Mols route

Arrival and check-in at the hotel in the afternoon. Or arrive early and explore Aarhus, the City of Smiles.

On your first day of hiking, you mainly follow the Mols Route, which is part of the European long-distance hiking route E1, which runs from Italy to the Northern Cape in Norway. The first stage follows the coast from Aarhus to Kaløvig. On the way out of Aarhus, you will pass the newly established part of the town Aarhus Ø in the harbour area. First you will find the imposing building Dokk1 that both houses the library and public offices. Then you pass the old customs house, Toldboden, designed by the great architect Hack Kampmann, and all the new residential buildings including The iceberg. Then you walk past the fishing harbour and marina with the wooden ship harbor at the far end. Below the forest Riis Skov you pass the old bathing establishment Den Permanente. Here you can take a cooling dip. You can actually do this many times during the day as you follow the beach most of the way. Along the way you have the most beautiful view of the water with Mols on the other side of Aarhus Bay. It is not uncommon to see porpoises along the coast, and it also happens that you see a seal and occasionally a dolphin, which however is a rare visitor.

The hike today can be adjusted in length so you can walk as short or as far as you wish. The route
description will give you different options, but our suggestion is approx. 15 km
One place that you must not miss is Kalø Castle ruin. The castle or rather the fortress was first built here by King Erik Menved in the year 1313. Shortly after it was demolished and then built up again. You get there via a long dam, the longest medieval road in Denmark. Once you have passed the moat, you are in the middle of the remains of the castle.Viewing platforms have recently been built at the top of the tower. The view from here to the forests, Mols Bjerge and over the Bay of Aarhus is formidable. Also look for seals, which often rest on the reef outside Egens Vig. Your route to and from the castle ruins goes through the forests of Kalø, Hestehave Skov and Ringelmose Skov. Here you will pass old burial mounds and stone dolmens that date back more than 5000 years. AtFølle Bund, at low tide you can be lucky to find flint tools from the Stone Age. The walking route also passes the manor Kalø Gods with Jagtslottet (the Hunting Lodge) and the memorial stone for the German owner Baron von Jenisch. The Jenisch family from Hamburg took over the whole Kalø estate with Manor, castle ruins and forests in 1825 and were the owners until 1946.

Since you have already walked parts of the Mols Bjerge Trail ́s Kalø Stage yesterday, today ́s stage has been modified.You will pass Bregnet Church, which is located by itself at the edge of Ringelmose Forest. Like many other Danish churches this origins back nearly 1000 years. Take a look inside to see the beautiful modern art work of Arne Haugen Sørensen. Close by is the sacred spring Tobias Kilde, which is said to be able to cure eye diseases. Just before you cross the creek Kolå, which forms the border to Mols, you pass the previous estate of the forest ranger, which today houses Kalø Folk High School and School of Organic Agriculture (the only of its kind in Denmark). Before and after the village of Kejlstrup, you follow the edge of the moraine from the ice age, which forms the divide between the hilly Mols and the flatter Midtdjurs. You get high up, approx. 80 meters above sea level. Enjoy the view. It is great! The rest of the way towards Femmøller follows small paths through hilly terrain with forests and fields.

Today you have the longest and perhaps the most beautiful hiking stage. However, it is possible to shorten the hike if you want a shorter and less strenous hike. From the top of Mols ́ highest "mountain" Agri Bavnehøj at 137 m.o.h. you have a view of most of the national park. Different is it when you reach the bottom of Tinghulen, which is one of the largest dry kettle holes created after the ice age. It served in the old days as a meeting place for the surrounding parishes. Disputes would be settled here and sentence witches to be burned.
If you wish, you can make a short detour to visit Denmark's largest dolmen, Poskær Stenhus, which is located right on the edge of Knebel Plantation. From the top of the burial mounds Trehøje (127 m.o.h) from the Bronze Age you have a formidable view. Probably the best of the whole region. Then the trip goes back to Femmøller via the deserted villageToggerbo, Tremosegård and Strandkær, where famous author Karen Blixen's sister Ellen Dahl and her husband had a holiday home.

Today you will follow the Ebeltoft stage of the Mols Bjerge Trail. After you have left Femmøller's holiday homes behind you, you follow small forest tracks. An interesting stop in the middle of the forest is Ørnbjerg Mill, which ground grain for 400 years. You now follow the edge of the moraine from the ice age towards Djursland's largest lake, Stubbe Lake. Here you may be lucky to spot eagles. Well out of the forest you now follow the old railway path, which runs between Gravlev and Ebeltoft. Until 1968, there was a railway connection here between Ebeltoft and Trustrup. The route goes behind the small village Dråby. You can make a short detour to the village and see “The Cathedral of Mols”. Quite unusual to have such a big church in such a small village, but once the village lake was connected to the sea and ships would come in here. The last bit of path before you reach the coast at Ebeltoft is quite easy walking along an old railroad track that has been converted into a walking and biking path. At the end you reach the beach and follow the coast line into the center of Ebeltoft. Your accommodation is in a quiet nature area on the outskirts of Ebeltoft with a beautiful view of the bay and Mols Bjerge.

This new Gåsehage stage was added in 2022. It combines a lovely combination of green forests, swamp, white beaches, coastal cliffs and the beautiful town of Ebeltoft. Gåsehage is the name of the southern point of the Hasnæs peninsula.The first part of your hike is through different kind of forest. After passing the Øer Maritime you enter a swamp with boardwalks. It is almost like walking through a subtropical mangrove. When you reach the beach you will have lovely sea views and in the distance you can see the island of Hjelm with the lighthouse. You will follow the beach for a while.

After breakfast your hiking holiday ends. We are happy to extend your stay with additional nights.