Wonderful wonderful Copenhagen .......

A slight change of plans as a result of the oil seals on the recently refurbished transfer box leaking oil into the handbrake. Not too worried about the transfer box, but the thought of a dodgy handbrake in Norway is not appealing. As a result we have headed south, stopping to see some fantastic Viking sites, including a well preserved 1000 year old Viking (Tollund Man)dug up from a bog and displayed in a small museum (the detail is fantastic, you can even see his whiskers on his chin), a Viking burial ground where the graves are shaped like Viking boats, a funeral ship where a major chief was buried, as well as some fantastic church frescoes. The weather still cool, but mainly dry. In Kolding we had the Landy checked over by a dealer, but due to the bank holiday here we will not be able to get the work done until Tuesday, so have decided to explore the islands to Copenhagen over the weekend, return to the dealer for Tuesday and then get the ferry from Hirtshalls on the North of Denmark Direct to Norway.
The Islands are beautiful, gentle but very scenic with lots of fishing, and sailing, and Copenhagen has proved equally gentle. A city with virtually no buildings taller than 5 storeys with fantastic palaces and churches built at great expense during the 1600's. A visit to the iconic mermaid found half of the tourists in Denmark surrounding it, but the nearby old fortress was very peaceful, though full of runners, presumably training for the Copenhagen marathon on Sunday.
 

Denmark - Toe to Tip in two dimensions

Since crossing into Denmark we have experienced sun, gales, and rain as we have driven along the west (North Sea) coast. It is remarkable how two dimensional everything is - few hills but fantastic skyscapes, with the main challenge when cycling being the wind! The southern part of the coast is mud flats backed by man made dykes, with a fantastic range of birdlife, while the northern end is one long beach backed by sand dunes. Near the top there is a large field of white sand dunes, which is a rather strange experience as it looks like the Sahara, but was about 30 degrees colder! The northern tip of Denmark ends in a spit of sand with the waves approaching from opposite directions making a real maelstrom just off-shore, and catching Sue with one foot under the waves of each sea!

The return journey south towards Copenhagen takes in more cultural sights, with visits to historical Viking sites, as well as some ancient frescoes in the old churches. Excitement for tomorrow as we set out to tackle the highest summit in Denmark at 173m.

Sitting here in the Landy with the heating on and rain beating on the roof, we are dreaming of lazing in the sun, but we are promised warmer weather later in the week. Apart from not being very warm this is only the second period of rain we have had so we can't complain.

  
 

Into Scandinavia

Have gradually made our way up through Germany and are now on the threshold of entering Scandinavia (German - Danish border). Roads are so good here it is easy to make good progress. It is amazing how quickly you slip into a travelling routine - no rush, relaxed mornings, if we feel like it move on to another site, or stay and cycle for a day as we did on Wednesday. After a very hot start to the week it has turned quite cold, and as we are on the N Sea Coast a raw wind.
Having never been to N Germany there are a number of interesting features: Further south there is an amazing amount of woodland; every campsite has been filled with birdsong; roads are very good; it is generally very flat with lots of retaining dykes to keep out the sea; like The Netherlands cycling for everyday purposes such as shopping, is very normal, generally on sit up and beg type bikes.
It is a long weekend in Germany now for Ascention Day - which is also fathers day - campsite prices are inflated.
We will cross into Denmark today and head for some of the Viking sites over the next few days before crossing into Sweden.
 

Geographical Singularities

Gradually heading north east to rendezvous with Custom Campers tomorrow just north of Dortmund. Yesterday was a day of visiting some geographical singularities.
First the highest point in Belgium! - a rather bleak gravel car park beside a restaurant in the middle of a forest at Signal de Botrange, surrounded by gently undulating wooded hills. At 694m they have built a small tower so you can get to 700m. - see left.
A short drive north and we were at the highest point in the Netherlands at Vaalserberg, 321m, again situated near a car park with numerous restaurants, marked trails and entertainment. Around 20 yds from the highest point is the place where Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany meet. Slightly more appealing than Botrange and surrounded by beautiful deciduous woodland.
Following this excitement we had to camp at Osseo - Camping in the Dutch Mountains! - well - gently undulating hills a bit like Leicestershire (without the hedges).     

Off at Last

All the last minute bits and bobs loaded into the Landy and we set off with just a brief stop to vote before driving to Dover and leaving the country. Currently parked up on a peaceful campsite near Calais enjoying clear hot sunshine. The first part of the morning was spent listening to the election results on good old Radio 4 long wave. Planning a quiet relaxing day here to sit, read,
and find and repack all the last minute items we loaded.