1.3 kmSvanesøen in Ølgod
A peaceful lakeside break close to town, a nice contrast to a forest outing
Ølgod Byskov is so close to town that you can use it without much planning: a short walk after work, a lunch break with the children, or a longer trip where the forest slowly changes character between trails, hills and rest areas.
The history trail makes the forest more than trees and exercise. Along the way, the stops collect stories about the forest’s creation, nature, burial mounds, local people and activities. The heart trails offer a more exercise-oriented route through the area, and in several places the terrain still recalls the sandy past the forest was planted to tame.
The forest is used for walking, running, cycling and MTB. The marked routes, picnic shelters, tables and benches, and outdoor stage make the area practical for everyday use and small outings alike. The MTB trails have their own lines, so walkers should pay attention where paths and trails meet.
The special thing about Byskov is that it began as useful work. The plantation was meant to provide shelter and keep the inland dunes from turning into drifting dunes with sand drift. Today, the original mountain pine plantation has become a more varied forest, where history still lies underfoot like the sand in the hills.
The name of the memorial stone reaches beyond the forest path. Niels Hansen Uhd was a farmer at Egknudgaard and a prominent local figure in Ølgod.
In 1882, he was the scribe for the statutes of Hjedding Cooperative Dairy, Denmark’s first cooperative dairy. The rules were based, among other things, on one vote per member, regardless of the number of cows. Uhd was also a co-founder and chairman of Ølgod Aktieplantage, so the stone does not stand among the trees by chance.
In the northeastern part of Ølgod Byskov, Hanssinelund lies close to the railway to Tarm and Nørre Allé. The grove was established by the bookseller couple Hans and Sine Nielsen, who from 1909 to 1955 planted trees and erected memorial stones for Danish authors.
The stones are not polished monuments, but natural stones with a name, quotation, or simple decoration. Here, the cause of tree planting and a love of reading meet in a small woodland pocket, where H.C. Andersen, Blicher, Aakjær, and Pontoppidan appear among the trees.
