Helgenæs

The southernmost promontory on the Djursland peninsula is called Helgenæs, which means "holy point". The very narrow strip of land that links Helgenæs to Mols on Syddjurs is called Draget – a name that suggests that it was a place of portage, where Viking Age ships were literally "dragged" over land from one body of water to another In 1996, Ebeltoft Museum and Roskilde Viking Ship Museum conducted the experiment of pulling Viking ships over land here: The 17.5m long replica Viking ship "Helge Ask" was drawn 300m over land by 33 men, across split logs lubricated with lard and linseed oil. It took just fifteen minutes. The experiment was subsequently repeated with four Icelandic horses pulling and 18 men to steer. This time it took just ten minutes. At Ellemandsberget, the highest point on Helgenæs, 99m above sea level, it’s easy to imagine how ships passed by here on their way to or from the markets in the Viking town of Aros. At Gammeltoft, there was a village in the Viking Age. Here the inhabitants witnessed one of the most crucial dramas in Danish history: Saxo writes that Harald Bluetooth was mortally wounded by one of Sven Forkbeard’s men during a pause in a battle between father and son at Helgenæs. It occurred in a less than heroic manner while Harald was visiting the bushes to answer a call of nature, and was hit by an arrow.