A hike from Spodsbjerg to Bagenkop along the coast of Langeland, 2. leg - Denmark

According to Danish law you can freely hike along the coast. If you plan to hike along the entire coast of the island of Langeland, the small town Spodsbjerg on the middle of the east coast is a great place to start. If you head south from Spodsbjerg you can follow the coast and hike on the edge between water and land almost all the whole way to Bagenkop. You will find a great variety of beautiful sea and inland views and you can visit many small forests along the way. On the east coast of Langeland waves and currents have removed and deposited material for centuries, so today it is almost straight and characterized by flat sandy beaches and steep cliffs. To the south you pass Keldsnor Lighthouse, and on the hike around the southern tip bring you to the spit at Keldsnor - a unique wetland and birding locality. Through small woods you hike to Dovns and Gulstav cliffs on the south tip of the island. Hiking through a large track of land where the grassy vegetation is maintained by grazing wild horses, you reach Bagenkop, a nice fishing village with lovely holiday homes on the west coast. You only encounter a few obstacles along the way, but if big stones or a watercourse is blocking the beach, you can just go back and find a path that brings you back to the beach. If you get tired of walking in loose sand or round rocks, there is many possibilities for going on top of a dike, a cliff or at the edge of the beautiful coastal forests - Bovballe Skov, Lunden, Østre Gulstav, Vestre Gulstav and Søgaard Forest, all forests where the public is welcome on the trails. Information • Accommodation (campsites, primitive campsites (for tents and / or shelters)) o In Spodsbjerg o At Kågården close to Skovsgård Manor o Midway, at the end of Østerskovvej / at Garnhuset o In Lunden o In the East Gulstav forest, close to the southern tip of Langeland o In Bagenkop • Shopping: Spodsbjerg and Bagenkop • Dining places: Spodsbjerg, Skovsgård, Bagenkop We have divided the hike in two stages: Stage 1. Spodsbjerg - Garnhuset at Østerskov. Ca. 15 km (19 km inclusive a visit to the ecological manor, Skovsgård) Stage 2. Garnhuset at Østerskov - Bagenkop. Ca. 15 km. This text describes the second section of our hike: Garnhuset at Østerskov - Bagenkop. Ca. 15 km. Numbers on the map refer to the pictures and text below.

The renovated Garnhus (Fishing Net House) at Østerskov / Bukkemose 11. The first stage of the hiking trip to Bagenkop ends where Østerskovvej ends blindly at the coast. Here is a renovated house where the local fishermen maintained their nets - a memorial from the time of World War II when fishing from the coast was common here. In the house you are welcome to eat your lunch package, and posters tell about the house and coastal fishing. Here is also - just south of the end of Østerskovvej - a primitive campsite where you can stay for a fee. Further information at http://udinaturen.dk/facilitet/Garnhuset-%C3%98sterskov/15773. At the Fredmose summer cottage area there is a solid bathing bridge, picnic area and table-bench sest. Follow the coast south or a pedestrian crossing on the top of the larch lines through Bovballe Forest with beautiful, beechwood trees.

Shooting range at the end of Bøsseløkkevej 12. Just south of Bovballe Forest, the gravel road Bøsseløkkevej ends blindly at the coast. Here there was a shooting range, where the Danish Home Guard and police practiced shooting and throwing grenades.

Shooting range at the end of Bøsseløkkevej. The roof of the shed used by the men practicing shooting is collapsed, but on the walls still instructions are in place for the proper use of the shooting range (August 2017)

Shooting range at the end of Bøsseløkkevej The roof of the shed used by the men practicing shooting is collapsed (August 2017). Along the gravel road further along the coast is a galvanized metal wire system, where the shooters (according to local sources) could mount, for example, posters of tanks that could be pulled back and forth to make shooting exercises more realistic. A mast at the end of the small gravel road has also survived from the time the area was a shooting range. Near the coast - in the middle of the former shooting range - there is a water hole with some small sheds. Maybe ducks are bred here?

Follow the road south and continue where the road turns into a track. Continue along the coast - here is a nice look of the countryside. Along the hill of Øbjerg, it is easier to walk on top of the cliff.

13. Take a break at the old store house at the end of Strandvej, where local fishermen store their stuff and launch their boats.

Old store house for fishing nets etc. at the end of Strandvej

Military Lookout station Føllesbjerg 14. At the top of Føllesbjerg lies a building that is not accessible from the coast - but you can easily pass the beach. Split flags and radar screens tell us about the application, here is a small section of the Danish defense that has survived the Cold War: The Navy's Lookout Station Føllesbjerg (”Marineudkigsstation Føllesbjerg”). It was established in 1952 to monitor traffic through Langelandsbelt and it is still manned 24/7/365.

On the beach you find strange things - black cables and rusty metal objects that might have been a part of the underwater surveillance of the belt. The coastline is dense green and reinforced with large stones - access is further protected from invasion of barbed wire and "Czech hedgehog". Where Vognsbjergvej ends blindly at the coast, there is a table-bench set and a waste rack. Continue south on a track. A stretch of the coast is secured with concrete before reaching the steep cliff that surrounds the fine forest “Lunden” (The Grove).

