Limfjord Attractions

The western entrance to the Limfjord from the North Sea is the Thyborøn Canal (ferry), which flows from the North Sea into the lagoon known as Nissum Bredning. On the north side of the canal lies the popular holiday area around Agger and Vestervig.

In the 11th century Vestervig was the seat of the Bishop of Vendsyssel, the most northerly part of Jutland. Today it is a small village with less than 1,000 inhabitants. The church reminds us of its proud past even though the once-majestic basilica suffered over the centuries as the result of unsympathetic rebuilding and restoration. Careful renovation in the 1920s brought the church back to something like its original condition. It contains a number of Romanesque tombstones, including the oldest ones in Denmark (1210).Vestervig lost its importance when the harbor silted up, and the same is true of many other places along this stretch of coast. The silting alternated with storm tides which did further damage to the soil and much fertile land and several towns disappeared. The tiny Church and Lodbjerg Lighthouse bear witness to this destruction.

Today the Agger Tange promontory between the North Sea and the Kattegat is protected by dykes and breakwaters similar to those in the Netherlands.

On the south shore of the Nissum Bredning, a lagoon at the south end of the Limfjord, lies Lemvig, a pretty town in a hilly area. The church, with an onion tower of 1936, has a Roccoco interior. The Lemvig Museum (Vesterhus) contains items associated with the history of life-saving at sea and also pictures of stranded ships, a weaving-room and a goldsmith's workshop. Particularly interesting is the study used by the writer Thøger Larsen (1875-1928), complete with many of his books; in the garden there is a bust of the author by Thorvald Vestergaard (1958).With expanses of woodland, moor and heath as well as sand-dunes on the west coast, the surroundings of Lemvig are a veritable paradise for nature-lovers and many rare waterfowl can be observed. 12 km/7 mi west of the town a steep cliff, the 43m/141ft high Bovbjerg Klint, borders the sea.

The industrial town of Struer on Veno Bay is the home of the Bang and Olufsen electronics company. In the local museum, housed in a converted rectory, visitors can see an interesting collection of model ships and other exhibits. Struer also boasts some beautiful sculptures - "Young Girl from Sarpsborg" (1948) near the harbor and "Young Girl from Struer" (1927) in the park on Vestergade.To the northwest of Struer, near Kilen, will be found some strange moraine landscape - a nature reserve - with U-shaped glaciated valleys.

In the Limfjord there are numerous islands both large and small, the most important of which, Mors (Morsø), is reached by bridges over the Sallingsund to the south and the Vilsund to the north, or by ferries across the Neessund and Feggesund. The charm of Mors lies mainly in its magnificent scenery. Especially impressive is the Hanklit in the north, a 65m/200ft high crag which falls almost vertically down to the sea and contains animal and plant fossils of the Tertiary period. Ice Age glaciers have worn the rock into fantastic shapes. At the northern tip of Mors lies Feggeklit, the place where - according to legend - Hamlet is said to have killed his stepfather King Fegge. The Moler Museum exhibits fossils and diatomites (opening times given).

East of Mors lies the little island of Fur, with moler deposits and sandstone in the north. About 1120 a sandstone church was built in Nederby. In the Fur Museum can be seen fossils and geological finds. A panoramic view of the island's beautiful natural scenery can be enjoyed from the Stendalshøj.

Going east from Struer the visitor will come to Skive, on the fjord of the same name, a southern arm of the Limfjord into which the Skive Å flows at this point. There is an old 12th century Romanesque church, Den Gamle Kirke, which was extended in the Late Middle Ages. The wall-paintings of 1522 show the Holy Family and the Apostles.The historical and cultural exhibits in the Skive Museum include a Greenland collection, an impressive amber collection and paintings.In a wood behind the harbor stands Krabbesholm Manor, dating from the 16th C., which since 1907 has been a College of Adult Education. The central wing in brick was built by Iver Krabbe. In the Knights' Hall, richly furnished in the Jutland Roccoco style, the wall and ceiling paintings are worthy of attention.

