Day 5, Skagen

A new port for us today despite doing this cruise a few times before. Skagen pronounced Skane is the northern most tip of Denmark. It’s well used by artists due to being known as the land of light. We docked this morning at 9am and we were up to watch us dock. Weather was mild, sunshine and cloud but no rain and it remained similar all day. We had expected Skagen to be very small with almost nothing there but we were pleasantly surprised. The main industry here is fishing so there was lots of traffic around the port waters. We were welcomed in to port by a group of Danish singers stood at the port as we docked (singing obviously, not just stood there for a laugh watching us in).

We disembarked the ship around 11.00 after a leisurely breakfast. We walked towards the town (or so we thought) following a few other couples. It did become apparent they had no idea where they were going so just went in the first pub!! To be honest, we weren’t far away, we just took the scenic route. The town itself was extremely pleasant, like most Scandanavian places it was very clean, beautifully presented and well maintained. There were lots of shops and cafe bars and the people were extremely friendly. We decided we would try and get ourselves to Grenen, a small town about 5 miles away where the North Sea and the Baltic Sea meet. We hopped on a local bus and the driver was very friendly and took us. It was a shuttle service and cost 8 Euros. Although the currency here is the Danish Krona, most places actually take Euros, fortunately we had some of them 🙂. Once we got to Grenen, there was a little gift shop and cafe and we were able to walk over the dunes to the sea. There were a few places of interest, ww2 bunkers, Drakmans Grave and a lighthouse which is predicted to have been eaten up by the sea by 2020. We had a wander down the lovely beach and Sharon decided to go for a paddle near a large rock, first time in the Baltic Sea. I didn’t bother, don’t like sand near my feet so I watched. On the rock was a seal pup, sat there posing for anyone who would talk to it. Apparently the mother had gone for food. Sharon waded in for a pic, the paddle was nearly a swim but she got a few nice pictures. Imagine how chuffed she was when she waded back out, soaked to just under her arse and decided my photos of it were clearer than hers, and I was lovely and bone dry 😂😂.

We were going to return to the ship but then saw a tractor ride through the dunes to the exact point where the two seas meet, so we jumped on and off we went. It was magnificent to see, the waves came from different directions and met in the middle. Truly fascinating. Sharon went back in and had a picture with one foot in each sea and then we got the tractor back and then the bus to the ship. Obviously, a spot of lunch followed and then we went to the back of the ship, got a couple of loungers and had a cup of tea and just watched the world go by before finally leaving a Skagen around 6pm. The people of Skagen were so thankful for the cruise ships they had a band playing to see us off and lots of people gathered at the port to wave us off. Was a great sail away. We were at the back rather than on top deck which was lovely as we watched the sun go down as we left.

The captain announced over the loudspeaker 📢 that we needed to do some essential maintenance as we left which was to recalibrate the magnetic compass. This involved us pushing back from the dock in to a non traffic part of the Baltic Sea and doing a series of 360 degree turns before zipping off towards Oslo. He was advising us as in his words he didn’t want us thinking he had lost the plot !! We stood at the back of the ship and watched us do one of the complete 360 degree turns before heading back to our cabin to get changed ready for dinner downstairs in the restaurant. As always it was fabulous and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

It’s now 10.30pm, we are heading north towards Oslo and we’re laid out on the open deck watching a movie on the big screen. Hot chocolate and popcorn are readily available and we’re gliding along. It’s perfect.

So that was Skagen, Oslo tomorrow, so until then, goodnight all.Read more