Motives from Lunden – staircase.

Motives from Lunden – beach.

Motives from Lunden – public primitive tent site with fire place. 15. Continue along the coast or enter the small wood called “Lunden” by a steep staircase. In Lunden there is a network of marked trails (yellow and green arrows). Lunden houses several recreational areas: Table bench sets, campfire sites and, at the southern end, a primitive campsite where you can gather and save firewood, make fire and stay in your tent for free. See also: http://udinaturen.dk/facilitet/lunden -sydlangeland/4642

Keldsnor Ligthouse Where the forest ends, a fascinating view of the Keldsnor Lighthouse opens. At low tide you can walk along the coast around the lighthouse, otherwise follow the hedge to the west to the driveway to the lighthouse from Rathvej, and enjoy the sight of the harmonious, whitewashed buildings. The lighthouse is still in operation. Unfortunately, there is no public access.

The sign tells you that there is no access for the public to the burial mound. If you look west, you can see a monument: a circular group of threes surrounded by stones. There is no public access to the monument. It was constructed in memory of a tragic drowning accident in April 1940. Early afternoon, Sunday, April 21, 1940, two sons from the nearby Rathgården, 12-year-old Ib and 11-year-old Gunnar, together with a workman at the farm, Helge Johansen, age 18, went out on the sea in a small dinghy, to fish for cod. Three quarters of a sea-mile from the shore, the dinghy capsized. Although lighthouse assistant Toft at Keldsnor Lighthouse observed the accident and called for assistance via the fog siren, the help came too late, and they all three drowned. 17 days later, the bodies of the two boys was found by Bagenkop fishing boats. They were found close to the place where the dinghy capsized, while the body of Helge was found far later on the coast of Eastern Germany. The father of the two boys, farm owner Alex Petersen, received a "royal permission" to build the special burial mound on the land south of Rathgården. On May 16, 1940, the two boys were buried in the mound.

Keldsnor 16. On the eastern side of Keldsnor is a parking lot, which is especially used by the many anglers who try their luck in the Baltic Sea from here. The coastal lagoon of Keldsnor is bordered by the spite, consisting of the pebble and a salt-impacted meadow, which is grazed by sheep. Enjoy the view of the lagoon, the many birds and the traffic of large ships here at the entrance to the Langelandsbælt from the Baltic Sea.

17. After the trip over the windy spite and getting tired of walking in its pebble, it is nice to get some shelter from the wind and walk along the coast of Østre Gulstav (Østerskov) to a large parking area with toilets, table-bench sets and waste containers at Dovns Klint. A little to the northeast, approx. 300 meters inside Østre Gulstav wood, there is a clearing with four shelters and a fire place. http://booking.naturstyrelsen.dk/Home/Liste, search for Gulstav From Dovns Klint there are less than 40 km to the north German coast, and South Langeland is situated on one of the migratory birds' main routes between the summer quarters in northern Scandinavia and the winter quarters south of Denmark. During the seasons for bird migration, Dovns Klint attracts hundreds of birdwatchers looking for migratory birds as they fly over and rest in the area.

The area is grazed by wild horses - a major tourist attraction.

Kingfisher in Gulstav Mose – observed from the bird watching tower 18. A little inland – east of Vestre Gulstav – lies Gulstav Mose, a bird sanctuary, owned by Danish Ornithological Society. There is no public access to the bog itself, but you can enter the bird watching tower just north of the bog, 300-400 meters from the coast. Østre and Vestre Gulstav (Østerskov and Vesterskov) are stævningsskove, also known as Gærdselsskove. The Langeland name is stubhaver. They consist of small trees that are cut down approximately every 20 years; the new shoots are produced by the old stumps. The Østre and Vestre Gulstav stævningsskove are owned and maintained by the Danish Nature Agency and is the oldest form of forestry we know in Denmark - used since the Stone Age

Cliffs at the Southern tip of Langeland and marked path 19. Follow the coast on the beach's pebble or on the marked path along the top of the cliff further along Dovns Klint and Gulstav Klint to Søgaard Skov.

Wild horses 20. Follow the marked path to the northeast through Søgård Forest to Søgård, cross Søgårdsvej and follow the path further on over the hills Åbjerg and Fredsbjerg to Bagenkop. From both hills there is a nice view over southern Langeland and the surrounding waters. Http://udinaturen.dk/facilitet/Store-hestetur--Sydlangeland-ca--5-3-km/4631 http://udinaturen.dk/facilitet/fredsbjerg-%C3%85bjerg-s%C3%B8g%C3%A5rd/14679

21. The hike ends in Bagenkop. When you enter Bagenkop via Fredsbjergvej and Stationsvej, you can follow a marked hiking trail to the harbor. Bagenkop is a nice fishing and holiday village with several eateries, an inn, a campsite, a good beach and nice holiday homes. If you follow the track and use the set QR codes, you will get to know a lot about Bagenkop and its history. http://bagenkop-info.dk/ildsjaele-fodsporet-2/