It was a perfect lazy Saturday morning in Skagen: Flemming and I had a long sleep, we enjoyed our slow breakfast in the living room overlooking a picturesque garden, so quiet under the sparkling powder snow. The plan was to go for a walk in Råbjerg Mile, which is a migrating coastal dune, to see the town of Skagen from air, and to fly drone by the sand buried church:
The church was named after Skt. Laurentius, who was the patron saint of the sailors and the poor. It is believed that this church was built in the late 1300s; it was the largest in the area at that time. In the 18th century the church was partially buried by sand from nearby dunes; the congregation had to dig out the entrance each time a service was to be held. Eventually the church was forced to cease the worship, and was closed. Today, only the 22 m tall tower remains above the dunes.
Sand began drifting in from Råbjerg Mile around 1600, when the area surrounding the church was affected by the desertification which destroyed the fields; it buried the nearby village, houses and farms, and had reached the church by the end of the 18th century. This sanding-over of land occurred in many coastal areas around the North Sea between 1400 and 1800, affecting Scotland, Denmark, and Holland.
Before visiting the sand buried church, and going for a walk in the snow-covered dunes, we did our shopping in Skagen. There was a long queue in front of the fish shop, and whilst Flemming was standing in the queue, I explored the harbour area.
Mary Arctica, a container vessel that sails between Aalborg and Greenland, looked huge compare to other ships:
Flemming and I also wanted to go on a flight around the area, and to experience the sunset over Skagen, so we drove to the Sindal airport where our aircraft was parked. It was covered in ice, and after removing it we turned the aircraft to the sun so that the rest of icing would quickly melt.
Our intention was to do a lighthouse tour – to see the lighthouses of the northernmost tip of Denmark:
The first one on the list was the Rubjerg Knude lighthouse, standing on the top of the magnificent Lønstrup cliff, 60 m above sea level:
This lighthouse was first lit in 1900, and operated till 1968. For a number of years, it was a museum, till continuously shifting sands caused it to close. It was expected that the lighthouse would fall into the sea by 2023. However, with the help of government funding of 5m Danish Kroner, it was decided to move the tower 70 m inland in 2019, to give the lighthouse a 40-year reprieve. This area is a popular tourist destination, attracting about 250,000 visitors a year.
It looked so dramatic in the afternoon sun, we did several rounds above it.
Flying north by the coast, we appreciated the beautiful views of the North Jutland:
It was pretty cold, and a cup of hot tea we brought with us helped:
Råbjerg Mile on the photo below, one of the largest moving dunes in all of Europe. This dune migrates between Skagen and Frederikshavn. It is an extraordinary place – with all that sand around, you can just walk to the top of the dune and feel like you are in the middle of a desert.
Grenen, a long sandbar split north of Skagen:
Grenen is a unique place in Danish nature where the waters of two seas meet: the Skagerrak and the Kattegat. The collision of waves can often be seen with a naked eye.
The sun was getting down; we enjoyed the marvellous view:
The town of Skagen in the sunset light:
The skies were turning pink and bright blue at the same time, with a stunning reflection in the sea:
We turned back to Sindal. Refuelling was under the new moon on the horizon, and Orion constellation on the night sky right in front of us:
“At home”, Flemming prepared a delicious dinner for us: oysters and white ling fish. He even served the oysters on fresh snow from the garden!
The Aviator, who accompanied us on this tour, got a couple of crayfish tails (one of his favourites!):
Flemming laughed when he took pictures of me with a glass of champagne. He said, people would think you drink all the time! And if only they knew how little and rare you actually drink! But I love champagne, and I think we celebrate too little in life. In France they say, opening a bottle of champagne is a good reason to celebrate this event in itself.
It was a wonderful day…