10 kmRandbøl Heath
Denmark’s largest inland heath has the same drifting sand, heather and dunes as Grene Sande, just on a much larger scale.
Grene Sande lies inside Gyttegård Plantage, but for a moment your body may think otherwise. Here the ground changes from loose, dry sand to heathland and damp hollows over a short distance, making the area more varied than its size suggests.
The most striking feature is the inland dunes: sand hills with no sea, beach, or coastal wind to explain them. The sand is windblown sand, moved and shaped by the wind over a very long time, and the landscape still shows the struggle between wind, sand, plants, and moisture.
The damp fen areas have helped slow the sand and create shelter, allowing the large U-shaped parabolic dune to form. In the area you encounter open dune surfaces, stretches of heath, small ponds, and wetter sections, so the walk quickly gains more layers than just “a walk in the forest”.
Grene Sande is also a place where you can notice the low and slow-growing life: heather, mosses, lichens, and the open surfaces that must be kept free from overgrowth if they are not to lose their character.
The place is well suited to a short nature experience, also with children, who can feel the landscape directly in their legs. On the other hand, sand, roots, slopes, and narrow paths are part of the package; this is not an area that behaves like a smooth park path.
Grene Sande’s most striking break in the plantation is a bright sandy area of about 400 x 100 meters. It lies like an inland version of the West Coast: dry, open and without the sea, surrounded by heather, heathland, small bogs and scattered vegetation.
The sand is still drifting a little. This is especially visible around the trees, where the wind has removed sand from around the roots, so in some places they hang freely and cling to the loose ground.
Grene Sande is a birdwatching site because the landscape alternates between dry heath, bogs, fens and small ponds. The crane is especially associated with the wet areas, while the red-backed shrike and woodlark belong to the dry heath habitats.
The nightjar can be a more discreet experience: the Danish Nature Agency highlights its churring sound on bright summer evenings. The wood sandpiper is mentioned among the area's birdlife, but is best described cautiously as a rare visitor to the heath areas.
In Grene Sande, horses and cattle are not decoration in the landscape, but part of nature management. Grazing keeps tall vegetation and new growth down, allowing more light to reach the soil surface.
This is important in an area with inland dunes, heathland, and extremely nutrient-poor soil. Without this kind of disturbance, open habitats can become overgrown with scrub and forest; here, closely grazed grass also makes room for low-growing plants and more variety.
Gyttegård Golf Club is located very close to Grene Sande, so the transition between golf course, plantation and protected heathland is unusually short. The course has 18 holes, par 70, and is described as woodland and heath with alternating forest holes and open stretches.
From the southern part of Grene Sande, you can look out over the course. The clubhouse is located in an old forester’s residence from 1898, in the middle of the plantation that otherwise hides sand, heather and inland dunes.
At the parking area in Grene Sande lies the Gyttegård Plantation Dog Forest: a fenced area of approximately 5 hectares, established in 2005/06.
Here, dogs may run off leash if the companion has full control; otherwise, the leash must remain on. Outside the dog forest, the leash rule applies in Gyttegård Plantation, also if the walk continues out into sand, heather, and dunes. The gates must be kept closed so that dogs and wildlife are kept separate.
