Hiking, nature and culture in Thy

Sunday 26 July: Arrival and welcome

• 14.30-15.30 Arrival and accommodation. There's a train into Hurup Thy St. at 13.44. We'll pick up those of you arriving on this train - and no others. Otherwise you'll have to take a taxi.
• 15.30 Welcome in the communal hall with cake + coffee + song. We hear about the folk high school's setting, namely Hawkraft Kulturhotel, from the owners Jan and Dorthe.
• A short walk around the school's grounds with the couple, who tell us a little about Thy and Vestervig, which will be our little town for the coming week.
• Back in the communal hall or on the lawn depending on the weather: We do a couple of activities.
• Break.
• 19.00 Dinner + who's who.
• 20.00 Talk: Thy then and now. A talk about Thy's development by Thorkild Møller. We get an insight into the transformation Thy has undergone from being a wind-blown corner on the edge of Denmark to today, where Thy is a magnet for surfers who romp about in Cold Hawaii, where entrepreneurship flourishes, and sustainability and green energy are high on the agenda. We also hear about Thy National Park, which was inaugurated in 2008.

Monday 27 July: Hike 1. Krik Vig, the North Sea, Lodbjerg Lighthouse and Lodbjerg Church (approx. 15-16 km)

• 8.00 Morning exercises + we sing a couple of songs.
• 8.30 Breakfast and making packed lunches.

We lace up our shoes, for now we're heading out on the first hike together with nature guide Thorkild Møller, who is an expert in the area. We leave the folk high school and walk along small roads and paths towards Krik Vig. Gradually the landscape changes from cultivated land with tilled fields to wild nature with dune landscapes, small lakes and sparse plant growth with stunted trees and bushes. We're in the middle of the country's wildest national park, Thy National Park. We walk towards the fishing village of Agger and come out to the North Sea. If the sea is calm we take a bathing break here before we continue towards the remotely located, protected Lodbjerg Lighthouse, a classic among our lighthouses

Lodbjerg Lighthouse

Here we can eat our packed lunches, and there's the option to buy coffee and delicious Lodbjerg kringle. We're told the exciting history of the lighthouse and the people who have lived in the lighthouse keeper's residence. Among other things, the tower was occupied by the Germans during the occupation.

Lodbjerg Church

After a nice long break we now continue the approximately 2.5 km that remain along winding paths through Lodbjerg Plantation to the little Lodbjerg Church, "utterly ruined by sand". The church, which dates from the 1500s, was saved at the last moment and is thought to be the place where Henrik Pontoppidan has the main character in "Lucky Per" end his days and be buried.

We may sing a song/hymn or two in the church before we drive home to the folk high school in the cars made available. Remember to pay 30,- to the day's driver.

• 19.00 Dinner.
• 20.00 Tips for what you can experience in Thy on the day off on Thursday. It could be a trip to the National Gallery of Denmark, which has opened its very first branch ever outside Copenhagen - at Doverodde Købmandsgaard in Thy, or to the Bunker Museum in Hanstholm, riding Puch Maxi mopeds in Thyborøn (see more and book the trip in advance here: https://puchmaxitur.dk/oplevelser/guidet-puch-maxi-tur/) or see Nationalparkcenter Thy in Vorupør, etc.
• Evening song.

Tuesday 28 July: Exploring the area, Agger church and canoe trip

• 8.00 Morning exercises + we sing a couple of songs.
• 8.30 Breakfast and making packed lunches.
• 9.45 Driving in private cars - we spread out into the cars we have available and pay 30,- to the day's driver.
• 10.00 We meet in front of the church in Agger for an exciting guided tour with Gitte Jensen, who was born and raised in Agger. Gitte is a wonderfully lively storyteller and knows everything and everyone in Agger. We hear about the role of the church, the sand drift, the hard life at sea. We finish with packed lunches, coffee and a chat in Gitte's lovely garden.
• 14.00 We're going out canoeing - more information to follow.
• 19.00 Dinner.
• 20.00 Talk: Hiking then and now - about hiking seen through a religious, philosophical and health perspective by principal Anna Katrin Nørgaard.

Wednesday 29 July: Hike 2. Circular route Klitmøller, Vandet Sø, Nors Sø and surroundings (12/19 km)

• 8.00 Morning exercises + we sing a couple of songs.
• 8.30 Breakfast and making packed lunches.

We start from Nordvestjysk Golf Club near Klitmøller. Here we meet Thorkild, who tells us about the day's hike and we're handed maps of the route. From here we walk in through Nystrup dune plantation and pass the site of two old noble manor farms, "Nystrup" and "Nebel". Onwards along Ministervejen across Kronens Hede with a magnificent view out over the large Vandet Sø. After passing Kongens Kilder we come to Vester Vandet Church with its peculiar furnishings, including the old Bornholm clock with two clock faces. Along narrow roads and paths we pass a group of unspoilt, high-lying burial mounds from the Bronze Age, the Edshøje, with a mile-wide view out over Vandet Sø and the North Sea in the distance.

Bathe in one of the cleanest lakes

The lunch break is held at Ulvestedet on the south side of Nors Sø with the option to bathe. The lake has a chalk bottom and is one of Denmark's cleanest with a very special fauna. We continue the hike along the lake shore to a bird tower, from which the first wolf in modern times was spotted in 2012. We pass 100-year-old pine trees that are 30 metres tall with a circumference of 3 metres. Along narrow paths and footpaths we follow the former coastline on top of Vilsbøl Plantation with a view out over the old Stone Age sea, which makes time stand still; a veritable time capsule. We cross the Thisted-Klitmøller road, and have now hiked 12 km. Here there's the option to shorten the walk and head back to the folk high school. Remember to pay 30,- to the day's driver.

