Exploring Limestone Mines and More at Mønsted Kalkgruber in Denmark

Explore the dark caves of the Mønsted Kalkgruber, where each path holds new wonders to experience deep in the heart of central Denmark!

I get asked all the time, why I live in a small town in the middle of Denmark’s peninsula, which is called Jutland (or Jylland to the Danes). Some people can’t understand why I would want to live in an area that is not Copenhagen, but little do they know of all the great things to do in Denmark that have nothing to do with the capital city.

Sure, Denmark’s nature in the capital region, which is on the island of Sjaelland can be just as impressive as in other parts of the country, but there is one thing that you won’t find in Copenhagen. That would be the world’s largest limestone mine called Mønsted Kalkgruber, which is located in the middle of Denmark’s peninsula in an area called Midtjylland.

If you are looking for things to do in Denmark out in the Danish countryside, your inner explorer will be happy to know that a rather unique experience lies ready to be discovered under the ground of central Denmark.

Spending a Morning at the Mønsted Kalkgruber

During our summer of exploring as much of Denmark’s natural areas, we decided to visit the Mønsted Kalkgruber, limestone mines located in the town of Mønsted, Denmark. It was a rather cloudy day with a forecast of rain, which was a perfect day to go exploring underground.

We had on pants, tennis shoes and light jackets, because even though it was summer in Denmark, we knew that the “hiking” we were about to do that day would be in a much cooler environment. Around 10:30 in the morning, we arrived during a less-crowded time at the mine. We preferred to do our exploring without a lot of people around to give us the feel that we were in an unknown and undiscovered area. It was fun to pretend.

I want to say a quick “thank you” to the wonderful people at Mønsted Kalkgruber for sponsoring our trip to the limestone mines for the day. We also really enjoyed our snack break in the café. We really appreciate your hospitality, and we deeply enjoyed our time at Mønsted Kalkgruber!

Nature Walk to the Entrance to the Mønsted Kalkgruber Mine

After arriving to Mønsted Kalkgruber on that Sunday morning in June, we walked through the admissions building to get our map, and then, we were on our way to find the path. If you have learned from my other posts, my boys are usually the keepers of the map and the ones to navigate us on our quests. That day at Mønsted Kalkgruber was different. Instead on insisting that they carry the map, they noticed something else along the path that took their curiosities away.

Not long after we started walking on the sidewalk path towards the entrance to the mine, we noticed some white papers hanging from a sign. This was the first of many messages for the children’s activity for their summer program. The paper where in Danish, English and German and included a fact about the area and a question that the children had to answer.

This question was easy and fun enough for even the smallest of children to be able to participate. My boys, who were 10 and 7 at the time, didn’t seem to mind the fact that the question was easy. We all just liked having something “to play” on our walk.

The next two papers were at historical places on the grounds. We saw a dynamite house and some old machinery that was once used in the mine. I liked that we had an extra purpose when checking out these different places, and it really helped my boys to focus on what was around them. It felt educational, but fun! 😉

The sidewalk path led us to a wooden bridge that went into a forested area. It was very pretty and relaxing, and we liked the idea of being somewhat elevated from the forest floor. Overall, the path wasn’t too long, and we arrived at the mine entrance in no time.

Entering the Mønsted Kalkgruber / Limestone Quarry

When we reached the entrance to the Mønsted Kalkgruber, it was truly a very exciting scene. The entrance itself, looked like a train tunnel, especially since there were tracks leading into it, that went directly into what looked like the side of a mountain. Denmark may be hilly in some spots, but I would never consider it mountainous. Today, though, was a day for adventure, so we felt it necessary to exaggerate.

We were glad that we decided to wear long pants and light jackets, since the temperature inside the cave dropped significantly as we entered.

Lit Caves of Mønsted Kalkgruber in Central Denmark

When we entered into the limestone mine, we had the complete feeling that we had found Denmark’s off-the-beaten path. The ground was flat and easily assessible for a wheelchair, and there were small lights along the sides of the wall to help us find our way. To the right were very large holes in the rock that seemed as big as a room, but since they weren’t on the path, we avoided them.

