Cycle Tour Vedsoe Naturist Camp and Viborg

With a little delay I arrived at the starting point of my bike trip by train at Skanderborg at 11.20. I chose the back of the station and so avoided the center. My goal was, after all, the lake highlands,  and the highlands began almost immediately with a climb through a suburb with residential blocks. Then the lakes soon followed. At first, however, it went downhill to Illerup stream valley. It is renowned in Denmark for its Iron Age weapons discoveries, many of which are well preserved as they have laid the anaerobic environment of a bog. Of course, today they are located at the National Museum in Copenhagen. Once in this grey past, a mighty battle took place here with thousands of  victims. The captured weapons were destroyed and, in a ceremony, thrown into the bog as a sacrifice to the gods in order to have luck in the next battle. The Iron Age were wild and martial times. I thought about that while mastering the hill on the opposite side. Soon the bike route swerved off the main road towards Ry, and sweat-drippingly I reached the hilltop. It commanded a nice view of "my" first lake, Mossø, which was easy to spot as it is Jutland's largest lake. I also wanted to swim in a lake as soon as possible and thought that the lake of Julsoe at Laven would be a good place. Before that I passed the smaller town of Ry, where I had a roll and a cup of coffee in a super market café. A road sign showed "Laven 4 km", so I chose that road as I had gotten away from my prepared GPS route to find a baker. So now it was just getting there and jumping into the blue water. Which, however, seemed rather green due to algae, when I stood on the jetty, where the boats towards Himmelbjerget and Silkeborg dock. But this was no obstacle for me, so I just jumped into the green water instedad. A middle-aged couple were sitting at a table set very close, so I slipped into my trunks first. Well, I'm a naturist, but not when there are dressed people nearby. But I skipped the towel while changing. Nice compromise, I thought. Of course, the lake was very deep. And wonderfully cool. Getting back up onto the jetty was a bit tricky and I took great care not to slip on the stones. The couple turned out to be German and I chatted with them for a while. He was from Flensburg, so we knew each other's hometowns. After all, mine is Soenderborg nearby. Eventually I wanted to move on. The distance was not long today, but I would like to bathe at least once more, and lunch, water refueling plus a coffee break were also needed. I did not want to arrive after five to Vedsoe camp to enjoy life in the altogether there before I would cycle into the center of Viborg. Right after Laven there is a sharp ascend with hairpin bends. So I sweated profusely again just a few feet after the bathing break. It was a hot day indeed. Well up on the hill I soon passed the new Central Jutland motorway from Aarhus to Herning. Then the cycle route winds smoothly around the villages of Mollerup, Voel and Sminge. It rises and falls all the time as it passes some streams across. In Voel, I refilled water at the church. In Denmark, you can always fill your bidon with fresh, cold water here, and it is never far to the next church. Moreover, they are easy to find, either on the map or using their tower as a landmark and often prominent location on a hill or in the middle of the village. Denmark at its best! The same could be said of my lunch spot soon afte at the crossing of the Gjern river-cycle route, No 29. A table-bench set in the shade invited me almost, although I had to cycle back a bit, as I had too much speed from downhill into the valley. The homemade sandwiches tasted good and supplied me with new energy. The first picture I took at the bridge over the river Gudenaa, Denmark's longest stream, which is a wide river right there. Along it runs a tow path, which is a nice walking route, and right by the bridge stands Svostrup inn, where the flag was up and guests had lunch on the terrace. If this wasn't a perfect view already, a pretty, young woman was walking on the towpath under the bridge. She was wearing a yellow skirt, and her pert little ass was rocking amazingly as she walked. Unfortunately I did not take a picture of her butt, but I remember I almost drooled on the bridge! Well, I had to move on. Now my target was Ans and Tange lake, where I expected another good bathing spot. Before that I encountered a slightly uncomfortable stretch on the Silkeborg-Randers main road without a cycle path up a steep hill, because traffic, including many trucks, was heavy. Fortunately, there was a cycle path again soon after, but this kind of "holes" in the cycle path are not appropriate in my fine cycling homeland, which in terms of cycling friendliness I rank second in Europe after the Netherlands. But the Flemish parts of Belgium are basically better. There this "hole" would not have been there. In Ans, I bought a cake from a baker, where I also had my bidon filled up plus I withdrew money from an ATM. The Vedsoe camp didn't accept card payment, I knew. Now I hasted  down to the lake to bathe again. The bathing jetty teemed with lively children, so I chose to walk in from the small sandy beach besides it. And then I cooked coffee on my gas stove and ate the cake. Gosh, that was rewarding. Now there were only 17 km left on the old Viborg-Aarhus road, while all the cars went on the new one. I cycled through the big village of Roekaersbro and now turned west, because I didn't want to go to Viborg yet. And just a few minutes past five I had reached the gate of Vedsoe naturist camping site.

