The light is amazing here, bright and luminous but soft as well. A combination of the far north light, and the reflection from the sea on both sides of a narrow piece of land.
Even at 11.15 pm last night there was a soft light shining in the west, and when I got up at 1.30 am to go to the loo, the light had not dimmed. I decided sleep was more important then watching the same light appear in the east in a few hours. It was tempting to stay awake though. Although there was always half light in Norway, it did not have the same effect as here, due to the sun setting behind the mountains.
After a big clean up this morning, washing done, caravan and car cleaned, it was time to set off to see Skagen, 13 kms north. A town where the suppliers of yellow paint have done very well.
First the harbour. Fishing has always been the main source of income here, and the harbour is still Denmark's largest port. The harbour also has many leasure boats too, and I believe that some cruise liners call into the port.
A scene from the mediterranean! Very similiar, the same yachts and the same bright light reflecting off the water, Quite a difference in temperature though. It was about 14 degrees, with a very chilly wind taking the warmth out of the sun.
There were fish restaurants lining two sides of this part of the port. Our destination for lunch tomorrow. Quite reasonably priced too.
After lookng around the harbour and restaurants we headed into the main shopping area.
There are only about 30 permanent residents that live here all year round. That is what the brochure says, but in fact there are 8,000 permanent residents. I looked it up on the internet. There are also many regulars who own houses here, which boosts the local population somewhat. Skargen has a very holiday atmosphere, as it is a very popular place to come for a holiday. It is a very charming place.
One of the many cafes. It was strange to see people sitting outside in the sun, and wearing jackets and fleeces. A determined lot.
There were plenty of clothing and shoe stores. Walter bought a heavy duty fleece jacket, all ready for when we return from Australia, next January. Best to be prepared. It was from an outlet shop, selling outdoor gear at greatly reduced prices.
Just for you, Patrick. There was even a Gant shop there.
Some of the houses have painted the edging tiles white. Very cute.
A beautiful church, surrounded by pristine gardens.
We stopped at a sweet shop and watched two men rolling out the mixture for sweets that were like the English rock sweets. Walter bought a bag of assorted sweets. Not good for our teeth, I know.
Next stop, Grenen, which is about a two kilometre drive to the very northern point, where two seas meet. After parking the car, we set off through the sandhills, past old WWII bunkers, and onto the beach, where we walked for about a kilometre until we came to the sandy point. It felt like a gale was blowing, and cold too.
'Land's End' where the two seas meet, Skagerrak and Kattegat. Just a few kms out in the Skagerrak sea, the water was about 400 metres deep, but on this spit the water was very shallow. Many ships have run aground over the centuries, on this shallow tongue, with a terrible loss of life, for both crews and the people who tried to rescue them. There were numerous signs warning people not to enter the water.
We do not normally take 'selfies' but who could resist on this stretch of beach, so we joined the other 'selfie' photographers. The wind was so strong it was difficult to stand still long enough to take a photograph, but it was fun.
The 'selfie' windblown photograph.
More sand. Only this time we were at the giant sand dune at Rabjerg Mile, not far from the camping ground, which also had the same name. This sand dune, 1000m long and 1000m wide, and about 40 metres high at its highest point, migrates north-north east at a rate of more than 15metres a year. A giant moving sand dune.
Walter looking in amazemnt at such a spectacle. Denmark's Sahara Desert.
The sand dune was formed on the west coast in the 16th century during the great sand migration in this area. Over the centuries erosion of the sand hills and moving sand dunes were quite a problem for the people who lived here. Finally in the 1950s the government bought land so that this particular sand dune could stay the same, but they planted grass and trees as a cover on the remainder of the dunes.
There is a scientific explanation for the moving of the dunes, with the wind blowing the sand, which then moves and reforms again.
I decided to walk to the top, no easy feat, in soft sand and a strong wind blowing sand in my face. It was amazing how quickly footprints disappeared from the sand.
The view across the dune, with no sea in sight anywhere. Amazingly there were patches of very wet sand up there.
We drove along the road for a short distance just to check that there was a sea somewhere and found a very wild looking sea. According to the sign people were allowed to drive vehicles onto this beach, but not for us, not in our beautiful car.
And our beautiful car has a big dent in the driver's door. Someone must have got into the car next to us in the carpark at Grenan, and the force of the wind caught the door and it hit our car. What a pain.
And as I finish this blog, I can see that the sun has set, leaving behind a soft orange glow in the sky. Nothing spectacular, but beautiful all the same.
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