Gribskov

Coordinates: 55°59′N 12°18′E / 55.983°N 12.300°E / 55.983; 12.300
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Gribskov
Helsinge, Fredensborg, Denmark
Coordinates55°59′N 12°18′E / 55.983°N 12.300°E / 55.983; 12.300
Area56 km2 (22 sq mi)
Ecology
WWF ClassificationBaltic mixed forests

Gribskov (Grib Forest) is

UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Par force hunting landscape in North Zealand.[3]

Gribskov is usually divided into four sections: The northwest surrounding the small village of Maarum, the northeast on the banks of Lake Esrum, the southwest around the small lake of Gribsø and finally the southeast, enclosing the village of Nødebo on the southern banks of Lake Esrum.

Only a thin strip of Hillerød town in the south separates Gribskov from many larger woodlands such as Store Dyrehave at 1,100 ha, Tokkekøb Hegn at 631 ha and several smaller woods.[4][5]

Etymology

The

Old Danish word for something 'without any specific owner', so 'Gribskov' actually means a woodland of common ownership.[7]

Nature

Gribskov and Lake Esrum are designated as EU habitat directive and Natura 2000 areas, as part of an even larger preserve.[8] On top of that, Gribskov is designated as an Important Bird Area (IBA). Around 20% or c. 1,200 ha of the forest has been reserved as 'forest to be untouched', in an effort to preserve some of the few spots of semi-natural woodland (SNW) in Denmark and stimulate the growth of new.

The birdlife in Gribskov is varied and of international importance. The forest is home to the largest populations of common goldeneye, green sandpiper and red-backed shrike in Denmark[9] and near Nødebo at Lake Esrum, a noisy colony of great cormorants has found a home. Cormorants can be a problematic bird to administer locally, but they are protected in Denmark and on list III in the Berne convention.[10]

The forest grows in a hilly terrain (by Danish standards), with lower lying areas in the east and west. The low-lying areas are dominated by

ash. There are also numerous small ponds, bogs, swamps and springs, some enshrouded by myths, superstition or old folk tales.[9]

Gribskov is more than 10,000 years old, dating from the end of the

deciduous trees
in the future.

The forest of Gribskov offers a rare opportunity to observe free roaming deer of all the four species living in Denmark; namely the roe deer, sika deer, red deer and fallow deer, with roe and fallow deer being most common in Gribskov. Roe deer have lived here for as long as the forest itself, while fallow deer were introduced at some point during the Middle Ages. The fallow deer population in Gribskov is the largest free roaming fallow deer population in Denmark, at 600-800 animals.

Lakes, ponds and wetlands

There has been a long tradition of surface water draining by ditch-digging and natural waterflow regulation in Gribskov for various reasons, but these practises have now ceased and work is in progress to re-establish a more natural waterflow and improved conditions for wetland areas.[12] These measures have already enhanced the biological diversity and has had a direct positive influence on the living conditions for birds in the forest.

There are several interesting bodies of water in Gribskov, seen both from a scientific and a

nunnery that once was here. The nuns showed more interest in the monks at Esrum Abbey
than in God, so he opened up the ground and the chasm swallowed up all the nuns and the entire monastery. The monastery continued to sink and sink and that was how the lake was created. It is said that one can still hear the monastery's bells ringing down in the lake on quiet evenings.

Landmarks and structures

There are many small ponds, streams and lakes throughout Gribskov, but the larger ones—Store Gribsø, Solbjerg Engsø and Strødam Engsø—all are situated in the southwestern parts. The latter two are the largest and attract a rich birdlife, but they are both on the edge of the forest.

The most prominent landmark is perhaps Svenskegrøften (lit.: The Swedish Ditch) initiated in 1576. It is a 2–3 km long artificial canal, winding its way through the forest from the lake of Store Gribsø and south towards the settlement of

Frederiksborg Palace with running water, to exploit the water resource for watermills in earlier times and to drain the wetlands so the land could be used for plantations. There are an estimated 526 km of artificial ditches in Gribskov.[12]

Pre-history

There are several relics of the past in Gribskov. One example is the megalithic passage grave just outside Kagerup, a village south of Maarum in the northwest of the forest. It was raised at some point in the neolithic Stone Age, about 5–6,000 years ago and is referred to as Jættestuen, simply meaning The Passage Grave in English.[13] Not far from the megalithic tomb are two round dolmens, one of which is heavily deteriorated. Another megalithic passage grave is situated in the southwestern part of the woods. This tomb is known as Mor Gribs Hule (lit.: Mother Grib's Lair) and of similar age and origin as Jættestuen. Tradition says that the notorious sorceress Mother Grib lived in the grave chamber. She used to whistle at wayfarers, leading them astray to be robbed and killed by her sons [14] This story gives an entirely new meaning to the name of Gribskov.

