We started our bike tour of the Danish countryside by going to Aero. It’s a small island in the Baltic sea, lined with colorful homes, small restaurants, farmland, and cobbled streets. Immediately stepping off the ferry, I felt like I was in a fairytale. Before departing, we received a 27-mile route that goes around the entire island and through the town. What my group didn’t realize until a few miles in is that we started backward. This wasn’t an awful issue because the route is one big loop with the same ending spot from both directions. Unfortunately for us, the town would be closer to the end rather than the beginning. We started biking and I was honestly surprised by how many miles we covered in a short amount of time. The roads varied from wide, narrow, uphill downhill, paved, and gravel, which proved to be the most difficult to bike on. My favorite part of biking around this island was biking along the coastline. The bike path had the perfect view of the sea and we were finally almost to the town. After we rested and got lunch, we felt ready to finish the last portion of the ride. I am happy to report that it went much better than I had initially anticipated. We finished and felt tired but content and proud of ourselves. All parts of Aero are stunning and I loved being able to experience its beauty by bike.
(Photo from Pixabay)
(Photo from “Your Complete Guide to Exploring the Natural Beauty of Aero Island,” The Creative Adventure)
We woke up the next day ready to do it all over again, but this time to Korinth. We left Svendborg around 11. This ride started by biking by another coastline and through a forest. We made shorter stops along the way and made even better time. By our first stop, I was shocked to learn that we were already 10 miles in. Biking at the beginning was difficult because we started in a larger group and the bike path is narrow before reaching the coastline. Later on in the ride, we went over a condensed highway. This was scary at first and definitely confirmed that busier streets need much wider bike lanes or bike paths separated by some sort of median. We were on the highway for roughly 20 minutes then found ourselves biking through smaller neighborhood before reaching Korinth. At the end of this ride, I felt much more tired and sore than the day before. I absolutely conked out that night, knowing that I had one last 27-mile ride the next day.
Our haunted hostel in Korinth (Photo from “nedrivning aflyst: Korinth Kro får en Chance mere,” fyens.dk)
We had the option of biking to the train station to finish the journey to Odense, but I decided to bike. My body hurt the most this day, but I felt motivated to push myself. After a few miles in, my body got used to the quick pace and it didn’t feel too bad anymore. This route was on a bike path through trees for about half of the ride, then transitioned to busier streets and larger neighborhoods. Luckily, through the busier areas, there was a bike path separated from traffic. Arriving in Odense was an amazing feeling. Odense also looks like something you would see in a storybook. There is also an insane amount of park bicycles at each bike park. I have already seen multiple double-decker bike racks. I can’t wait to explore this city, after some much-needed rest of course
(Photo by Thomas Mørkeberg from Colourbox)
My favorite part of bicycle touring was observing differences in biking safety and efficiency throughout different parts of the Danish countryside. I appreciate the places that have distinct bike paths that make the biker feel safe from moving cars. Also, most of the bike paths had amazing views. Even though I didn’t enjoy biking on some of the busy roads with narrow bike lanes, I still appreciate being able to experience this, and therefore value well-thought-out bike paths. I was most surprised that I was actually able to complete these days without feeling utterly worn out. This will motivate me to bike at home, especially to places that I used to think were too far of a ride. I feel like this can be applied to a lot of people who bike but aren’t serious bikers like myself. With the right motivation, biking longer distances doesn’t have to seem as intimidating. The main thing I would love the US to incorporate is an increase in bike route signs. These signs, especially on Aero are extremely helpful and reassuring that you are going the correct way. It also relieves the stress of having to stop every few minutes to check your phone for a map. If the US incorporated more bicycle infrastructure and more bikeable routes between cities, there would be an extreme increase in bicycle use. I am so grateful for being able to bike through the Danish countryside and I hope I can experience something like this in the US one day.
Bike path sign on Aero (Photo by Michael and Ann in “A cycling holiday on the island of Aero,” Hej Sonderborg)