Råbjerg Mile

Råbjerg Mile is a vast migrating coastal dune in the far north of Jutland, lying between Skagen and Frederikshavn. It is the largest moving dune in Northern Europe, covering roughly 2 square kilometres and rising to about 40 metres above sea level, and it is the only major stretch of migrating dunes in Denmark. The dune holds an estimated 4 million cubic metres of sand, and the prevailing west wind pushes the whole mass north-eastward by up to 18 metres a year. As it travels it leaves behind a low, moist layer of sand, tracing its path back westward toward the Skagerrak, where the Mile first formed more than 300 years ago. The result is a surreal, desert-like landscape in the middle of green Denmark — an open sea of shifting sand that feels far from anywhere. More than 250,000 people visit each year to climb the crest and take in the sweeping views over Skagen Odde. There is no entrance fee and the area is open at all hours, so it is easy to fit into a trip to the northern tip. Wear sturdy shoes, as the soft sand makes for slow going, and from the top a full 360-degree panorama opens across dunes, plantation and sea. Come at dawn or dusk for the best light and the quietest sands, and remember that the dune you stand on will have moved on within a lifetime.