Just northwest of Gribskov, the small woodland of Valby Hegn holds a total of seven long barrows from the neolithic.

Buildings

Gribskov is cut through by the

railway line
laid out in 1878, then offering the urban population a first-time opportunity to visit the forests.

Near the village of

forest engineers, landscape engineers and nature guides
are educated.

In the northeastern corner is the old Esrum Abbey.

  • Entrance to the Stone Age passage grave of 'Mor Gribs Hule'.
    Entrance to the Stone Age passage grave of 'Mor Gribs Hule'.
  • The medieval Esrom Monastery.
    The medieval Esrom Monastery.
  • Mårum train station in the northwestern section of Gribskov.
    Mårum train station in the northwestern section of Gribskov.
  • Skovskolen near Nødebo.
    Skovskolen near Nødebo.

Forestry and hunting

Old map of the southern parts of Gribskov, highlighting the star-patterned hunting paths specifically. Made by J.G. von Langen in the 1760s.

Gribskov has a long tradition for forestry of all kinds.

In 1736, the German forester

Japanese larch, able to withstand the devastating fungal larch canker
disease also known as Lachnellula willkommii. The hybrids also had a faster and healthier growth. The hybrid is known as Larix × marschlinsii or L. × eurolepis (discouraged name) and can also occur spontaneously, wherever European and Japanese larch grow together.

Nowadays parts of Gribskov are used for seed production of species such as

European spruce
.

The history of

King Christian V. These are long straight lines, usually designed in star-patterns, merging and radiating from strategical points. They were constructed and used for running up and tiring the game (usually deer) in so-called parforce hunting, by horse and packs of hunting dogs. The same kind of layout and design also can be seen in the nearby woodlands of Store Dyrehave and Jægersborg Dyrehave, just south of Gribskov. They all are former royal game reserves. Gribskov still is used for hunting today—in particular deer
—and some areas are not to be disturbed, but parforce hunting is illegal and has been since the year 1777.

See also

References and notes

  1. ^ Denmark's 10 largest forests Archived 2012-03-08 at the Wayback Machine The Danish Wood Initiative (2004)
  2. ^ "Om Kongernes Nordsjælland" (in Danish). kongernes-nordsjælland.dk. 23 May 2018. Retrieved 29 May 2018.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ "Sites in Denmark, France and Turkey inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List". unesco.org. UNESCO. 4 July 2015. Retrieved 17 July 2015.
  4. ^ Store Dyrehave Gydendals Open Encyclopedia (in Danish)
  5. ^ Tokkekøb Hegn Danish Nature Agency (in Danish)
  6. ^ 'Grib' also translates to vulture in English, but that meaning is not associated with Gribskov.
  7. ^ Gribskov Danish Nature Agency (in Danish)
  8. ^ 133 Gribskov, Esrum Sø, Esrum Å and Snævret Skov Archived 2013-12-31 at the Wayback Machine Danish Nature agency (in Danish)
  9. ^ a b Gribskov Danish Ornithological Association (DOF) (in Danish)
  10. ^ Skarv Archived 2015-03-18 at the Wayback Machine Danish Nature agency (in Danish)
  11. ^ History of Gribskov Danish Nature Agency (in Danish)
  12. ^ a b Reestablishment of natural hydrology in Gribskov and St. Dyrehave. A pilot project on areas affected by storm damage. Archived 2014-01-01 at the Wayback Machine Marie-Louise Olsen. English summary of the report.
  13. ^ The Danish word Jættestue for passage grave, actually translates as "the Jötunns room" referring to the Jötunns of Norse mythology.
  14. ^ A variant of the story says that Mother Grib led travellers astray when they asked her for directions, and by blowing a whistle she signalled her six strong sons to jump forward and attack the unlucky victims. As with most folk tales and word of mouth stories, various versions exist and change slightly over the years. Mor Grib is also known as Mutter Grib, where Mutter translates as "old woman".

Sources

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