Day 101: Hello Denmark!

Grenen to Østerklit Shelter

Distance: 30km (plus 10km to the trailhead)

8 hours sleep without waking up one single time. I must have been extremely tired yesterday. 

Well rested I get ready for my day. It's taking me a bit longer than usual. Out of practice. 

Eventually, I set off into the night, initially back the same way I arrived from yesterday. Then through the sleepy town of Skagen and onwards to Grenen, which more or less marks Denmarks's northernmost point. By the time I get there, the sky has gotten brighter. It's so windy and rainy, I keep the compulsory photo session as short as possible. 

Once done, I hit the beach. Deserted, as expected. Plenty of birds and some seals. 

I follow the coast for the rest of the day. A typical beach walk. Sometimes sandy, sometimes pebbly (not that often luckily), sometimes wide, sometimes narrow. Only the wind remains. Not with rain anymore but with sun. A welcome change. 

With around 8 hours of daylight, there's not much room. So I keep on walking more or less without a break. 

As I get closer to my shelter, I want to make a short detour via a small village/campground to fill up my water bottles. However, with toilets locked and all the water tabs in the campground turned off for winter, I continue - knowing that it will be a dry camp, no cooking, tonight. 

The camp or shelter, which I reach with sunset (at 16:00) are beautifully located at the edge of a pine forest, overlooking a wide field, an ancient mill and the sea behind. Out of curiosity I check out the mill. Light is burning inside so I try to open door. Unlocked. I venture into the mill. I don't care too much about the milling stuff but rather am delighted to find a toilet and running water. No dry camp tonight at last. 

Still, I need to be more careful with the water. At least as long as I follow the beach, which I will do for another two days. 

But for now, I'm looking forward to my warm porridge, steaming nicely right next to me.