A visit to Samsø

Last Saturday Aaron, Chas and I enjoyed a lovely day-trip to Samsø, an island 15 kilometers from the mainland. Rikke was enjoying her annual ladies weekend away, this year in Gothenburg, Sweden, and Olivia was attending a birthday and sleep over celebration with friends .. as teenagers do.

Samsø is a small island 28 km long and 7 km wide, and only 500m wide at its narrowest point. There are approximately 3700 permanent residents dispersed amongst 22 little villages. It has a beautiful and varied natural landscape from sandy and rocky beaches, hills, cliffs, and forests. With a focus on culture, history, nature and children’s activities, there is much to see and do. The whole of Samsø is suitable for cycling, as it is mostly flat, and it is a drawcard for cyclists and hikers.

Samsø is an agricultural area famous for its potatoes, and other vegetables, and for its renewable energy. Since 2007 the island has been self sufficient with energy from wind, sun and biomass.

We caught the ferry at Hou for the hour long trip to the island.

With a relaxed plan to enjoy as much of the island as we could in one day, we decided to begin at the northern tip of Samso – Issehoved. With stunning views from the Nordby Bakker’s cliffs you can see the intrepid walkers down on the beautiful sandy beach below.

Unfortunately we did not have sufficient time to do the walk on today's trip, but we have previously completed the trek to Grenen, the northernmost point at the tip of Denmark.

2.5km from the tip is the little village of Nordby, and approximately 2km south of the township is a beautiful medieval church. Apparently at the time there had been two other villages (which no longer exist), with the church located roughly in the middle. However the church bell which was used to call the residents to services could not be heard by the residents of Nordby, especially when there was a wind blowing. The bell announced the rising and setting of the sun, services in the church, the event of a fire (which was a serious threat as there are many thatched cottages and farms in the village). The bell was also used to announce other very important happenings in the village such as the slaughter of animals and the subsequent sale of the meat in the square.

Consequently by 17thC a bell tower had been erected in Nordby so the parishioners could be called to services. The bell tower that now stands in the village square was built in 1857 and is one of the most famous landmarks on Samsø.

A group of local volunteers are now responsible for the ringing of the bell. It is no longer used to call villages for church services, but is used to announce the rising and setting of the sun between the Easter and the Autumn school holidays, as well as on Saturdays and Sundays throughout the rest of the year. However, the bell sounds every day at Christmas.

The other attraction at Nordby is the quaint village itself. Most of the houses are the traditional thatched cottage style. It is lovely to just wander around the streets and enjoy the calm and peaceful surroundings. The local thatcher states that a thatched roof lasts between 40 and 60 years, and some of the most stylish thatched roofs are in Nordby.

After a simple but very enjoyable lunch at the Samsø Bryghus (brewery) and café, we headed south along the coast road, travelling through many of the small villages, our destination was one we did not want to miss .. Vesborg Fyr, the beautiful old white lighthouse at the south west tip of the island. From the northern tip to the southern.

Built in 1858 it offers magnificent 380deg views from the viewing platform .. 100 (or so) very narrow steps on a spiral staircase. Going up was fine .. going down needed a little more care. But it was very well worth it.

The first four photos are the views from all sides. Apparently there are a number of summer holiday houses available for rent at the lighthouse. Can you imagine the view in a storm from the little cottage in the first pic. Wow.!!...

The lighthouse is located on what was one of the largest military fortresses from the Middle Ages in Denmark.

You can see more photos of the lighthouse here Vesborg Fyr

As time was running short, we then travelled to the eastern side for coffee and ice cream at Ballen Marina, Samsø’s largest and most visited marina. There was lots of activity with people eating fish and chips, many families swimming on the beach, and children playing in the sand soaking up the beautiful, warm and sunny day. At this time of year the Danes are very aware that these beautiful summery days are nearly at an end for the year.

Another great day in an area of Denmark we had not previously visited, with the sun reflected on the water on our ferry trip home .. so good.