Lake Esrum

The lake covers 17 km², Its length from north to south is 8.4 km and its maximum depth is 22 m. Its principal drainage is Esrum Å, a 10-km stream which passes Esrum Watermill and the remains of Esrum Abbey on its way to the Kattegat at Dronningmølle. The western shore of the lake is dominated by Gribskov, one of Denmark's largest forests, and the small town of Nødebo. Fredensborg Palace, one of the official residences of the Danish Royal Family, with its extensive gardens, is situated on the southeast shore. Boat trips operate on the lake from Sørup, a village just south of the palace gardens.

History

Commercial fishing

Like many of the surrounding forests, Lake Esrum was originally a royal domain. It was first administrated by Eentekammeret and later by Frederiksborg Amtsstue on behalf of the Danish government. Fishing in the lake was entrusted with a fishing master (Danish: fiskemester) who resided at Fiskergården, located next to Slotsmøllen at Slotssøen in Hillerød. From 1864, fishing was carried out by private citizens and from 1907, fishing rights were sold at auction. Commercial fishing continued until 1989.

Esrum canal

From the beginning of the 19th century, Lake Esrum played a role in the transport of firewood from Grib Forest to Copenhagen. From 1802 to 1805, a canal was constructed between the north end of the lake and Dronningmølle. Here firewood was loaded onto large cargo ships and sailed to Copenhagen. The canal was 9 km long, 9 m wide and 1.5 m deep. The work was led by Adolph von der Recke and carried out by local peasants, soldiers and forced labour workers. A towpath ran on the banks of the canal and on the western shores of lake Esrum. The timber had to pass a 4-metre crater-like ramp called Væltningen, which connected the upper section of the canal to its lower part. The upper part of the canal passed two ponds. One of them, Storedam (Great Pond), was the site of a watermill which was first used as backup for the gunpowder mill in Frederiksværk during the English Wars and later for the manufacturing of textiles for the army. Transportation of firewood on the canal continued until 1874 and it was later used for leisure trips. It has now dried out and been covered by forest, but Væltningen and other elements are still visible in the landscape.

Sørup's washhouses

From the middle of the 19th century, the small village of Sørup on the southeastern shores of the lake was home to numerous laundries. The laundry was picked up at institutions and wealthy households in Copenhagen, Hillerød and Elsinore. When the industry peaked, Sørup was home to 20 laundries with some one hundred employees.