There were puddles in some places and chunks of rock in others. At first, the path was clear and easy, which was a good way to transition us to this new world. However, we were there for adventure so adventure was what we would find!

Because we forgot to take our flashlights (rookie mistake), we stuck mostly to the paths with lights. That didn’t mean that we weren’t able to have a great adventure. Many of the paths weren’t as flat as the one we entered, so light or no light, we still felt adventurous.

This new path had very low walkways, uneven grounds, hills, and darker, wetter tunnels to explore. With the occasional need of a light from our cellphones, we managed to find our way from start to finish of such a “secret tunnel”.

On each tunnel or path we tried, I would hear an excited voice from somewhere ahead of me saying, “hey mom, you’ve got to see this! It is the coolest one yet!” I loved hearing things like that. It was much better than occasional, “yep…it’s a dead end”, which meant that we had to find our way back to where we started. No two paths were the same, and we never heard any complaints from the boys when they found a dead end. A dead end was just one more thing to discover!

Historical Finds in the Mønsted Kalkgruber in Midtjylland Denmark

There were some spots on the “hike” in Denmark’s underground that seemed to be a part of the past. Whether it was a structure used long ago or some supports that held up part of the cave, we were excited for each new discovery.

We also found out something very interesting about the quarry as we walked around. We saw a small pool of water with a cylinder-shaped object in the center. Apparently, Mønsted Kalkgruber had been used in part of a Christmas calendar show. We were exploring an area that was once the place of wonder for a character in a show. How interesting is that!

If you are interested in learning about Christmas Calendar Shows, check out my post on Denmark’s Ways of Counting Down to Christmas.

Dark and Colorful Paths at Mønsted Kalkgruber

There were also some paths that were dark, so a flashlight or headlamp would have been very necessary. You could even find parts of the lit paths that were a bit on the dark side, so having your own light would have been a good idea there as well.

We also noticed that there were sections of rock that were different colors in various places on our walk. One such area was actually green. It was really neat to see.

Underground Lakes at Mønsted Kalkgruber

As we followed the central paths within the Mønsted Kalkgruber, we needed to be extra careful that we didn’t stray into one of the underground lakes. The lights made it easy to see these beautiful, clear pools, but with two very curious boys who were not afraid of getting wet, I was on full alert to keep them close.

There was also a bridge that allowed you to walk over the water for a better look, which was as peaceful as you could imagine. I loved how clear it was. There is something about being able to see to the bottom of a pool of water that makes you feel that you are in a truly pure place.

Multi-Media Show

As we approached the area of the underground theater, we noticed that it was about 5 minutes until the next show would start, so we decided to get a spot in the front row and wait for the show. This area of the quarry was quite interesting. The benches for the spectators and the screen for the show were separated from each other by one of the underwater lakes, but the screen was high enough so that all could see it.

Mønsted Kalkgruber helped give visitors a good view of the show with the sloping angle of the platform under the benches much like what you would see in a normal movie theater. There were no issues of someone obstructing your view if the benches were staggered like that.

When the show started, we noticed that the screen was only one area where the show was visible. The rock wall under the screen and to the sides were also in use to give visitors more to focus on during the show. The language of the movie was in Danish, but I appreciated that there were subtitles in both English and German, which I’m sure was also appreciated by the German guests.

Learning the History of the Mines

The show started off by telling us how limestone caves are formed and then proceeded to tell us the history of the Mønsted Kalkgruber with limestone cave facts as well as facts about the farmers who worked there. We also heard how the quarry was important to the nearby town of Viborg and the production of many churches and buildings throughout the area.

I really enjoyed learning more about this area and about Viborg, which was once the capital of Jutland (Jylland, Denmark’s peninsula). Mønsted Kalkgruber was, in fact, only 18 minutes by car from Viborg and only a little over an hour from Aarhus, Denmark’s second-largest city. Visiting the caves of Mønsted Kalkgruber would easily be a day trip from Viborg or Aarhus if you were looking for a unique attraction when exploring Denmark.

