500-some km of the great North Sea Cycle Route’s 6000 km go along the North Sea Coast of Jutland. In Denmark known as the Westcoast, hence the routes Danish name, Vestkystruten (Westcoast Route). The danish westcoast is famed for its strong winds, great waves and wide, sandy beaches, in the north and the Wadden Sea in the south.

The Westcoast is where many danes (and germans) traditionally spend their summer holidays from late June to July, when the temperatures reach the 20’ies, to catch a refreshing dip in the waves (the water temperature, though, rarely even comes near the 20’ies). The small towns, inns, hostels and campsites are relatively busy in the 6 weeks of high season – in stark contrast to the rest of year (see Jesper’s experiences while Cycling home for Christmas).

On this particular trip we, a family of four with the youngest being 8 years old, went the upper half of the danish part of the route, from Agger to the top of Denmark in Skagen in 10 sunny cycling days and two rainy restdays. Around 330 km all in all (including multiple trips to the beach and unintentional detours).

Acctually, we went from the nearest  train station was Hurup Thy, from where it is some 11 km to the camping at Agger, added a detour to see the passage-grave at Lundehøj, 5 km in the opposite direction, making the first day a 20 km stretch. The train takes an epic 5 hours from Copenhagen, including changes at Vejle* and Struer.

Highlights

Among the highlights of this tour are riding on the white sand beach, surfing the waves of Cold Hawaii, the frenetic summer life of the coastal towns, the famous chefs and restaurants’ summer residencies in Skagen and the beach hot spots. The Thy National Park, the rough nature, the numerous signs of the locals fight against the sand: where they lost and the churches houses and even beacons were buried. Also the enormous wandering dune, that slowly  wanders across the land crushing everything in its path, the remains of the German WWII Atlantic fortifications – bunkers in various states of disrepair dotting the coast line all the way to Skagen. The

Skagen Museum dedicated the  famous Skagen Painters, Michael and Anna Ancher and P.S. Krøyer (anyway, the museums restaurant in the museum garden is nice and serves delicious food).
For the youngest there are 500 km of sand beach, amusement parks, many nature playgrounds and lots of places to get ice cream, along the route.

Somewhat off the route in Thy you may find Kirsten Kjærs Museum, museum for a (rather unknown) female artist and collector who was  in the midst of the cultural elite of the 20th century, Thylejren, the first danish hippie commune, still waving the hippie flag high – famous for having had John Lennon and Yoko Ono staying there. Although not really a tourist sight (like Christiania is), they have cheap beer and soft drinks for a refreshment.

If you’re not content with just going along one route, og might want to see something off-route, you can follow the sign-posted detours, called Panorama-routes, roundtrips of 20 to 50 km along the traditional cycle route.  On the northern part of the Westcoast Route so far 7 Panorama-routes have been made.

Nice to know

Apart from the occasional grand gourmet apperances by danish chefs relocating for the summer to traditional foodie “hotter spots” like Skagen and Lønstrup, food on the Westcoast is rather basic, and most surprising, rarely fresh fish. Pizzas, burgers and kebabs rule the tables. In the tourist centres in the season you may find restaurants or cafees with an alternative offering. It pays to have your eyes open.

Technincal data

The route is almost flat, though it has some climbs that that can challenge the rider of a heavily packed bike, mainly due to the tracks rough surface.

The quality of the surface varies a lot along the route. From the high grade tarmac in Thy National Park, to gravel, dirt, concrete plates, grass and even sand – of course along the shore line but also on some paths further inland.

As many cyclists say: “The mountains in Denmark are flat”, and refer to the at times strong and continious winds, that really can take the energy from you.

You can go on a normal touring or everyday bike as we did, or, if you would like to try out some of the great mountain bike tracks, fit a mountain bike with panniers.

Notes

* Usually the ticket states that you change at Fredericia, but that means that you will have to change platforms (with bikes and stuff) in a rather short time. Changing at Vejle is less stressfull since there is only one platform, and the trains go on the same tracks, so they will come in the right order. Ask for advice from the personel on the train.

Additional links

The Route: http://cyclistic.dk/da/?routeID=96b3fc95-c02b-4d45-b5fe-5c9e70bf1ece

North Sea Cycle Route: http://www.northsea-cycle.com/

West Coast Route: http://vestkystruten.dk/

Just do it

There where, however, some considerations.

First, it could get cold. Well, with a good layer of wool that should not be a problem. Second, the daylight at this time of the year in Denmark is very limited, lasting only from 9 AM. to 3.30 PM. Okay, I would have to use my old winter bike with a dynamo lightning system and put on a hi-vi jacket. Third, and in my mind the biggest obstacle, the trains would probably not have any room for bicycles when half of the Danes would be visiting the other half for Christmas celebrations. With pessimism I called DSB – the Danish train operator, and a friendly lady gave me reservations for both my bike and me. Forth, it would be way out of season and I did not want to wild camp – would I find any accommodation? The options were limited, but I managed to find two hostels still open for reservations.

In the morning of December 20th I made myself comfortable for the 5 hour train trip to Aalborg, from where I would start the bike tour. I planed on cycling for two and a half days. The total length of the trip would be nearly 400 km.

Drinking cold water

I cycled out of Aalborg under a perfect blue sky.

The temperature was around 7 degrees Celsius. The first half day was planed as a moderate warm up day with only 50-60 km of cycling. I was excited how it would be to cycle in the dark, especially how difficult it would be to find the right way. For that purpose I had mounted a headlamp on my helmet. Together with my LED front light and my two tail lights, one dynamo driven, the other running on batteries, it was a humble arrangement for illuminating the nearly complete darkness of the Danish countryside.

