13 kmRandbøl Heath is one of those places where the landscape does not make much of itself up close, but opens out in width. Here it is low plants, wind, sand and sky that fill the view, and the eye can travel far across the heath surface.
In August, the heather can colour large areas violet, while bell heather belongs in the wetter parts. The heath is, however, not a landscape that simply lies untouched: it is managed to keep the open expanses free from overgrowth.
Underfoot, there is mainly windblown sand. First the area was shaped by meltwater; later, drifting sand moved the material around and built inland dunes on top of the flat heath.
At Staldbakkerne and Stoltenbjerg, the terrain suddenly gains more character. Here the otherwise flat heath turns into a dune landscape, and the view makes its scale easier to understand.
Randbøl Heath is also a cultural trace. Vorbasse Studevej runs across the heath and belongs to the old road network that today is associated with Hærvejen. At Kirstinelyst stands a preserved gable with two chimneys from a German field kitchen during World War II; a sharp-edged remnant in the middle of the broad heather expanse.
Frederikshåb Plantation lies directly adjacent to Randbøl Heath and was established on heathland, sand and inland dunes. The plantation began as a state project in 1804, partly to combat drifting sand.
Here, the landscape alternates between coniferous forest, open heathland areas, dunes and hollows with intermittent lakes. The Seven-Year Lakes follow the groundwater and can therefore be either filled with water or completely dry; the Rygende Bjerge (Smoking Hills) are named after the sand that could swirl up like smoke.
Nature Centre Kirstinelyst is the practical starting point on the edge of Randbøl Heath: exhibition, toilets, water, long tables, barbecue and outdoor kitchen gathered together before the heath takes over.
The exhibition tells the story of the landscape, nature and cultural history with sound, text, images, sensory holes, gates and dials. Three marked trails return here; the yellow route to Stoltenbjerg is 3.5 km. The building has a modern form, but the roof and sloping walls are clad with heather turf.
