Off to a cracking start

We arrived in Skagen, Denmark this morning. That’s “Skayn” like the small hank of yarn, not the “Ska-gen” we have heard until now. Skagen lies at the very tip of Jutland, is the most northerly town in the country and we were lucky to have one of the area’s best ambassadors as a guide.

Rolf was a native of the town and as we drove from the port early this morning, he pointed out the landmarks, just as we might expect. The yellow house over there? Formerly the holiday home of the Royal family and now an artists retreat. The other important information he had to share was that we were heading off early this morning to avoid the crowds. Week 29 of the year is the one when most Danes go on holiday and this, the Sunday of Week 29 would see this small town overrun with people from all over the country. Best crack on before they get here.

Right now, things were pretty peaceful. The town looked lovely in the sunshine with the pristine painted houses (“Skagen Yellow”) and everywhere so fresh and neat. We drove through the fish market (the largest fish market in Denmark) and the shipyards (also the largest in Denmark) towards Grenen, the sand dunes which form the northerly point of Jutland.

Getting to that point is either on foot or by means of the Sandworm, a tractor-drawn vehicle which, according to our guidebook at home, was not to be missed. We immediately booked our slot!

It began as a rather rocky ride, over the ruts worn into the sand dunes (reminiscent of the Oregon Trail?!) to begin with but soon smoothing out as we crossed onto the sand of the tidal area.

Here, at the end of the sand spit, the waters of the Skagerrak meet those of the Kattegat and just like similar such places, there was a distinct “meeting of the waters”.

I could see one rather obvious way to get my photograph, so slipped off my shoes and waded in. The water was surprisingly warm - it’s shallow here - and I savoured the moment before turning around and putting my shoes back on.

The light was fabulous and there was no wonder that the rest of our group were reluctant to leave the spot!

We wandered slowly back to the Sandworm, admiring the spectacular unspoilt landscape around us.

As we walked, however, we noticed shiny creatures on the beach - stranded jellyfish, around 15 or 20cm in diameter in a variety of colours and patterns. Each one was so beautiful.

No two of them were alike and each one glistened in the sunshine.

Careful not to step on one!

Back on board the Sandworm for the return journey, we’d already earmarked this as a part of the world we wished to return to. When my eye was caught by a rather interesting painting on the front of an information leaflet, I took a copy. It looked like somewhere in town had a collection of attractive paintings too. What a fascinating place this was turning out to be!

For now, it was back along the sand dunes to our next stop. As we drove, Rolf told us of the huge sandstorms which have been recorded in history around here. Particularly in the 16th and 17th century, when a local church was almost totally engulfed in sand.

Now a National Monument, the Buried Church is still used as a place of worship though also used for performances during the summer months. We took the short walk through the dunes to reach it.

When we reached the buried church, I guess Rolf heard some discussion about it being still there - so he quickly explained that this is merely the tower and walked us around to the other side where markers show the location of the nave - some 12 metres beneath the surface.

A first class guide, we really enjoyed the stories he told, especially those related sotto voce like the one here concerning Donald Duck and his three nephews…

It’s not that we hadn’t read the tour description, but for some reason, we thought that was the end of our tour. We drove back to the town, making a brief stop outside the Coastal Museum, where a couple of fishermans’ houses were pointed out.

It seemed this was not the end however. Our last stop would be at the Skagen Museum, the most visited museum in Denmark. We were to have some time there to visit whatever we wished and Rolf went on to say “we are particularly lucky to have a great art exhibition on right now”.

Oh, might that be the one I spotted on the leaflet I just picked up, Rolf? I hoped so!

As we waited outside the bus for Rolf to buy our tickets, I did a quick drawing of the statue outside. Who were these two chaps and why are they here?

We found out as soon as we stepped inside the museum. They are the two highly respected artists of the Skagen School, Peder Krøyer and Michael Ancher and it was a work of Peder Krøyer that had caught my eye and prompted me to pick up the leaflet earlier.

The painting itself was part of the exhibition. “Summer Evening on Skagens Southern Beach” was painted by Peder Krøyer and depicts his wife and Anna Ancher, the wife of Michael Ancher.

Funny there was mention of Anna Ancher. In the last five minutes of our time at the museum, I had spotted a knitting kit to make a scarf based on the colours in one of her paintings. Beautifully soft and in just my colours, the sample was enough to tempt me to try my skills of reading a Danish knitting pattern. (Yes, Marianne, I might be calling upon you for help, please!)

Now, sadly, it was time to leave Skagen. We drove back through the fish market and back to the ship. (Ours was a slightly larger one than this, just on the other side of the pier!)

What a fabulous morning and thank you Rolf for sharing your home town with us so enthusiastically. We hope to return.