In the west of the Salling Peninsula, north of Skive, stands Spøttrup Castle, one of the best examples of medieval fortress architecture in Denmark. It was built in the 15th century for the Bishops of Viborg and is surrounded by a double moat with a dividing rampart. For a long time it was considered impregnable. After threatening to collapse in the 18th century it was purchased by the state in 1840 and restored. Note in particular the Gothic vaulting in the east wing, the Knights' Hall in the south wing and the battlement walk. To the east of the castle lies a rose garden with medicinal plants and spices.

Southwest of Skive, and accessible via Vinderup, by Lake Flynder lies Herjl Hede Nature Park, 1,000 ha/2,500 acres in area. It is named after H. P. Hjerl-Jansen, who acquired the site in 1900. The chief attraction is the Open-air Museum known as "Den gamle Landsby" (The Old Village), with a smithy, inn, fire-station, mills, shops and a church, together with one of the oldest Danish farm settlements, the Vinkelgård from near Viborg. A former forest ranger's lodge now houses the Jutland Forest Museum; outside a Stone Age settlement has been constructed as well as a Bronze and an Iron Age house.

The road from Skive runs eastwards and northwards along the Limfjord, sometimes at a distance from the shore. By taking a side turning near Gedsted the visitor will reach Ålestrup in the western Himmerland. Here will be found the Danish Bicycle Museum (Danmarks Cykelmuseet), containing a collection of more than 100 bicycles from 1860 to 1970 which shows how they developed over that period.

North of Gedsted it is well worth taking in Vitskøl Abbey, a Cistercian monastery founded by Valdemar the Great. Of the church only ruins remain. The abbey was dissolved in the 16th C. and thereafter known as "Bjørnsholm" after its owner Bjørn Andersen. The three-winged manor, much extended, now houses a Botanical and Forestry Research Establishment. Medicinal plants and herbs grow in the old abbey garden.

The town of Løgstøor lies on the Aggersund. a narrow part of the Limfjord, across which there has been a bridge since 1942. The Limfjord Museum is in the former residence of the Canal Supervisor and displays a collection of fishing gear and items connected with shipping and ferries.The museum is set in a beautiful location over the canal.

Aggersborg lies on the north bank of the Aggersund. Nearby stood the Viking Castle of Aggersborg, built about 1000 at the behest of the king. A circular wall 240m/790ft in diameter has survived; in each quarter of the circle there once stood 12 long-houses. For a time the castle was a royal court, but was destroyed by fire during a peasants' uprising in the 15th C. About 1860 Aggersborggård Mansion, a half-timbered building, was erected here.

Thisted on the A11 is an industrial town on Thisted Bay (Thisted Bredning). In the old cemetery can be found the grave of the writer Jens Peter Jacobsen (1847-85), who was born here and whose psychological novel "Niels Lyhne" (1880) is well known both in Denmark and abroad. On the east side of the cemetery in Jernbanegade stands the Local Museum, with an interesting historical collection and mementos of Jacobsen.The town possesses an imposing Town Hall, designed in 1853 by M. G. Bindesboll. A bust on the Lilletorv is in memory of the priest Hans Christian Sonne, who in the 19th century founded Denmark's first consumers' co-operative society in an attempt to improve the lot of the workers.

The fishing and ferry port of Hanstholm lies 20 km/12.5 mi north of Thisted; there are ferries to the Faroes and other places. The 30m/100ft high lighthouse was built in 1843 and is visible from a considerable distance. In the World War II German troops occupied Hanstholm and the local people were evacuated.From the town a road along the dunes leads to the resort of Klitmoller (12 km/7 mi).

At the fishing village of Nørre Vorupør on the Limfjord, the North Sea Aquarium will be of interest. It has a fine collection of fish and marine animals caught by local fishermen.

In Fjerritslev, a town between the Limfjord and Jammer Bay, there is a Local Museum, housed on Gamle Bryggergård.On Jammer Bay to the north, between Skarreklit and Slettterstrand there is a beautiful stretch of coast with sand dunes and camp sites.To the east of Fjerritslev the A11 leads to Åbybro and then continues southeast to Ålborg, the largest town in the region. From there to Hals the Limfjord is known as the Langerak.

In Hals, an attractive resort on Ålborg Bay, remains of the old fortifications can be seen. A ferry connects Hals with the south shore of Limfjord.

This is a 1000 sq mile natural area with dunes, cliffs, fields, farmland and a bird sanctuary.