An elderly gentleman kindly welcomed me at the gate when he had made sure I was a member of a naturist association. From the camp's website, I knew that one had to be a member of one and that was because they wanted to avoid curious people who just wanted to look at naked people. His name was Herluf and he followed me all the way to the site where I could pitch my tent where I wanted to. No other campers were present so far, he said. And he hardly expected more. So it would be a very peaceful and quiet stay. A little socializing with like-minded people I could well have wished. First I was shown the facilities which were quite excellent. Both fridge, freezer and hot water besides the normal amenities. For Herluf it was a good thing I had appeared, because then he discovered that the freezer relay had switched off in the thunderstorm they had had the night before and thus he avoided all the frozen goods thawing completely. And I could get my cool clamp frozen and keep milk butter and meat chilled tomorrow as well. For the time being, I just drank cold water from my heart's desire and stripped the sweaty bike clothes. Now I was ready for another bath in a lake, this time finally in my birthday suit, like I enjoy. Alas, all alone. But it was nevertheless nice to have arrived and relax and read a little in the leafletst camping dad Herluf had given me. Afterwards I pitched the tent. I thought this place was the diametrical contrast to the cramped and often rather small campsites in southern France, where I had vacationed with my wife a month before. And she is not a naturist, so there was a difference more. Afterwards, I put on plain clothes and cycled to Viborg. Now I wanted to enjoy the city and get something to eat and drink. I chose the path via Hald Ege, which is called The Alhede path. It went uphill a bit, and soon I was sweating like a pig again. Uncool, because now it was in a clean t-shirt. For the same reason, I sat on a bench in the pedestrian area for a while, playing in a fountain that was laid down in the street tiles. I just wanted to cool off a bit, but then thirst overwhelmed me, as I could see the beer bar Oelluminatis light advertising sign from the bench. Great was the refreshment as the brewery’s own Indian Pale ale ran down my throat sitting in the patio. Of course, I was alone again on such a Wednesday night, but the two bartenders on duty soon sat down with me. Both had huge full beards. And I knew from a previous visit that brewmaster Theis also had one. Therefore, I asked if a beard was a necessary employment criterion to be employed at Oelluminati. And ran my hand through my seven millimeter long beard. They laughed at that before I volleyed a new question at them. Was I allowed to pick up food at nearby Viborg Street Food and tuck into it at the bar. However, they responded by announcing that the establishment was closed. Due to poor corporate governance and declining revenue. Alas. Then I had to do with fast food. It turned out the luxury way, you could say, because I ordered a gourmet burger priced at DKK 189 at the restaurant For Enden af Gaden (The End of the Street) close by. I had grown too tired, hot and hungry to go any further. And the food tasted absolutely fine too. Again, I sat outside on the patio while darkness settled around us. Here I was finally not alone. Afterwards, there was just time enouth for another hop infusion down at Oelluminati before it closed and I found my bike to cycle the approx. 11 km "home" to the Vedsoe camp. Fortunately, my GPS has lights, so finding my way around was easy. After arriving out there, I immediately jumped into the lake again, because after the way home I was sweaty again. Wisely enough, I chose to move all my stuff under a canopy. After all, I didn't have to remove it, as I was all alone. Because at night, it began to rain. Not heavily, but for a long time, because it rained every time I woke up that night.