A woman stands on the jetty and waves. That's strange, no-one is actually expecting me here. I follow the hand signal and experience Danish hospitality: Eva from Sejlklubben Jegindøv directs me to a free berth "So you don't have to search for long", she calls out to me in English and takes the head line to tie it to the jetty. It's a nice welcome, especially as a single-handed sailor I always appreciate a helping hand at the jetty.
However, Jegindø Havn does not look very inviting at first glance. Worn concrete piers and frayed wooden walkways catch the eye. Craftsmen are working with roaring machines and bringing the old harbour kiosk out of its slumber. Eva obviously sees my sceptical look and explains: "It really isn't as it should be here anymore. For a long time, nothing was done to preserve the harbour. But now we have great plans to renovate the harbour. Soon it should look completely different here again."
A surprise effect in the Limfjord
It's typical Limfjord: one minute you're coming out of a modern marina, sailing along fairytale cliffs and a few miles later you land in a fishing village that looks as if time has stood still for 70 years. This has its charm and an honesty that only becomes apparent at second glance - and that you don't often find like this anymore.
Meanwhile, Eva assures me: "We will carefully modernise the harbour so that our identity as fishermen is preserved in any case. After all, these are our roots." In fact, Jegindø was the second most important fishing harbour on the entire Limfjord in the 1950s. A small exhibition in the "Æ Fywehus" right by the harbour keeps the memory alive. Fishing gear and boats are on display, while the hard life of the fishermen is documented with pictures and other contemporary artefacts.
- Here you can find information about the area: Limfjord - on its own keel from Aalborg to Mors
The reality of the simple, tranquil harbours and jetties, sometimes marked by the ravages of time, is one thing. The Limfjord also offers what many colourful advertising brochures promise: comfortable guest harbours and unique coastlines characterised by flowering heathlands, gently rolling hills and steep banks. The fjord itself is divided into many large, interconnected water areas. They are ideal for almost every form of water sport and, of course, for extensive bathing fun in extensive shallow water areas.
Next destination: Aalborg
My Limfjord affair begins rather unromantically, however, at its eastern entrance at the old fishing and pilot harbour of Hals. The coast on the Kattegat was still wonderfully blessed with beaches and sandbanks, then it suddenly takes a westerly course as if on an artificial canal.
In addition to leisure boats, freighters and feeder ships are travelling to Aalborg, Denmark's fourth largest city. Trade and industry bring some prosperity to the region. Strategically located on the waterway, Aalborg has long played an important role in the transport of goods to and from Scandinavia. The city also benefited from the fjord's rich fishing grounds, especially from the herring catch, which was sold from here to the whole of Northern Europe. This is how Aalborg gained prestige and power.
This can still be seen in the urban development today. Historic brick buildings and old shipyards and warehouses go hand in hand with modern office and residential complexes. Aalborg is a culturally vibrant metropolis with good restaurants and cosy cafés. There is always a place for a stopover in one of several marinas.
Up to this point, the journey through northern Jutland is neither particularly spectacular in terms of scenery nor in nautical terms. Slight doubts arise as to whether all these hymns of praise and tales of the Danish dream area are not more the result of skilful tourism marketing than reality. This is not to change for another 22 nautical miles. Until a completely new landscape opens up behind the bridge at Aggersund.
"The heart of the Limfjord" lies in the west
"The heart of the Limfjord only starts to beat west of Aggersund at Løgstør Bredning," says Peer. The sports and sailing instructor from Ranum Efterskole College trains with his students on standard dinghies off the fjord shore at Rønbjerg Pynt. "If the wind is right, we all head over to Livø afterwards to swim on the beach and chill out in the harbour."
The waters off the small island of Livø with its kilometre-long sandbank are home territory for the Danish students, but a place of longing for the crews from Germany who have sailed far and wide. Livø is considered one of the most beautiful places in the fjord. In addition to the small island harbour, there are many good anchorages, and it is worth taking a break on the beach south of the harbour or hiking in the hilly landscape in the north of the island. The menu at the "Livø Kro & Købmandscafé" features delicious dishes prepared with local ingredients. Here I am not only full, but also happy!
