The sea sparkles green like an emerald jewel at Mön's cliff, where the clear water meets the dark line of seaweed and sea depth. It feels like standing on the border between two worlds – a tropical South Sea, but with Nordic winds. Here, dramatic nature and a postcard-beautiful sea meet in a way that makes the heart beat a little faster and the legs burst with longing for adventure. These are not just some white cliffs by the sea. This may even be Denmark's most beautiful place.
Many of us remember the song about Dover - Calais and their white cliffs, but it is not only in the English Channel that there are white cliffs. In the south-east of Zealand, the island of Mön is easily accessible by car via two bridges. Here the sea is met by 128 meter high white limestone cliffs that slowly erode into the sea. The limestone settles on the seabed and forms a white seabed for a crystal clear sea that attracts hikers, boaters and bathers alike. A place for both adventure and beauty.
Møns Klint (Møns Klint in Danish) is perhaps primarily a place for those of us who love beautiful nature. We are going to Mön on a day trip from Skåne on a day when the weather report promises sunshine. On a clear day with bright sunshine, the cliffs reveal their full palette of colors – from the chalky white limestone walls to the green, shimmering sea below. An overcast day can feel a little pale.
Our adventure begins at the top of the cliffs, where we follow the path along the edge. There are safety rails all along the way, yet it feels as if we are constantly hovering near the majestic cliffs. The view is almost impossible to capture in a picture. From one of the many vantage points, we see people down on the beach, like little colorful dots on the emerald water. 128 meters above sea level is higher than you might think.
The forest by Mön's klint is filled with large stately deciduous trees that form dark halls with cooling shadows. The ground is covered in a thick layer of autumn leaves that rustle like a newspaper when the dog runs around in them. It feels and looks like a Scanian beech forest, but beneath the surface something unique is hidden. Limestone cliffs mean that the soil is also unusually rich in lime. A combination that has created a unique flora, with around twenty wild species of orchids. Flowers that cannot be found anywhere else in Denmark.
We walk north along the edge of the cliff, towards the long stairs down to the beach. Far out at sea is a large wind farm with wind turbines that slowly spin in the wind. However, we hear nothing about the wind farm. Here you only hear the waves of the sea and the echoing voices of the people down on the beach.
During autumn and winter, it happens that the beach below the cliffs needs to be closed off from visitors, as storms and rain cause rock falls and landslides. Every year, a few centimeters of Mön's cliff disappear into the sea, and the entire area is estimated to be gone in 50 years. It may sound like a long time, but Mön's cliff has existed for an impressive 000 million years. In that perspective, 70 years feels like a breath.
Long stairs to the beach
From the edge of the cliffs to the beach there are several long wooden stairs with ledges and viewpoints. The longest staircase, the Maglevandstrappen, has 497 steps and thus Denmark's longest staircase. A trip down to the beach will therefore be in rounds 1000 steps, a good thing to think about before starting your hike. We meet several people who regret their choice on the way up the stairs from the beach. Another one who quickly tires of the stairs is our little dog. It's lucky that she can be carried fairly easily under the arm.
Beach walk over uneven rocks
The beach is neither wide nor easy to walk on, and the high cliffs sometimes feel like they lean in on us. It is barren and beautiful and the white cliffs are so close that they are dazzling. Everywhere we see remnants of previous races. A changing landscape.
Just like the rocks at Stevn's rock is the limestone created from old skeletal remains. 70 million years ago, Denmark was covered by a large tropical sea. In the sea lived a great number coccolithophores, unicellular algae with a calcareous shell. After their death, the algae sank to the sea floor and formed thick layers of limestone. It is this seabed that today is Mön's cliffs. The limestone cliffs are full of fossils of both small and large animals and it is popular to go on guided fossil tours to both find your own fossils and to learn more.
The beach at Möns Klint can be challenging to walk on, with large uneven flint stones and smaller sea-polished round stones that require sturdy shoes. It's easy to trip if you're not careful where you put your feet - but who can keep their eyes on the ground when you're in a landscape like this?
The sea and beach look like a place taken from a Mediterranean travel brochure, with the turquoise water meeting the pebble beach. Here the air is almost completely still, as if the whole of nature is holding its breath in front of all the beauty.
The sun sets unexpectedly fast behind the rocks, even though it is the middle of the day. During the winter months, not many glimpses of sun can reach down to this beach. The shadows are already long in the month of July and although it is far from dark, it easily gets a little colder without the sun.
The last stretch on the beach before the stairs up to the Möns GeoCentre is completely washed away. There is no sand left, only sea and slimy black algae. Reluctantly, we have to take off our shoes and socks and wade in the disgusting algae soup. The sea may look like the South Sea from above, but the water temperature is unfortunately far from there.
How do I get to Mön's cliff?
Möns klint is located in south-eastern Zealand in Denmark, about 2 hours by car south of Copenhagen.
You will find the best and most parking spaces at Möns GeoCentre, there you will also find a new and exciting museum about the area's geology. However, it does not help that there are many parking spaces during sunny summer days - then the parking lot fills up quickly.
Other good links:
- Pdf brochure with map at the Danish Nature Agency
- Info at the Danish Nature Agency
Bonus tip: Møn Is
On the way home from a visit to Mön's cliff is a glass stop at Møn Is a must! Here you will find a super charming farm where the cows are milked right next to the dairy. Eat their delicious ice cream or pour your own milk into a plastic bottle. This is a gem!
And you - don't forget that an iced coffee in Denmark is a coffee with ice cream.
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