Gammel Havn (Old Harbour) – Sydfur’s Historic Waterfront

A century-old harbour on the edge of the Limfjord

Gammel Havn – literally the Old Harbour – lies on Sydfur, the southern side of the small Limfjord island of Fur. In 1911, local islanders built a harbour at Koldkilde to serve fishermen and small cargo boats, tying this remote community more closely to the fjord that surrounds it. Today, the commercial function has faded, but the harbour basin, revetments and simple working structures still sketch out the story of an island that once depended on the water for trade and livelihood. Standing here, you can picture the days when small wooden vessels loaded farm produce, fish and building materials, and when the pier was a focal point of everyday life. The setting remains modest and human-scaled: no towering cranes, just low quays, mooring points and the ever-present view across the water towards the Salling peninsula.

A gentle coastal circuit around Sydfur’s old harbour

Around Gammel Havn runs a small circular route of roughly 0.6–1 km, an easy stroll that loops along the shore and back over low grassy ground. The path is mostly level and well defined, making it suitable for almost anyone with reasonable mobility. It is a relaxed way to stretch your legs between other Fur sights and to experience the interplay of land and fjord at close range. As you walk, the harbour angles quickly into open coastline. Small sections of low cliff, pebbly beach and patches of seaweed line the water’s edge, and you can step down to the shore in several places. Detours onto the beach invite you to skim stones, watch the light shift on the Limfjord or simply sit and listen to the soft slap of waves and the creak of moored boats when the water is high.

Light, landscape and the ever-changing Limfjord

What Gammel Havn lacks in grand monuments it makes up for in atmosphere. The Limfjord is broad but sheltered here, so the views are long rather than dramatic: a wide horizon of water, distant coasts and the low, rolling profile of Jutland. The light is constantly in motion, with clouds sliding across the sky and reflections rippling on the surface. On still days, the harbour can feel almost meditative, with only the calls of seabirds and the occasional engine of a passing fishing boat in the distance. When the wind picks up, waves drum along the stones, flags crack sharply on their poles and the fjord shows a more restless side. Photographers find plenty of subjects in the simple lines of the pier, the textures of wood and stone, and the big, uncluttered sky.

Part of Fur’s wider story of nature and geology

Although Gammel Havn itself is a small site, it fits neatly into Fur’s larger narrative. The island is renowned for its moler cliffs, fossil-rich slopes and candidate UNESCO landscapes, and you can sense that same geological story continuing beneath the calm waters here. The low banks behind the harbour hint at the layered sediments that elsewhere rise dramatically into cliffs. Many visitors combine a stop at the old harbour with excursions to Knudeklinten, Fur Museum or the island’s breweries and galleries. Compared to those headline attractions, Gammel Havn feels intimate and unhurried – more a quiet chapter than the main plot, but one that helps complete your understanding of Fur as a lived-in island shaped by both land and sea.

A peaceful pause between village life and open water

There are no grand visitor centres at Gammel Havn, just a few practical amenities on or near the site and the occasional bench from which to watch the water. Simple information boards in the wider area help place the harbour within the island’s network of walking routes. The lack of commercial bustle is part of the appeal: you are free to wander, watch the changing weather and imagine the harbour in its working days. Whether you stay for fifteen minutes or an unhurried hour, the old harbour is a rewarding pause point on Fur. It offers a tangible sense of the island’s maritime past, a gentle walk in the salt air and a tranquil place to look out across the Limfjord before you move on to the island’s more dramatic cliffs and busy microbrewery.