Experience Årø

fuglereservat

THE BIRD RESERVE ON ÅRØ KALV

Årø Kalv is a approximately 30 hectare reserve consisting of constantly changing dunes. The area boasts an exciting flora and fauna, with the flora alternating between dune vegetation and beach meadows with sea spurge, sea sandwort, and beach cabbage. Breeding waders in the area include curlew, oystercatcher, redshank, dunlin, and lapwing. Additionally, there are duck and gull species. The Forest and Nature Agency is responsible for the bird reserve, which is closed to access from March 1st to July 15th. Outside this period, it offers a very exciting tour.


gaarden cafe

BRUMMERS GAARD

Brummers Gaard" was built in 1866 and was declared a heritage site in 1989. The farm was named after its last owner, Knud Brummer, who passed away in 1996. Knud Brummer was not only a farmer but also a talented amateur archaeologist, and therefore very interested in history. During his walks around the island, he collected a variety of stones with traces of the activities of the islanders in ancient times. A large part of this stone collection can now be viewed on the farm. The Bullade The so-called bullade dates back to 1650 and was moved here from a small property in Haderslev as a gift from Haderslev Municipality. The bulhus, which is a pure wooden construction, has been known since around the year 1000.


kirke

JULEKIRKEN

The Årø Church. Close to the town is the small church on Årø. It was built in 1906 and consecrated on December 30, 1906, and therefore received the name Christmas Church (Julekirken).


ae hoejvej

Æ HØJVEJ

Pass by the island's church and continue along the road past a small forest, and you will reach "The Main Road" (Æ Højvej), the first dike on the island. It was built in 1868 and only protected the fields of the farmers, not those of the cottagers located outside. This created tensions between the two groups. At the end of the "Æ Main Road", you will reach the outermost dike, which was built by Russian prisoners of war during the First World War between spring 1915 and autumn 1916, hence the name Russian Dike. The Russian prisoners of war also constructed the dike on the right side of the road when walking from the harbor towards the town. Initially, 80 men were involved in the construction, later only 30. The cost of the dike construction amounted to 50,000 DM. During the First World War, Årø belonged to North Schleswig. Germany had captured Russian soldiers and interned them in a barn at Bollmoseende. Under the supervision of German soldiers, they were tasked with building these dikes on the island. 27 of these Russian prisoners attempted to escape, but only 10-12 prisoners succeeded in escaping. They fled to Denmark in stolen boats and homemade rafts.


aaroe stenen

AARØ STENEN

In ancient times, the island was inhabited by Stone Age people. The first islander is believed to have been a man named Horn. There are many traces of them. Among other things, there are still old standing stones in the stone walls at the farms on the island. These standing stones are glacial erratics that Årø's Stone Age population worked on. In the meadows in the northeastern part of the island, you can see the "Årø Stone". The stone was found and excavated at the behest of farmer Knud Brummer. It is a glacial erratic made of granite, likely transported from Sweden to Årø during Denmark's sixth and last ice age.