I flew over it before landing, and it didn’t look dramatic, but it was so beautiful on the ground. There were several paths one could take, grazing sheep, and stunning views:
There were tables and benches, and it was a perfect place for having lunch. The Aviator and The Blue Bear loved the view.
We spent around an hour there, enjoying the silence and nature.
From there, I decided to bike back via Ærøskøbing, so that we would do a kind of round trip over that part of the island. Azzurra Vino, a charming Italian wine and delicacies shop, where you can also get a cup of coffee:
I didn’t make many stops in Ærøskøbing, but continued on Nevrestien to the airport. The real reason I stopped by the water was not the view, but the fact that I was simply exhausted after all that biking around. And the archaic bike wasn’t the best way to get around…
It was late (but not too late), and my Aeroprakt was the only one aeroplane left on apron, waiting to bring me home:
I biked around 25 km on Ærø. Don’t trust Google saying it takes 1 hour – it will take you at least 3 hours of biking, unless you are a semi-pro.
Flying back home was a pleasure in that calm air. The Aviator and The Blue Bear were sleeping in their seat:
I would lie, if I said I was energised by the biking tour – I was very tired, though physical exercises are always good. But I was energised by flying out, traversing Ærø, spending a day in the nature… It was just what I needed.
And even the sun came out of the clouds before the night was over us.