Døndalen is a valley in the northern part of the Danish island of

Bornholm Bornholm () is a List of islands of Denmark, Danish island in the Baltic Sea, to the east of the rest of Denmark, south of Sweden, northeast of Germany and north of Poland. Strategically located, Bornholm has been fought over for centuries. I ...

. Located next to the road from

Gudhjem Gudhjem is a small town and fishing port on the northern coast of the Baltic island of Bornholm, Denmark. Its population is 736 (1 January 2024). Gudhjem is a popular venue for tourists who are attracted by its steep, picturesque streets, views ...

to Tejn, it is known for its waterfall, which is Denmark's tallest.

Description

Døndalen, which covers an area of 37 hectares (91 acres), is one of Bornholm's crack valleys cutting through the granite rock. The wooded area reaches inland from the coast. In springtime the valley is covered with anemones and

ramsons ''Allium ursinum'', known as wild garlic, ramsons, cowleekes, cows's leek, cowleek, buckrams, broad-leaved garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, Eurasian wild garlic or bear's garlic, is a bulbous perennial flowering plant in the amaryllis family, Ama ...

, and the song of

nightingale The common nightingale, rufous nightingale or simply nightingale (''Luscinia megarhynchos''), is a small passerine bird which is best known for its powerful and beautiful song. It was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, ...

s can sometimes be heard.

Background

Døndalen has been wooded since the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

, 10,000 years ago. Over the past 7,000 years, the trees have been

deciduous In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed Leaf, leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

. There have been various archeological finds in the valley including burial sites and evidence of cremations. It is not known how a sword in a wooden sheath and gilded pearls of glass arrived there. As part of the island's defences in the 16th century, earthworks were constructed at the bottom of the valley next to the shore. The embankments, which can still be seen today, provided protection for those using canons and rifles to deter the enemy.

Landscape

Half way up the valley, the brook known as Døndaleåen falls some , forming Denmark's largest waterfall. The rocky banks on the northwestern side rise to the Amtmandsstenen viewpoint which looks out over the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

to Christiansø. The brook runs from Dammemose near Klemensker via Spellinge Mose. The stretch from Røvejen (the road from Rø to Olsker) to the coast has varying scenery and the waterfall. For most of the year, there is only a trickle of water in the brook, but in winter the waterfall is fuller.

Fauna and flora

Døndalen has several examples of birdlife, particularly in the spring with nightingales,

blackcap The Eurasian blackcap (''Sylvia atricapilla'') is a bird usually known simply as the blackcap. It is a common and widespread typical warbler. It has mainly olive-grey upperparts and pale grey underparts, and differences across the five subspec ...

garden warbler The garden warbler (''Sylvia borin'') is a common and widespread small bird that breeds in most of Europe and in the Palearctic to western Siberia. It is a plain, long-winged and long-tailed typical warbler with brown upperparts and dull white ...

treecreepers The treecreepers are a family (biology), family, Certhiidae, of small passerine Aves, birds, widespread in wooded regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The family contains nine species in one genus, ''Certhia''. Their plumage is dull-coloured. As t ...

and chaffinches. Buzzards. In the winter months,

dipper Dippers are members of the genus ''Cinclus'' in the bird family Cinclidae, so-called because of their bobbing or dipping movements. They are unique among passerines for their ability to dive and swim underwater. Taxonomy The genus ''Cinclus'' ...

s feed in the stream. Deer are also present in the woods. Salmon and other fish occupy the stream. In addition to the ramsons and white, yellow and blue anemones, there are

arum ''Arum'' is a genus of plants in the Araceae family; they are native to Europe, northern Africa, and western and central Asia, with the highest species diversity in the Mediterranean region. Frequently called arum lilies, they are not closely ...

and toothworts. On occasion, some

orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Orchids are cosmopolitan plants that are found in almost every habitat on Eart ...

s can be seen, including the marsh orchid and twayblade. Trees include

hornbeam Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the family Betulaceae. Its species occur across much of the temperateness, temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Common names The common English name ''hornbeam'' derives ...

silver birch ''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found ...

, ash,

elm Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the genus ''Ulmus'' in the family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical- montane regions of North America and Eurasia, ...

and

hazel Hazels are plants of the genus ''Corylus'' of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family, Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K ...

as well as several varieties of

rowan The rowans ( or ) or mountain-ashes are shrubs or trees in the genus ''Sorbus'' of the rose family, Rosaceae. They are native throughout the cool temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in the Himalaya ...

."Plantelivet i Døndalen"
''Danmarks Naturfond''. Retrieved 31 October 2012. In 1916, Aksel Jensen, a farmer, cultivated the northeastern side of Døndalen. His interest in trees led him to plant approximately 150 varieties from around the world. They include Chinese cork oak, Californian mammoth trees, Himalayan spruce and also a rare European variety, the chequer tree."Døndalen"
''Danmarks Naturfond''. Retrieved 31 October 2012.

Signposted walks

From the car park on the main road from Gudhjem to Tejn, there are signposted footpaths through the valley taking visitors through Aksel Jensen's plantation with trees, along the valley and past the waterfall. The viewpoint at Amtmandssten can be reached up a flight of steps. On the other side of the road, the path along the coast leads to the high granite cliffs known as Helligdomsklipperne.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dondalen Waterfalls of Denmark Bornholm