travels with janne

Just off the southeast coast of Sjælland lies the geologically dramatic island of Møn. I was inspired to visit the area by an 1850 painting by P.C. Skovgaard, which hangs in the Skovgaard Museum in Viborg not far from where I work. I saw the painting in the Easter holiday and was surprised and delighted that Denmark has the kind of landscape portrayed in the painting. From that moment I was determined to see the island in real life.

About 70 million years ago global warming had Denmark covered in water. Calciferous algae and animals lived in the sea. When they died, they didn’t go to heaven, but sank to the bottom of the sea, creating a thick layer of chalk on the seabed. Later, the earth cooled and glaciers formed. More than 12,000 years ago the glaciers pushed and grunted and shoved so much that parts of the chalk layer collided head on with each other and were pushed upwards, forming what can now be seen as beautiful white cliffs.

The cliffs rise straight up from the water and are now covered with gentle beech forests. The calcium-rich soil also nourishes 18 different kinds of orchids. I walk along the edge of the cliff with dramatic seaside views on one side and verdant woods on the other side. A long stairway leads down to the beach and the promise of fossil-hunting. When I get down to sea level I discover that the tide is up, so it is not possible to walk without getting wet or, even worse, caught in the waves.

The cliffs erode about 2-4 cm per year, sometimes dropping huge chunks that tumble down to the beach. That makes for rather precarious beachcombing, so I walk back up the 497 steps, puffing and panting until I finally reach the top. I can see how the water is coloured milky white from the chalk that erodes from the cliffs and is washed into the sea, from where it dissolves and disperses.

The air hangs heavy with the smell of lilacs that bloom in shades of purple and white as we pass by the flowering gardens of Fanø. Quaint, pretty and well-maintained, the towns of Sønderho (300 inhabitants) and its larger cousin Nordby in the north of Fanø cling proudly to their history and heritage. The houses are 200-300 years old and reflect prosperous times gone by, when Fanø was in its marine merchant heyday.

In contrast to many other places along the west coast, with their honky-tonk smell of grill bars and endless rows of summer cottages, shops and discoteques, Fanø manages to feel like a place that is not totally de-populated in the winter and not totally commercial in the summer. It is cosy, traditional, historic and friendly.

Lush gardens abound. Tall, leafy trees, fragrant bushes and melodic birds make a perfect framework for the colourful, old, thatched roof houses, the cobbled streets and the narrow, beaten earth alleys. The old seafarers made sure they had something really good to come home to.

As if the visual delights are not enough Fanø also has food to die for. It houses one of the most renowned restaurants in Denmark, Sønderho Kro, that leaves us swooning with gastronomic pleasure. It has been an inn continuously since 1722 and is one of the oldest inns in Denmark with royal privileges. You can also buy goodies to take home in the numerous shops in Sønderho and Nordby offering tempting local delicacies such as lamb and fennel sausage, North Sea cheese and heather honey.

Fanø is geologically young having emerged from the North Sea on the west coast of Jutland only about 10,000 years ago. The area is part of the Wadden Sea, where thousands of migrating birds make pit stops on their migratory routes. Fanø is also home to seals, some of which you can wander out to have a look at when the tide is out. Low tide, after a storm, is also the time to look for amber, which abounds on the beaches in Fanø. You need a sharp eye, experience and talent to spot it, though! Inland, much of the island is covered with forest and heath, ideal for cycling and walking.