Inside Denmark’s ‘Cold Hawaii’ Where Winter Surfing Comes Alive
“If there is one place I absolutely don’t want to miss a good forecast it’s here at home in Denmark. I can be sitting somewhere else tropical scoring perfect waves everyday, but I keep checking the forecast and if I see a good day, I freak out when I can’t make it.”
Oli Hartkopp is one of Denmark's top surfers and a multi-national champion. When he's home, and those winter swells rifle in, he's on it -- and when he's not at home, he wants to be.
While the country may not be the first European surf zone that screams surf trip – it gets waves. Giant, Atlantic storms that flush across the top of Scotland can rip down the backbone of the UK, sending swell to Norway, the east coast of the UK and then down into the west coast of Denmark too.
It's not as consistent as other places across the Old Continent, of course, but up on the country's northern western coastline is the town of Klitmøller, which has been affectionately dubbed Cold Hawaii. Not because you're going to find cold water Pipeline out there (though that does exist, just not in Denmark) but because it's become of a Scandinavian surfing Mecca, attracting surfers from all over.
“You’re definitely part of something niche, surfing here is still pretty small and not many people know about, especially if you travel inland away from the coast,” said Oli. “Also when I travel a lot of people I meet always ask, when I tell them I’m from Denmark, 'can you guys surf there?'
“Surfing here is special, people invest a lot of time for a lot of really bad surf, but when those few good days finally arrive it’s like the whole coastline is buzzing with s special energy. So to be a surfer here you need to get cold, have an a big amount of patience and never give up.”
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Surfer and photographer Emil Fjord feels the same way: “I love it,” he said. “It’s not the most consistent place to surf, but when the waves arrive, they can be surprisingly good. Winter is when we usually get the best swells, even though the days are short and the water is freezing. That’s also when I shoot most of my photos. There’s something special about documenting friends surfing in those cold, raw conditions.
“Those good winter days, we start early. You’re driving through the dark, checking the forecast and hoping the waves have shown up. You meet a few friends at the beach, surf until you can’t feel your hands anymore, then warm up in the car with the heater on full blast.”
For Oli, it's about that one key session, the moment home just clicks. “On the winter days, you rarely get more than one session and it sometimes feels like you’ve been at the frontline or something crazy.
“You just drive out to the spot, jump in your suit, surf a few hours until you can’t feel anything anymore, run back up and then straight back home with the car on full heater. But to be honest then I actually prefer the winter edition of surfing here, there is something magic to it I can’t explain. Summer is nice and beautiful, but winter that’s where the magic happens.”
Wind is a big deal for Denmark, same as anywhere of course, but here, windswell can be your bread and butter: “We’ve had a lot of days at the town just south of where I live in Nørre Vorupør,” said Emil. It's the most consistent place we get because there are two jetties you can get shelter from when wind is howling (and it howls 350 days a year).
“It’s all been windy messy days but a lot of fun, people here really enjoy when summer comes around because the winter is so cold and dark. But it’s the classic stuff, meet up with friends, go surf, laugh, joke around with each other, hang out in the parking lot afterwards, go to the smokery and get some fish cakes with Remoulade (Danish dressing) Go back out again, hanging out by the ocean all day being outside. Winter is the complete opposite, it’s cold it’s dark and you only got some hours of daylight to hit a good forecast.”
As for the community, it's there, real – and growing. “I think we have a really great surf community here in Denmark,” Emil added. “People are genuinely passionate about surfing and the lifestyle that comes with it. Most of the community is centred around Cold Hawaii, where you’ll find surf shops, cafés and plenty of places to hang out after a session. It’s a welcoming scene where everyone shares the same excitement whenever the forecast looks good.”
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