Saturday, May 31, 2014

Denmark's dunes

We had a very busy and interesting day visiting three sand dunes on the coast, walking to the northern most tip of Denmark, and seeing where the Baltic and North seas meet.
We woke up on our last full day in Denmark and got onto the bus to begin an exciting day that included hiking up three unique sand dunes, visiting the northern most point of Denmark, and seeing where the Baltic Sea mixes with the North Sea.

The first dune we visited is at the site of the abandoned Rubjerg Knude lighthouse, which was built in the 1900s. The lighthouse was originally built 60 meters above sea level and not near any large sand dunes.

However, as the sea moved closer and the wind blew large amounts of sand near the lighthouse, it sunk to 23 meters. It is predicted that the lighthouse will fall into the sea in 15-20 years.

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The second dune we climbed was at the same location of MÃ¥rup Kirke, or Mary's Church. The church was built kilometers away from the coast in the 13th century, but due to erosion, it is now just 10 meters from its doom. It is estimated the church and its graveyard will fall into the sea within 10 years.

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The final sand dune we visited is just a walking sand dune. Over the course of the year, this dune is able to change location and shape.

After visiting the sand dunes, we walked along a beautiful beach to the northern most point of Denmark. This is also where the Baltic Sea meets with the North Sea. It was very interesting to see all of these varying landscapes within the small country of Denmark.

We are all going to be a little sad to leave this beautiful, clean, and friendly country, but we also can not wait to set out for Norway tomorrow!