Åkrogen (lit.: River-nook) is an urban, public beach and park in the northern parts of

Aarhus Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

. Åkrogen is situated in both the neighborhood of

Risskov Risskov is the name of both a neighbourhood and a district in the city of Aarhus, Denmark. The district of Risskov is sometimes referred to as Vejlby-Risskov, as it is a merger of the neighbourhood of Risskov and the neighbourhood of Vejlby. The ...

and the suburb of

Egå Egå is a both a suburban district and a stream in the Municipality of Aarhus in Denmark. Name Egå means 'Oak-stream' in English. The Egå stream The Egå stream runs north of the city of Aarhus, in the bottom of the flat valley of Egå ...

on the

Bay of Aarhus The Bay of Aarhus, or Aarhus Bay, is a Danish waterway by Aarhus in eastern Jutland. The Bay of Aarhus is bounded by Kalø Vig in the north, Sletterhage and Helgenæs in the east, Samsø and Tunø to the south and the east Jutland coast to the wes ...

at Egå Marina. The beach park is divided by the marina in a southern and a northern section.

Kalø Vig Kalø Vig (English: ''Kalø Cove'') is a cove in the north end of the Bay of Aarhus, Denmark. It stretches in a semicircle from Skæring in the North West to Kalø Castle below Rønde in the North to the peninsula Skødshoved in the East. The ar ...

and

Helgenæs Helgenæs is a peninsula, approximately twenty square kilometres in size, stretching out from Mols in Denmark. Mols is itself part of the large peninsula of Djursland, in the middle of the Kattegat sea between Denmark and Sweden. West of H ...

is in the east and a bit inland to the west is the lake of

Egå Engsø Egå Engsø is an artificial lake and wetland site located in the north of the town of Aarhus between Vejlby, Risskov and Lystrup. Engsø means 'meadow lake' and Egå means 'oak stream', referring to the stream that drains the lake into the Aar ...

. The beach itself is fairly slim, between wide, with a beachline stretching for some at the southern section and in the northern section. It is coarse sandy beach with gravel and several coastal protections composed of rows of boulders extending into the sea. A few short stretches of the beach are broader with white sand. The waters are very shallow with a sandy bottom and reach a depth of some from the coast. Saline content is 20-35‰ and there's a weak northbound current. Åkrogen is a popular beach for

windsurfers Windsurfing is a wind propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the aerospace and surf culture of California. Windsurfing ga ...

and kitsurfers due to the shallow waters and brisk winds. Each beach section is equipped with a

jetty A jetty is a structure that projects from land out into water. A jetty may serve as a breakwater, as a walkway, or both; or, in pairs, as a means of constricting a channel. The term derives from the French word ', "thrown", signifying somet ...

extending into the sea, from which small watercraft can be landed or launched. The

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

newspaper ''"The Globe and Mail"'' voted Åkrogen one of the 10 best beaches in the world in 2008. The beach is maintained in conjunction with two park areas south and north of the Egå Marina. The southern section is situated along the Egå river where it terminates in the

Kattegat The Kattegat (; sv, Kattegatt ) is a sea area bounded by the Jutlandic peninsula in the west, the Danish Straits islands of Denmark and the Baltic Sea to the south and the provinces of Bohuslän, Västergötland, Halland and Skåne in Sweden ...

sea. Both park sections comprise large grassy areas, trees and rows of bushes, designed to provide windbreaks and limited privacy for beachgoers and sunbathers. The grass extends to the beach itself, providing enough room to fly kites or play team sports and there is a playground for children.

Access

The park lies at end of the cul-de-sac ''Åkrogs Strandvej'', which culminates in a parking lot with room for some 20 cars and a parking space for the public buses that serve the area. Buses run from central Aarhus and the

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

to the bus stops in the area. Danish National Cycle Route 5 runs along the coast of eastern

Jutland Jutland ( da, Jylland ; german: Jütland ; ang, Ēota land ), known anciently as the Cimbric or Cimbrian Peninsula ( la, Cimbricus Chersonesus; da, den Kimbriske Halvø, links=no or ; german: Kimbrische Halbinsel, links=no), is a peninsula of ...

from

Odder Municipality Odder Municipality is a municipality (Danish: '' kommune'') in the Central Denmark Region on the east coast of the Jutland peninsula in Central Denmark south of Aarhus. It is a part of the greater Aarhus area. The municipality covers an area of 2 ...

to central Aarhus, passing the Docklands, before it leads north past

Den Permanente Den Permanente (lit: The Permanent) is a sea bath and a beach in Aarhus, Denmark. Den Permanente is situated below the woodland park Riis Skov north of the city centre and along the railway line of Aarhus Nærbane. Den Permanente is one of two ...

and

Bellevue Beach Bellevue Beach (Danish: ''Bellevue Strand''), often simply referred to as Bellevue, is a beach at Klampenborg on the northern outskirts of Copenhagen, Denmark. With up to 500,000 visitors a year, it is one of the most popular beaches in the Copen ...

. The route eventually reach Åkrogen and continue further north. A coastal footpath leads most of the way from

Riis Skov Riis Skov (''Riis' Forest'' or ''The Forest of Riis'') is a forest and park in Århus, Denmark. It is located south of the district of Risskov, along the Bay of Aarhus. History This small patch of forest, was formally presented to Aarhus in 1395, ...

in the south. Egå

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...

lies north of the beach, providing access by sea for larger boats and ships.

Safety

Åkrogen is not a

Blue Flag beach The Blue Flag is a certification by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) that a beach, marina, or sustainable boating tourism operator meets its standards. The Blue Flag is a trademark owned by FEE, which is a not-for-profit non-gov ...

and there are no life guards in either summer or winter but both the south and north sections has a safety station with a lifesaver and the entire park is located in a populated area.

Aarhus Municipality Aarhus Municipality ( da, Aarhus Kommune), known as Århus Municipality ( da, Århus Kommune) until 2011, is a municipality in Central Denmark Region, on the east coast of the Jutland peninsula in central Denmark. The municipality covers an area ...

frequently tests the water for harmful bacteria and algae and rates all beaches on a yearly basis. In 2014 and 2015 the beach received the highest possible 3/3 rating. The Egå river empties immediately south of the Egå Marina and swimming is prohibited here and some south. Warning signs signals the restricted beach stretch.

References

Sources

* Stadsarkitektens kontor (2003)
Lokalplan nr. 684

. The local plan for the area.

External links

Arkitema Arkitema Architects is a Danish architectural firm headquartered in Aarhus, with branch offices in Copenhagen, Malmö, Stockholm and Oslo. Arkitema Architects was founded in 1969 in Aarhus, and nowadays has about 400 employees with its main activi ...

Åkrogen
. A building project by the beach. * Aarhus Kommune
Åkrogen - bynær strand
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akrogen Beaches of Aarhus Parks in Aarhus