Enebaerodde

Sunday we planned an all day outing to the beach on the north part of Fyn at a place called Enebaerodde (Eena-bear-ode-ah; Juniper berry spit). It is about 20 km away, and there is a regional bike route that goes along the Odense canal and then the Fjord to the area. So we were up, and out after breakfast. The ride did take us all day, and we have sore bums, but we made it.

From Odense Fjord (click photo for more)

I must say I was proud to be a part of our troop heading north. Close to Odense, it is not the height of scenic beauty. At the very bottom part (near our house), it is a low-traffic working harbor. A little further on it gets better; to the west it is quite nice for the first 5 km - wetlands and farmlands, while on the town side of the canal it continues to be industrial. Further north (after the bike ferry at Stige) our focus switched to the east as the path passes the regional dump on the west. Fortunately, after 7 or 8 km both sides are at last "free" from the municipal realities, and the route opens to the countryside.

After a few more km it was break time, and that coincided with the passing of a large ship on its way to Odense. A chance for food, a rest, and a picture or two. Well, we got the food and one picture, but that is about it. Denmark thus far has had a comparatively high population of yellow jackets. They seem to find us (and anyone) wherever we are whenever we have some food outside. Well today on our first stop we found the most aggressive bees yet! In fact it was so bad we had to make a rapid and poorly organized escape, with Katie, Bev, and Hank tearing off without helmets on their heads. I followed just behind, but somehow managed a picture capturing the boat and the escape at the same time.

Free from the mad swarm of bees, we meandered our way up the coast, past pretty harbors, fields, and shoreline. We even saw a polder. There is a large manor house called Hofmansgrav along the route dating from the 18th century and we stopped and walked through the gardens. They have over 200 species of tree, and it is now run by a trust dedicated to maintaining the estate for historical purposes. The place also holds Denmark's only potato museum It is quite small and entirely in Danish, so the information gleaned about potatoes was minimal.

We reached the top (north) end of the route which is a seaside resort. It is beautiful, with nice beach front houses and vacationing Danes (but it is not a big public beach scene). Our map showed a convenience store, but alas, none was to be found. So with kids running on fumes (parents too), we beat a retreat south in search of food. The ONLY thing that saved us was the tailwind. We passed through a town called Kellinbjerg and its harbor had a little kiosk that sold hot dogs and ice cream. Salvation!

The rest of the trip went without a hitch. We had a great time, passed through 50 km of Danish countryside, and arrived home tired, but happy. All that is left is to sleep and plan our next adventure.