Well the new 'Force 10' ultra-light tent gave us a very comfy nights sleep for our first night under canvas in Denmark. We were up quite early with the sun and there was a heavy dew soaking the ground.
After sharing breakfast with an Australian couple who were also travelling the country by bike, we headed off on our own onto the cycle route. I hope the levels of excitement and freedom that we felt will remain for the next few weeks!
The island is picturesque and travelling at bike speed means that you get to see and appreciate it more I think. The buildings are all old and quite different to what we are used to. They are generally only one story high and many have steep or thatched roofs. Everyone seems to grow fruit and vegetables in their gardens and we passed by lots of mini stalls that were set up outside their houses selling their excess. Perfect for passing hungry cyclists! We even picked up a bag of homemade ginger cookies from this one.
Our pre trip geographical calculations had been correct and there was only a very achievable 350m of height climbed during our 30km+ journey. Without the sweat and toil of any significant hills, the distance slipped but steady and at 11:30 we stopped at a nice little beach for an early lunch.
Ideally, we would have had a quick swim, but it was a bit breezy and overcast, so I had a snooze instead while Clare made some work calls.
Then it was back on the open road!
We saw very little traffic, even though some parts of the cycle route were on roads (well, country lane type roads). Each little village we passed through was made of individual old quirky buildings that reminded us that we were defiantly somewhere 'different'.
Having checked the weather and found that rain was on its way, we were keen to have found somewhere to camp before it arrived. We took a gamble to press on to a designated wild camp area where you can camp for free.
Happily, we made it there dry. As well as a composting toilet, there was also a water tap, a table and a few flat spaces for tents. Perfect! And we had the place to ourselves. We got the tent up quickly as the skies out to sea were darkening.
It was only a short walk to the beach, so we walked down after getting camp sorted. There are loads of plum and greengage trees on the hedgerows. There were also some yellow plum type fruits and one tree totally laden with a dark berry like a sloe? Not wanting to poison myself, I nervously enjoyed a few plums, but stayed clear of the rest! As we passed a corn field it became apparent that we might not make it back to the tent dry!
It was windy and wild at the coast and rain drops were beginning to fall - we didn't hang around and retraced our steps with a purposeful stride.
We had our waterproofs on and got back damp but not drenched. The intensity of the rain and wind soon picked up after we climbed inside. We had got back just in time!
After some reading, the storm continued with no sign of abating, so we cooked and ate dinner inside, with just the occasional dash outside when we needed to pee!
Just as we finished eating the tent suddenly became illuminated in an eriy light. We stuck our heads outside and saw the sun breaking through the clouds just before it reached the horizon. Another magic moment and a beautiful finish to an exciting day.
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