Vadehavet

The Wadden Sea area does not only cover the Netherlands and Germany as many people think. The Wadden Sea also extends over Denmark and in Denmark the area is even designated a national park. We spent 5 days in the national park Vadehavet (Wadden Sea) and enjoyed the nature, tranquility and beautiful surroundings. Read more about the Vadehavet National Park in this blog.

The national park Vadehavet (Wadden Sea national park) was inaugurated on October 16th 2010 as the largest national park in Denmark. Since June 2014, it has also been the Danish part of the Wadden Sea UNESCO World heritage site. Almost the entire national park is part of the European network of nature reserves Natura 2000.

The national park is, after the national park on Greenland, with 1466 square kilometers the largest of the Danish national parks. It covers the Danish part of the Wadden Sea from Ho Bugt to the German border. The national park comprises more than 30 islands of which the islands of Fanø, Mandø and Rømø are inhabited. Also in the area is the Skallingen peninsula, the Varde Å valley, and many of the salt marshes and marine clay polders at Tjæreborg, Ribe and Tønder.

Tidal channels, mudflats, salt marshes, beach meadows and dunes occur in the area. Like the rest of the Wadden Sea, the park is renowned as a resting place for millions of migratory birds; more than 10 million birds pass through the Wadden Sea twice a year.

The Wadden Sea also has large numbers of breeding birds such as eider and oystercatcher, many fish species and invertebrates such as starfish and mussels. And of course the harbor seal is the only sea mammal in the area. The park is an amazing environment for more than 500 species of plants and animals.

Typical landscape

The landscape in the national park is typical, flat, green and wide views

The Sort sol (Black Sun) phenomenon is striking. This is a natural phenomenon that can be observed in the vicinity of Tønder and Ribe, among others. Very large numbers of starlings gather here in the spring and autumn for migration, forming large black spots in the sky. The flocks of birds at sunset are so large that they almost obscure the sun, hence the name "Black Sun". Unfortunately we were not able to observe this phenomenon, as we were in the area at the end of June.

We ended up spending 5 days in the national park where we stayed with our camper in Ballum on the southwest coast of Denmark. There are also several other good campsites in the area, both along the coast and on the islands. Ballum is located in the south of the national park. In the 5 days we have mainly been in the southern part of the national park in the area between Tønder and the island of Rømø. In this part of the park you get an excellent impression of the Danish Wadden.

Cycling opportunities

The national park is a great area for fantastic bike ride opportunities

It should come as no surprise to Dutch and German readers that the Danish Wadden are not very different from the Dutch and German Wadden. The coastal landscape is flat, wide and green with the occasional small village and some farms. And from almost anywhere along the coast you have a great view of the mudflats itself. We have been able to observe beautifully that at low tide the coastal strip almost dried up and at high tide there was water again. We also did some lovely hikes, both along the coast and on the island of Rømø where we spent a whole day. Read about our visit to Rømø the blog we will come soon about this island.

The area is also perfect for beautiful cycling trips. This is possible along the coast, inland and to the islands and on the islands. We made two beautiful bike rides, one to the island of Rømø and one along the coast between Højer and Havervad along the coast. We cycled a tiny part of the North Sea Cycle route. We were not aware of the existence of this route, but it turns out that this is an official cycle route of more than 7,000 km that goes along all coasts around the North Sea. The small village of Højer is also well worth a visit because of the old mill, the waterlocks between the Wadden Sea and the Vida River, and the ability to do some walking on the mudflats.

Mud flats

The sea falls dry with low tide creating the typical mud flats

The national park Vadehavet is great to visit if you like peace, nature, hiking, cycling and beautiful quiet islands with wide beaches. In the 5 days we were there we only visited part of the national park. We have been told that the northern part is also beautiful. The Ho Bugt with the islet of Langli and the Skallingen peninsula are said to be one of the most unspoilt natural landscapes in the entire national park Vadehavet. We have now chosen to move towards the east of Denmark and Sweden. But if we implement our plan to go to Iceland in the coming years (hopefully in 2022), we will definitely return to the national park and visit the northern part as well.

For more photo material and information about Vadehavet National Park, check out our Instagram posts and our Polarsteps page!

Ella & Geert.