Tag Archives: walking

Walking on Alsstien

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There are many interesting paths for hiking around Als. One of them is “Alsstien” which runs along the east coast of the island. The path is close to the coast most of the way with some beautiful seascapes, going along pebble stone beaches, through beech forests and past ancient megaliths.

The whole path is around 73 km long and is in the official maps divided into three sections going from

All of Alsstien 73km hiking route from OSM

The path is in very varied terrain as the video further down will show. It is marked with blue signs with a white man. In places the route is not well marked and having the maps above at hand can be well worth it.

Together with two friends I decided to try and walk a section of the path. More precisely the section from Sarup in south to one of the shelters in Nørreskoven. We were not completely sure of how long this trip would be but expected it to be about 20-25km that we could cover in 4 hours.


View Hiking Alsstien (Nørreskoven) in a larger map

It turned out to be 18 km to the first shelter in Nørreskoven where we decided to stay for the night. The good thing about these shelters is that you do not need to bring a tent as you have a roof over your head. In our region the shelters offered by the kommune are mapped here.

Shelter in Nørreskoven

There is a small area were it is allowed to camp, a fireplace with a handy grill that can be raised and lowered according to the fire. When we arrived there was a family of about 10 people who had camped in tents on the grass area.

In the shelter a local drunk had already set up but there was still room so we decided to stay next to her which turned out to be a bad idea as she kept us awake most of the night.
All in all it was part of the experience and this was the view that greeted us as we woke up.

View from the shelter

We had thought of continuing the hike the next day but we were in for some heavy rain so rather than keep going we decided to backtrack a bit to a place were we could get picked up.

I shot some video from our hike. It’s in Danish and quite long but could be useful if you want to get an overview of the different landscapes along the route:

For more information about the path have a look at Britta from Blitzschuh’s account.

What’s on in May 2012?

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Every month visitsonderborg.com publish a quite extensive calendar of events for the upcoming weeks. May seems to herald in a whole range of festivals and flea markets, and this being spring makes it the perfect time to explore the surrounding countryside. These are the events that caught our eye, but you can have a look at the complete calendar here.

Festivals

During the first weekend (3-6) there is the Graasten market and music festival and the Nordborg city festival. From the 17th to the 20th of May it is the turn of Sonderborg to have its own city festival. There will also be the Rum Regatta in Sonderborg and Flensburg. Nøffelskov Festival then occurs on the 26th of May.

Flea Markets

Flea markets, known as ‘loppemarked’ in Danish, appear to be a favourite activity of Danes, with sports clubs and social associations organising them as a way raising funds for their organisation or charities. On the 14th, 21st and 28th there will be a flea market at `Den Røde Plads` (The Red Square) from 10am-5pm at Stationsvej 2, 6430 Nordborg.

Get Moving

You will probably find something to catch your eye this month, whether you are interested in long-distance running (100km Als Rundt Run on 17th of May) or shorter running distances (1864-run on the 27th of May). If you are interested in something more sedate there is Ladywalk on the 21st of May, or any number of countryside walks organised by Fodslaw as well as other organisations. You can also get a tour of Graasten palace and gardens on the 17th, 27th and 28th of May (though only in Danish or German).

Something for the Girls

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An e-mail in my work inbox. Ladywalk. 7 (or 12) km walk on the 21st of May at 18:30. Would I be interested in joining? Of course!

Ladywalk is a simultaneous walk in a number of cities in Denmark. The walks are in aid of the Multiple Sclerosis society and the Osteoporosis society. I do not know much about these two societies. However, even though I do not suffer from either (to my knowledge), both of these conditions have had or can have an impact on me.

When I was younger I helped out with a kid with multiple sclerosis. I know how important the support offered by such societies is in providing volunteers, resources and also supporting research. As for osteoporosis, I know that just by being a woman means that I am at higher risk of suffering from this disease sometime in the future: 1 in 3 women over 50 will experience osteoporotic fractures, as will 1 in 5 men (more stats). Both these reasons made me want to be part of this event.

I have signed up for the Sonderborg event through my employer (Danfoss). If you are interested you can check with your employer is willing to sponsor women in your company to attend. Otherwise, the registration fee of 110 DKK (or 140 DKK after 23rd April) is well worth it!