The diverse landscape of the Limfjord
Once Livø's dangerous southern hook has been safely circumnavigated, the large bay of the island of Fur lies to starboard, followed by the cliffs and hilly landscape of Junget. This is followed by the flat bird island of Rotholmene and shortly afterwards the imposing sandbank at Hvalpsund, which blocks almost the entire passage into the sound of the same name to the south behind it. This is also typical of the Limfjord: an incredibly varied landscape over a distance of just a few nautical miles.
It was created at the end of the last ice age. When it began to thaw on the northern Scandinavian ridge, large lakes with meltwater formed. The outflowing water created the unique landscape over thousands of years. Currents, tides, storms and erosion continued to model it. The shaping process is still ongoing - which sometimes brings surprises for professional and leisure skippers.
Unwanted stop
Like in the south-eastern part of the Limfjord, in Lovns Bredning. The steep coastline near Knudshoved rises high into the sky. I shorten the course by just a few degrees and head for a red fairway buoy. Suddenly the speed is out, the plumb line shows zero metres under the keel. That's not much, especially when the chart promises at least three metres! The half-wind course so far ends with an unintentional shooting up on the long keel axis. Sails down, engine on, take a deep breath, check the situation.
At least the bottom is made of clay and sand. Maybe with the help of the engine we can manoeuvre the boat back into deeper water. After a few unsuccessful attempts, I can already hear myself calling for towing assistance on the radio. But first I pull out all the stops: cloths up again, genoa back, main far out, tiller lashed on course, engine full throttle and the captain on a lead out onto the boom up to the nock. It is a moving moment in the truest sense of the word as the yacht comes free and drifts into deep water. My Limfjord love is only slightly dampened by the grounding. I continue sailing southwards, one eye now married to the Lot.
"The area is known for both its beauty and its navigational challenges. The sandbanks here can change position within a short space of time," explains Sabina from Danske Tursejlere, an organisation that looks after the interests of cruising sailors in Denmark. After my mishap, I ask her if the Limfjord has any other pitfalls. She reassures me: "If you follow the buoys laid out, nothing can happen."
Crowd celebrating in the Nykøbing marina
Days later, I experience another typical Danish characteristic at first hand: the notorious party mood of our Nordic neighbours. On Mors, the largest island in the fjord, I land in Nykøbing in the packed marina. Stages have been set up on land and live music is playing across the water. Hundreds of visitors are gathered on the old quayside, swaying happily to the beat of the music or holding onto cups of beer. Just as many people are sitting at long tables with kilos of crab, mussels and lobster in front of them.
The start of the oyster and mussel fishing season is celebrated here every year at the beginning of June. The shellfish festival is popular with visitors from all over Europe, and Limfjord oysters and mussels are among the best in the world. "These delicacies are freely available to everyone in our country. There is a law that allows us citizens to harvest as much as we can eat from the sea. Only private individuals are not allowed to resell them," explains Jens Nielsen.
The crustacean expert works at the Thyborøn aquarium and shows visitors the sensitive ecology of the sea creatures. "The population of the native European oyster has fallen dramatically in recent years as a result of a parasite. The fishing companies have therefore switched to the Pacific oyster and lobster," explains Nielsen. This is nothing new for the fishermen. For centuries, they have had to react flexibly to natural events in the Limfjord.
Time travel in the Limfjord
This was the case after the storm surge of 1825, when the North Sea broke through the western land barrier to the fjord and created a connection between the two parts of the sea. The salt content rose rapidly and brought the lucrative herring fishery and the trade in salted fish to a complete standstill. When mussels, oysters and lobsters colonised the area, the fishermen adapted to the new source of protein and income; today, more and more areas are being cultivated with aquaculture.
Nowadays, the Limfjord is also attractive for sailors. It allows them to avoid the passage across the moody Skagerrak. "We save a few miles and also experience an exciting and perfectly protected area," says Claudia from the "Seeschwalbe". She and her boyfriend Boris sailed from Stockholm via the Göta Canal and onwards across the Kattegat to the Limfjord. "We hadn't planned much time for the fjord," Boris regrets. "Now we are surprised by the beauty and variety of the region."
In the harbour of Thyborøn, in the far west of the Limfjord, the boat is provisioned, bunkered and repaired a little a few days later. Then it's on to Scotland. A gentle inland area with Baltic Sea flair, then the North Sea is already knocking on the side of the boat. Once again typical Limfjord: versatile right to the end.
