At Grenen Beach, Denmark, visitors can see sea water from two oceans that cannot mix with each other. Millions of tourists have come to Skagen (Denmark) to witness a strange natural phenomenon: “sea waves”. This phenomenon can be most clearly observed at Grenen beach, where the Skagerrak and Kattegat seas meet with continuous waves, creating a border with two different colors of water on both sides, according to Skagen .
At Grenen Beach, Denmark, visitors can see sea water from two oceans that cannot mix with each other.
Millions of tourists have come to Skagen (Denmark) to witness a strange natural phenomenon: “sea waves”. This phenomenon can be most clearly observed at Grenen beach, where the Skagerrak and Kattegat seas meet with continuous waves, creating a border with two different colors of water on both sides, according to Skagen
In Skagen, visitors can stand on two seas at the same time. Photo: Wanderspots.
The division in color is due to the difference in salt content and water density. Sea water in the Skagerrak is saltier due to its closer proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, while Kattegat sea water is diluted with lower salinity in the Baltic Sea.
With Kattegat flowing into the Baltic Sea and Skagerrak flowing into the North Sea, the collision of the two seas at the 60 km long Grenen Bank creates a natural phenomenon of wave interference, currents and sediment movement.
Sometimes, the interactions of waves and sand at Grenen are so strong that they create a spectacular sight seen from the shore. Large amounts of sea sand are pushed along the west and north coast towards Grenen. Part of this sediment – about one million cubic meters per year – is deposited on the northern coast, from where new dunes are gradually formed from layers of sand and material on the seabed.
The waves continuously pounded from both sides and intersected at the end of the peninsula at Skaw Spit – a sandy reef extending nearly 2 km out to sea. Skaw Spit has a curved shape like a dog’s tail, after the impact of wind and sea water. No one knows what Grenen’s permanent form will be, making it never boring to admire it over and over again.
In this strange water area, marine creatures also thrive, including large species. Visitors will often see whales and seals in Grenen.
Grenen Beach has a long sandy beach, located on the Skagen Odde peninsula, north of the town of Skagen. Near the tip of this peninsula are two small museums: Skagen Bunker and Grennens Kunstmuseum. Grenen is traversed by national highway number 40, and is one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations, attracting around 2 million visitors each year.
The area around Grenen offers some of the best bird watching in Denmark, and the best bird watching in Northern Europe. Therefore, this place also attracts many tourists to observe the activities of birds of prey during their spring migration. Birds often gather here before crossing the sea to Bohuslän, Sweden.