But it worked very well. What did not work that well was my intake of water. I made the mistake of not drinking because I did not fell any thirst. After around 40 km I felt dizzy and tired. I got off the bike seriously in doubt that I would make it to the hostel, which was less than 20 km away. But what was the alternative? To wait for the bus? There were no buses. To call a taxi? No, it would probably take hours, and I was already freezing. Instead I floored the remains of my water bottle and got back on the bike. Somehow I made it to Fjerritslev, where I treated myself with a big dish of kebab and a giant coke.

The endless road

In the early dark morning of day two I had a quick breakfast at the local bakery. The woman in the bakery did not know the town I was heading to, Fjaltring. I took it as a proof of covering a decent amount of kilometres. According to my measurements it would be around 130 km. The first half would be in a South-Western direction, the second part straight South. The weather forecast made me worry a bit. It predicted strong winds of 8-10 meters per second from South-West, lasting the whole day. And, by the way, the next day too.

I covered 50 km in the first 3 hours, not using the big chainring one single time. I had lunch completely alone at a nice spot in the National Park Thy and envisioned that I could use the larger gears as soon as I would turn in a more Southern direction. I was wrong.

The constant headwind made it impossible to cycle more than 15-16 km/h. I felt slow on my lightly packed bike, but I still had the feeling I was moving somewhere. On some stretches the trees created a full wind screen and for a short while I could stop pedalling without making the bike stop. What was even better than the interruption of circulating pedals was the silence. Suddenly, I could hear my self think again. I enjoined the brief reminiscence of how great cycling is, before stamping down in the pedals again.

The last hour before sunset I cycled down the languet Agger Tange. The road is 9 km long and totally exposed to wind. The headwind made it hard to go more than 12 km/h. It gave me plenty of time to enjoy the constant view of the endless road ahead, though I mostly just looked down.

I made it to the end from where I took the ferry across Limfjorden to Thyborøn. From the harbour town I called the next hostel to inform about my late arrival. The friendly hostelhost adviced me to eat before arriving in Fjaltring as the only shop would close at 6 PM. On the ferry I had seen a train line going more or less in my direction. The wind had worn me out, so I decided to swing by the train station to check the timetable. To my luck the next and the last train for the day would leave in less than an hour. Just enough time to have a bite of food.

After the short train ride, which costed me 20 kroner (bikes are free), I cycled the last 10 km in complete darkness to the hostel.

The friendly hostelhost greeted me with a nice little treat.

Overturned garden gnomes

The third and last day of my Christmas journey was also the longest. At least according to my plan. I had measured it to be somewhere around 180 km. The direction would be straight South. The wind had been pretty strong all through the night, and its source of air did not seem to run out on this side of Christmas eve. There was plenty of wind for one more day and all of it seemed to come from the South. Rømø was further away than the map showed.

At breakfast I looked into some short cut possibilities. As I was going to cycle in more densely populated areas with bigger towns, there was a better offer of public transport than had been the case in the Northern part. I had several options of jumping a train as I got longer South. So that was the plan. To cycle as long as I could and then find a train to take me the rest of the way. That I would give up after only 100 km did not cross my mind.

It happened somewhere between Hvide Sande and Nymindegab on route 181, a 23 km long, straight road with high dunes on one side and Ringkøbing Fjord on the other side. Around noon the headwind had joined up with its dear friend rain. The constant blow of wind mixed with thousands of small jabs from horizontal raindrops slowed me down to 10 km/h. After two and a half hour I arrived in Nymindegab. Even though I was waterproof dressed from head to toe, the rain had managed to penetrate. My hands and feet felt numb.

I had spent nearly 7 hours to cycle 90 km. It was beginning to darken. I had lost my guts. On the map I had seen a railway line from Nymindegab. I decided that it would be the end of the tour. Only I did not find any station. To my luck the next bigger town, Nørre Nebel, was only 7 km away and in a Southeastern direction. For the first time of the day I did not cycle in direct headwind.

The time table at the train station said that the next train would leave in one and a half hour time. In a small waiting room I changed to dry clothing and went on hunt for a cop of coffee. That was the end of the tour, and I knew it. The train would drop me off in Skærbæk, only 15 km from Rømø. But it would be 15 km over a dam with absolutely no protection from the wind. I called my father and asked if he would pick me up at the station. He would.

The basics

I used my Specialized Rockhopper comp from 2000, which I have built, rebuilt and modified dozens of times.  Today it is my winter and  heavy touring bike.

I cycled 300 km on 2 and a half day. The temperature was around 10 degrees Celsius and the sun was up for 6 and a half hours each day.

Next time I will cycle the route in the other direction, from South to North, coinciding with the official recommendation. And probably pick a different time of the year… Well, I am actually not so sure about that. Winter touring has the same benefits as off-season travelling: it easier to get a room and you get a view behind the scenes of the summer destinations. You just need to keep your feet warm!

Travel tips

I stayed in two Danhostels. They can be found and booked on www.danhostel.dk

The time table of the ferry between Agger Tange and Thyborøn can be found on www.thyboronagger.dk

The time table of the train service from Thyborøn can be found on www.lemvigbanen.dk

The Westcoast or North Sea Cycle Route which I followed on large parts of my route can be found here www.northsea-cycle.com

For customized route planing I used www.naviki.org