Abelines Gaard (Farmhouse)
At Abelines Gaard, Hvide Sande you get the chance to experience what life used to be like in the dune farms along Jutland’s west coast. The exhibition ‘The Faces of the Past’ lets you choose what you want to hear, when Abeline and the Ese girl tell the story about their lives. Moreover, old craftsmanship is brought back to life on the farm with living history demonstrations.
The monotonous sound of the clock ticking mingles with the crackling sound of Abeline's knitting needles. She sits in her chair and looks out onto the winding dirt road as she tends to the call centre. Then there's a knock at the door. The neighbour comes to call, because the phone is the only one in Holmsland Klit.
When you step into the listed seaside farmhouse, you enter a time warp. Abeline no longer sits with her knitting in her hand at the telephone switchboard and offers hot coffee at Madam Blå, but the farmhouse looks as if she has just left it in the 1950s.
The farm was built between 1854 and 1871 by Abeline's father-in-law. He was a beach bailiff and was responsible for salvaging wreckage, organising stranding auctions and housing sailors from wrecked ships. Abeline took over the farm with her husband in 1890, but she was widowed in 1904 and ran the farm with her five children until her death in 1957. The strandings became fewer, but Abeline began to accommodate summer visitors - Holmsland Klit as a tourist destination was born.
On the farm you will find a cosy café serving hot and cold drinks, as well as regular coffee bread. Also visit the small museum shop where you can find souvenirs and buy ice cream.
Experience what a rescue operation was like in the old days
On the West Coast, people knew to respect the sea, so they made a point of organising rescue drills. Join in when rescue drills are organised at the rescue station at Abelines Gaard during the high season. Read more at www.abelinesgaard.dk.