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Where to? To Lolland? Where is that?" That's how everyone answers when asked about this island in the Danish South Sea. The fourth largest Danish island in the Baltic Sea in terms of area is only 17 kilometres north of Fehmarn and because the controversial Fehmarnbelt tunnel could make Lolland a home spot in the future, we set off to explore this island. And as the spots on Fehmarn are so familiar to us, we were excited to see what awaited us here. I got the tip a few years ago from a Danish windsurfer. We met in the north-east of the island and when I asked him what other good spots Lolland had to offer, his prompt reply was "You absolutely have to get to know Albuen in the west of the island. That's probably the best shallow water spot. But you Germans only know Fehmarn."
Lolland is actually so close, but in fact we can't really get our eyes off Fehmarn otherwise. Even though Fehmarn has high wind statistics, the journey to Denmark is a stone's throw away and great spots and strong winds prevail here too. Sometimes the wind blows even stronger here.
But first things first. We set off on the Scandlines ferry from Puttgarden in the morning, have a cup of tea on board and 45 minutes later we are already in the harbour of Rødby on Lolland. The island is around 58 kilometres long and 15 to 25 kilometres wide. The 60,000 or so people living on the island hope that the construction of the tunnel will create many jobs. While the people of Fehmarn and environmentalists in particular are sceptical about the mammoth project, the Scandinavians and above all the Danes are the driving forces behind this European construction project.
It would be the longest and deepest combined road and rail tunnel in the world. The Danish government already gave its approval for this project four years ago, but the German side has yet to do so. If the planners have their way, the 45-minute ferry journey will soon be a thing of the past - the crossing should only take ten minutes by car. But for the next few years, we are happy to take the ferry to slow down.
Lolland - the best spots for windsurfing
1 Albuen: the east side
Albuen is a 30-minute drive north-west of Rødby. Ever heard of it? Probably not. A huge entry and exit spot awaits us. On the drive there, we see a few cars, some fields being worked, but otherwise only a few people, let alone tourists, making the most of this part of Denmark. Whereas Fehmarn was a colourful hustle and bustle of activity, tourism and lots of water sports, here - 45 minutes away - it's the opposite. Tranquillity, deserted nature, lots of birds, perfect for hiking, kayaking and, of course, windsurfing.
"Such a huge expanse of shallow water and we're all alone here. I can hardly believe it," says a delighted Dennis Müller when we arrive in Albuen. We are indeed a little incredulous, because we were recently on Fehmarn and now here is this sight. We can't spot a local windsurfing scene either. Jens, who runs the campsite just behind the spot, tells us that surfers come here from time to time. "But there aren't many surfers all year round," he reports.
The spot has a charisma that sometimes attracts windsurfers and kitesurfers from the metropolis of Copenhagen, 190 kilometres away, or even from Sweden. The car park at the southern end of the lagoon has space for a total of 40 vehicles, but fences, parking fees and an otherwise full car park are rather foreign words here. Or to put it more bluntly, we are alone here most of the time. The wind has now picked up to a good 25 knots. Dennis rigs up his 5.2 freestyle sail in the car park and the entry is "a bit more complicated", says the world traveller in windsurfing, "you go through a narrow strip in the otherwise dense reeds on the shore. Due to the strong wind, a lot of water is pushed out of the "lagoon", so we have to walk an easy 300 metres to reach the water. It is also quite muddy. The better alternative is to walk over the dyke, where you can rig up right at the water's edge. Tip: It's better to take a small surf trolley with you to transport your surf equipment over the dyke.
Huge standing area
After reaching the water, it is another 200 metres before it becomes at least knee-deep. This is how shallow the huge "Albuen Lagoon" falls with a continuous standing depth in all areas. We explore most parts of Albuen and always find a maximum depth of waist deep. Where else in the world have we ever seen such a large standing area? We think about it for a long time, having travelled to a large number of spots on the world map in the past, and we also discuss all the Egyptian spots.
A new discovery on the spot world map
At some point, the GunSails team rider throws parts of the Ringkobing Fjord into the race, which also offer very large standing areas, and adds: "Albuen is - at least from a German perspective - a really great new discovery of a spot on the world map. Albuen is ideal for beginners and intermediates, perfect for learning the beach start and practising jibe variations." The bottom is mostly fine sand and we can only see about five large stones over the entire stretch of water, which we should stay away from. Meanwhile, Dennis doesn't take long and "disappears" for a long time on the lagoon to freestyle.
The north-west wind here comes sideshore from the left and after unsuccessful freestyle tricks, he can immediately stand up again some distance from the beach and start again. "Nevertheless, Albuen is not a perfect spot for freestylers," adds Dennis. With 25 knots from the north-west, the water is not very choppy, but not smooth enough to fulfil the highest freestyle demands. We cross the long way up to the northern tip of the spot and even there we don't find water conditions for world-class freestyle. And we can't surf too close to the northern tip either. Why is that? Because it gets far too shallow close to the shore. Our space bulkhead trip back to the southern end of Albuen is an extended downwinder because the spot is so vast.
The Albuen lagoon is probably one of the largest undiscovered standing waters in Europe.
Important information on nature conservation:Albuen is a sensitive and protected nature area for rare birds and plants. The Danish Forest and Nature Agency has therefore drawn up rules to ensure that all requirements are met. It is not permitted to drive further north from the car park at the southern end of the lagoon. Water sports are prohibited from 1 October to the end of February.
2 Albuen: the west side
The headland that separates the east side with the huge flat water slope from the wave spot on the west side is less than 100 metres wide. On our day, this western side of Albuen offers small waves with 25 knots from the north-west. We are actually already well exhausted, but Dennis still looks towards the waves and treats himself to a short session on his waveboard with the wind from the right. He is joined by a Danish windsurfer. As a rule, you should only go out at the wave spot north of the car park. Not without reason, because south of the piles/south of the car park there are some rocks just below (!) the surface of the water.
3 Langø
We use a surf break to take a trip to neighbouring Langø and at least we see and talk to a few people. We get to know a sailor from Travemünde who stops off in Langø for two days, has had a good drink and immediately invites us onto his sailing boat for a drink. But Dennis looks round, "hey, I'm going out here!" and he's already out on the water again, making longer strokes. The small bay to the west of the small harbour, on the other hand, only has shallow water in the outer area.
4 Kramnitse
Kramnitsee is Lolland's best-known wave spot and is only about ten minutes' drive west of Rødby Havn. With strong, cross-onshore winds, the waves build up nicely. The wide sandy beach leaves plenty of space to set up, and there is also a grassy strip with tall grass. This beach is rocky and there is hardly any shore break, the beach slopes gently into the water. The waves come in short and steep towards the Baltic Sea beach. If the wind blows even more onshore, the waves build up a good deal higher.
Area information Lolland
Ferry
Puttgarden-Rødby Havn and from Rostock to Gedser. Puttgarden-Rødby Havn departs every 30 minutes. 45 minutes crossing time.
Campsite at the spot
The "Albuen Strand" campsite is ideal for families, nature lovers and especially for those who want to camp not far from the spot. You can either stay in your own motorhome or caravan or simply rent one of the small, rustic, red wooden huts. You can buy food at the campsite, but the supply is very limited. The village of Langø, five kilometres away, offers some accommodation and a nice harbour. About 15 kilometres away is the town of Nakskov with a population of 30,000. There are a few local hotels, restaurants and supermarkets.
Wind
Lolland is very well ventilated all year round. Long periods of easterly winds are not uncommon, especially in spring, but Lolland also gets a good dose of wind when the wind blows from the west.
