Blåvandshuk is a headland on the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

coast of

Jutland Jutland (; , ''Jyske Halvø'' or ''Cimbriske Halvø''; , ''Kimbrische Halbinsel'' or ''Jütische Halbinsel'') is a peninsula of Northern Europe that forms the continental portion of Denmark and part of northern Germany (Schleswig-Holstein). It ...

northwest of

Esbjerg Esbjerg (, ) is a seaport city and seat of Esbjerg Municipality on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. By road, it is west of Kolding and southwest of Aarhus. With an urban area, urban population of 71,554 (1 January ...

, and is the westernmost point of metropolitan

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

. The Blåvand Lighthouse is the westernmost located building in Denmark.

Natural Environment

A significant portion of Blåvandshuk is marsh land, moor,

dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

s, and

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...

es. Because Blåvandshuk is on the coast and has a

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

(''Skallingen'') which stretches to the southeast, it is surrounded by much water. To the northwest is the

. To the southeast of ''Skallingen'' is Fanø Bay (''Fanø Bugt'') and the island Fanø. Beyond Fanø Bay is the

Wadden Sea The Wadden Sea ( ; ; or ; ; ; ) is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern continental Europe and the range of low-lying Frisian Islands, forming a shallow body of water with tida ...

. To the northeast of ''Skallingen'' lies Ho Bay (''Ho Bugt'') and the small island of Langli. ''Skallingen'' and the waters off its coast are protected, a part of the Wadden Sea wildlife reserve and protection area being discussed as a potential

national park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

Administrative status

Prior to January 1, 2007, Blåvandshuk was also the name of a municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') that contained the headland. The municipality covered an area of 223 km², and had a total population of 4,378 (2005). Its last mayor was Hans Chr. Thoning, a member of the Venstre (Liberal Party)

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

. The main town and site of its municipal council was the town of Oksbøl. Blåvandshuk municipality ceased to exist due to ''Kommunalreformen'' ("The Municipal Reform" of 2007). It was merged with former

Blaabjerg Until January 1, 2007, Blaabjerg (Danish: Blåbjerg - literally blue mountain) was a municipality ( Danish, '' kommune'') in Ribe County on the west coast of the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. The municipality covered an area of 254 ...

, Helle, Varde, and

Ølgod Ølgod is a railway town on the Jutland peninsula in southwest Denmark. As of 1 January 2025, it had a population of 3,713.coast radio station (from 1914) and later satellite radio hubs, including the

Inmarsat Inmarsat is a British communications satellite, satellite telecommunications company, offering global mobile services. It provides telephone and data services to users worldwide, via portable or mobile terminals which communicate with groun ...

station "Blaavand-Atlantic-East". In 1996 the radio station became remotely controlled from Lyngby Radio and finally closed down entirely in 2019. The radio station was of great importance to those employed in

fishery, and the message "Blåvand melder storm" (en: "Blaavand storm warning") was a particularly dreaded message, so much that a film was made with this title ( Blaavand melder storm) in 1938.

Mines

Located on ''Skallingen'''s southwestern coast was Denmark's last

minefield A land mine, or landmine, is an explosive weapon often concealed under or camouflaged on the ground, and designed to destroy or disable enemy targets as they pass over or near it. Land mines are divided into two types: anti-tank mines, wh ...

, left over from

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, when 1,389,289 landmines were placed in Denmark by the German occupation forces as part of their defence line. A 1.86 km² closed-off area on the peninsula still contained mines sixty years after the war. Demining efforts were hampered by the shifting sands that can bury mines several meters underground, and the drift of the sea which has moved the beach some 200 meters to the east since the end of the war. In accordance with the Ottawa Convention and Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty most of the minefield was cleared in 2006–2008 by the Ministry of Transport and the Danish Coastal Authority, and the last, most difficult section in 2012. Some 3,098 antipersonnel mines, 259 antivehicle mines, and 554 unexploded ordnance were collected and destroyed.

References

* Municipal statistics
NetBorger Kommunefakta
delivered fro
KMD aka Kommunedata (Municipal Data)
* Municipal mergers and neighbors
Eniro new municipalities map

External links

*
Varde municipality's official tourist information website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blavandshuk Former municipalities of Denmark Varde Municipality