Lighthouse of the Week, July 24-30, 2022: Skagen Fyr, Denmark

Do you know where the Kattegat is?

If not, I'll tell you.  The Kattegat is the body of water that lies between most of Denmark (on the west) and Sweden (on the east).  To get to the Baltic Sea by boat from the Atlantic Ocean, you have to go into the Skaggerak, through the Kattegat, then through the islands (one of which has Copenhagen on it), and then you'll get to the Baltic Sea.

So, at the entrance to the Kagerrak, there are lighthouses.  On the Swedish side, there is the Vinga Fyr, which I already featured -- click that link to revisit it.   And on the Danish side, at the far far northern end of the Denmarkian peninsula (or whatever it's called), is the Skagen Fyr.  (Geographically speaking, it's the Region of Northern Denmark.)

According to the Lighthouse Directory, which we'll get to, this is probably the most famous lighthouse in Denmark.

So, first, go see where it is.

If you zoom in close, and switch over to the satellite picture, you'll see that it's located on a marshy area surrounded by beach.

So now that we have ascertained and established where it is, let's find out more, from the great LD.

"1858 (station established 1747). Active; focal plane 44 m (144 ft); white flash every 4 s. 46 m (151 ft) round brick tower with lantern and gallery, attached by a covered passageway to a large 2-story keeper's house. The lighthouse is unpainted; lantern dome is gray metallic; keeper's house and other buildings painted white. ... 

Marking the entrance to the Baltic Sea, this is probably Denmark's best known lighthouse. Locally it is called Det Grå Fyr (The Gray Lighthouse). When it was built it was about equally distant from the Kattegat to the southeast and the Skagerrak to the northwest. However, the land has shifted steadily northwestward over the past 150 years, and the lighthouse is now perilously close to the Kattegat ... 

In 2013 the Maritime Authority sold the light station to Realdania, a company that develops historic and cultural properties. The company has a cooperative agreement with the Frederikshavn municipality, the Turist Nord tourist agency, and the Danish Ornithological Society (Dansk Ornitologisk Forening) to restore the lighthouse and establish it as a tourist attraction and ornithological research center. The restoration project was completed in the spring of 2017."

So, given that it's moving close to the Kattegat, see it while it's there, if you can.

Now for the pictures!

 

So now you've seen The Gray Lighthouse.