On the last stretch, which is 6-7 km, we pass Klitmøller Å over an old bridge, and continue across Kvadderkær along old wheel tracks through the dunes back to the Golf Club. From here we drive back to the folk high school in the cars made available. Remember to pay 30,- to the day's driver.

• 18.30 Dinner.
• 19.30 Campfire evening (if the weather allows) with songs from the Folk High School Songbook.

Thursday 30 August: Day off and nature as a setting for reflection and wellbeing

• 8.00 Morning exercises + we sing a couple of songs.
• 8.30 breakfast.
• DAY OFF - on your own in Thy and the surrounding area. You arrange lunch yourselves.
• 19.00 Dinner at the folk high school.
• 20.00 Talk - about nature as a setting for reflection and wellbeing by nature coach Kirsten Klüver.

Friday 31 August: Hike 3. Hanstholm Wildlife Reserve (13/19 km)

• 8.00 Morning exercises + we sing a couple of songs.
• 8.30 Then a shared breakfast and making packed lunches.

We make packed lunches and drive in cars towards Hanstholm Wildlife Reserve. We start out at Tved Church, where we meet Thorkild, who will tell us about the day's hike and hand out maps. But first we'll just pop in and see the church. Tved Church is a wayside church that is reputed to be the most beautifully located church in Thy. Of particular note is a large fresco depicting the Fall of Man with Adam and Eve, standing knee-deep in marram grass.

The hike's highlight

After this start we make our way into Tved dune plantation and towards the beautifully located Nors Sø, where we have a little break. Here there's the option to bathe in the clean lake, refill water and use the toilet. We walk up over the slope from the lake, and as we walk, a beautiful backdrop unfolds with endless expanses of untouched dune heath landscape with countless small lakes, while we have a view of the blue North Sea in the background. Many experience this view as the highlight of the hike. Large herds of red deer roam the area - often more than 100 together. We sit on top of Isbjerget up in the heights and look out over the beautiful landscape while we eat our packed lunches. If we're lucky, besides red deer we may also spot a white-tailed eagle in the distance, so remember the binoculars.

Tved dune plantation

After a good meal break we're back on the path, and after a couple of hours' hiking we turn back into Tved dune plantation, where calm descends and we can enjoy a less windswept moment in green surroundings. We round the bird tower, where those who want to stop now walk about 1 km to the car park. They'll then have walked about 13 km. Remember to pay 30,- to the day's driver.

The rest of the group continues along paths past old sea cliffs, sinkholes and bogs, until we walk on the border between nature and culture, with plantation and dunes on one side and the cultivated landscape with a view of fields and farms on the other. After about 19 km we arrive back at Tved Church and can drive home. Remember to pay 30,- to the day's driver.

• Relaxation.
• 19.00 We help each other set a festive table with decorations from nature. Farewell dinner with festive entertainment.

Saturday 1 August: Departure

• 9.00 Breakfast.
• 10.00 Goodbye and thanks for this time - departure.
• There's a train at 11.05 from Hurup Thy St. in the direction of Aarhus/Copenhagen.

Subject to changes

Hawkraft Kulturhotel in Vestervig forms the loveliest and cosiest setting for our folk high school week. It's the former Vestervig Hospital, stylishly converted into a culture hotel, with 20 good and tastefully furnished rooms. No rooms have their own bathroom. There are 7 bathrooms shared in the corridors. We have a large dining hall/lecture hall with room for 40-50 people, and in addition there are smaller lounges where you can sit and relax. There's also a lovely garden with a fire pit.

"Here the sky is vast, the sea roaring and the wind cleansing to body & soul, giving energy & zest for life, opening us up to creativity", as Jan and Dorthe, who own Hawkraft, put it themselves.

And we have rented rooms at Vestervig Musikskole, which has a room wing likewise with 4 rooms. The rooms here all have access to their own toilet and washbasin right next to the room. In addition you share two bathrooms.

Anna Katrin Nørgaard

Anna is the founder of Annas Højskole and principal there. She has been course leader on a whole host of courses, and by far most of the courses she takes part in have hiking on the programme. Anna is in fact mad about hiking, and has hiked all over Denmark and in Spain, Austria, Norway, England, Scotland and Iceland.

Thy holds a very special place in Anna's heart and she does what she can to join all the Thy courses, where she also ensures the good folk high school atmosphere with songs from the Folk High School Songbook.

Anna's motto is: To walk is to live.

Thorkild Møller

Thorkild is an experienced tour guide in Thy and Thy National Park, to which he is attached as a freelance interpretation partner. He therefore knows everything about the national park, its geography, geology, natural and cultural history.

Thorkild was originally a farmer, but has worked with teaching and interpretation as a free school teacher, adult educator and in integration work, and was, among other things, sent to the Balkans by the Danish Refugee Council in 1999.

Thorkild has been our regular guide since we started hiking in Thy in 2020. And we're incredibly happy about that.

Gitte Jensen

Gitte Jensen has been a local guide in Agger for the past 15 years. Gitte was for many years employed at the Local History Archive and the Library in Sydthy.

Gitte guides tours to the historical sites in Agger, where she was born, grew up and lives to this day.

Kirsten Klüver

Kirsten is an assistant at Annas Højskole and has previously helped with both administrative matters and with cooking and practical things on the courses.

Outdoor life and hiking are an important part of Kirsten's life. She trained as a nature coach and loves to use nature's surroundings and experiences as a setting for personal development, reflection and wellbeing.