Odsherred to Copenhagen, Day 7
441 m climbing
102.2 km
The final stage of our trip, I did alone in one go. It is one of my few days of over 100km, but there’s two good towns, Holbæk and Roskilde that you could overnight in on the way; plus many potential camping spots.
There’s dozens of possible routes from Odsherred to Copenhagen with many things to see on the way. I’ve outlined a few as alternatives below. But there’s even more: for example sticking to the East of Odsherred on the way down is very pretty or going directly south towards Jyderup and then Westwards has highlights such as the castle at Torbenfeldt Gods.
Exploring the reclaimed polder of Lammefjorden
Lammefjorden lies across the lower part of the Odsherred peninsula. Lammefjorden isn’t just any old fjord. For a start its not a fjord any longer, its a polder. Its the largest area of reclaimed land in Denmark and also, at -7m, one of the lowest points in Europe. It was created in the 1800s to expand farmland, and today it’s home to the most fertile soil in Denmark.
Across the North and West of Lammefjorden is the UNESCO protected landscape of the Odsherred Arches. These are 100m high terminal moraines and are apparently a classic example of glaciation, matched by only a few places in Europe. What you won’t find in the Danish tourist brochures: they’re simply really dull low ridges with a couple of good views: unusual for Denmark but unremarkable for most visitors.
The route I took follows the Northern edge of the polder over one of the Odsherred Arches and then along the canal that diverts rainwater away from the polder towards the sea. There’s a mixture of gravel and asphalt and is a beautiful place to cycle – you pedal through flat fields of various vegetables with wind turbines turning slowly by the side of the road.
Here you can see how the landscape changes from sandy beaches and woodland leading up to Odsherred, then turns into farmland further inland.
At the mouth of the polder at Audebo, you come across an old roadhouse that has been turned into a café/restaurant called “Nostro”. Its a great stop for lunch (the pizzas are fantastic) or ice cream. Just a little down the road is the pumping station for the entire Lammefjorden, Audebo Pumpestation, and the museum is worth seeking out.
You’ll pass through a beautiful meadow with cows and long grass as you ascend out of the polder just before Hagested. At Hagested there’s aso an old house/castle called Hagestedgård, but its generally not open for visitors.
The route towards Holbæk continues through Marsø where you’ll turn left at a funeral parlour with an inappropriately large BBQ at the back of it.
The market town of Holbæk
There’s a great gravel track cutting across the beginning of Holbæk Fjord and continuing along into the heart of the town. I took a route bypassing the town center to save on time, but there’s great options also directly through town and out the other side towards the golf course.
There’s lots of shops, cafes and restaurants along the main street and down by the harbour. Frequent trains connect directly to Copenhagen if you need to get to your destination more quickly.
Forest tracks and ancient castles between Holbæk and Roskilde
After Holbæk I took a southerly route through the wetlands of Tempelkrogen and then towards the stately home of Selsø-Lindholm Gods near Roskilde (there’s an amazing gravel track with plenty of high speed up and down just before the house). If you head a little further south than I did then you could also take in Gammel Lejre which was built in c. 1100 BCE and was home to over 3000 people until about 400 BCE when it burned down. There's a lot of mystery surrounding what happened there though as excavations continue today with new findings still being discovered.
After Holbæk, there’s an equally scenic route you could take heading east towards the Munkholm bridge (Munkholmbroen). There’s lots of forest tracks in this direction plus the stately homes of Ryegaard og Trudsholm Gods not long after the bridge. The forest is a great contrast from the polder, and this section is where you really start to get an inkling of how beautiful this area is.
Roskilde, the burial place of the Danish royals
The next stop is the ancient market town called Roskilde. This location has served as a Viking trading settlement and is also the burial place of the Danish royal family. The cathedral's unique architecture makes it particularly striking, which is why it was designated a UNESCO world heritage site in 1995.
I’d seriously recommend Kaffekilden (“Source of coffee”) by the station to fuel up on cake and coffee before continuing on to Copenhagen itself.
Gravel tracks into Copenhagen
Everybody knows that Copenhagen is a cyclists dream; there’s cycles everywhere. One reason so many people cycle is that cyclists are kept separate from cars. So coming into Copenhagen from almost any direction is a pleasure on a bike.
I took a primarily gravel route through the area known as Vestskoven (“The western forest”) which has forest tracks stretch right towards the heart of town. A great alternative route if you want gravel all the way to the city centre is to turn right when you reach the Vestvolden (the Napoleonic city defences) just before Rodøvre and follow the track all the way to Avedøre. On a satellite map its really clear where Vestvolden lies, since it is a green band running around most of the west of Copenhagen.
I took the most direct route into town (was getting pretty tired by this point) but even there its almost all on dedicated cycle paths.