Cheese Storage

As we walked in new areas of the mines with different paths, we appreciated the fact that there were many signs posting the map of the Mønsted Kalkgruber with enough light to see where we were in the quarry. A red dot on the map gave us our location, which was helpful in a place that seemed to be one where maps made little sense. At least, maps made little sense to a mom who was chasing after two very curious boys. It also gave us an excuse to slow down and take a short break before finding the next attraction.

This is when we decided to follow the signs for “cheese”. We had heard that they stored cheese in the mine, but we weren’t really sure what to expect when we found it. We just had to see what this whole “cheese thing” was all about.

Needing to Take the Stairs

The path led us to a very long and winding staircase. It was also very narrow, which made it difficult for people to go up when others were coming down. Luckily, you could tell when someone was coming down, so we just waited to take our turn on the stairs.

It felt like we were climbing for a long time, which seemed weird. We had not needed to take any stairs to get to the mine in the first place, so we wondered just where these stairs ended. Apparently, there was more to the mine than we thought.

We reached the top and found the area where they kept the cheese. Though it was securely kept behind a large door and glass wall, we could still smell it! It must have been strong cheese, which I affectionately call “stinky cheese”, a cheese that is very popular in Denmark.

Riding the Mine Train

After finding the cheese, we decided we would leave the mine to see what was in the large mill near the entrance. We followed the path which was along side of train tracks. We knew that visitors to the mines could ride the train through parts of the mine in the summertime, but because of the corona virus, the trains weren’t running that summer.

When we arrived at the mill, we saw the train sitting inside where it would have to wait until next summer.

The Lime Mill at the Mønsted Kalkgruber

The inside of the mill not only was where they housed the train, but it was also where you could do some more climbing. This time, the climbing was in a well-lit area and instead of being inside a mind, you were climbing up along one of the mill’s smoke stacks.

My boys went up every staircase they could find to see what they could see, and we really liked the view of the area and the grounds to the Mønsted Kalkgruber that the tops of the platforms provided.

There were also models of the mill and the area to give people a better understanding of how it was used long ago.

I particularly liked all the information they offered on the bats that live in the mines during the colder months. Though I have been to zoos that have had bats, I wouldn’t say that I have learned as much about the creatures in other places as I did on that trip to Mønsted Kalkgruber. Very interesting information.

Café Kridthuset 

One thing that I loved about Mønsted Kalkgruber was that it encouraged families to bring their own picnic lunch, which they could eat on one of the many picnic tables. However, they also had a great café that offered everything from drinks to candy to ice cream to really great Danish food for those who didn’t think to bring their own food.

I was really impressed with the menu that had local Danish food that would give visitors to Denmark a great education on Danish cuisine. It was a nice change from the typical fast food that you would get at many places. Mønsted Kalkgruber gave you the feeling of eating a meal in a Danish home. Meget hyggeligt! (Very cozy!)

Free Lawn Games and Playground

After we enjoyed our drinks and ice cream in the café, we worked our way outside, which is when we noticed a lawn with a basket of different lawn games. When we walked over for a closer look, we noticed that the great people at Mønsted Kalkgruber left the games out for the guests to enjoy.

This was such a nice and unexpected thing to find. We had some fun playing badminton. It really added something special to our already special day.

Museum at the Mønsted Kalkgruber

The lawn where we played the games was actually the same lawn as the museum. This was a rather small building that showed you more of the history of the people who worked the mines. I really liked how we received different information about the mine in different places. The boys were also very interested in all of the different displays that helped to SHOW history instead of expecting them to read all the time to learn. Dioramas and displays are more memorable in my opinion.  

Mønsted Kalkgruber Gift Shop

Since we had seen pretty much all of the Mønsted Kalkgruber, we decided that it was time to head for home. We wanted to make sure we stopped back in the admission building- This was mainly to check out the gift shop. However, it was also a great place to get information on many other local attractions. It was fun looking for brochures that we haven’t seen before to help us find more unique attractions in Denmark. Of course, the boys also  loved looking at all of the stuffed bats and neat rocks!

Overall Thoughts of the Mønsted Kalkgruber

Our overall thoughts on the Mønsted Kalkgruber were positive. We had not had an experience quite like our day of cave exploring at Mønsted Kalkgruber. It was also exciting that it was in our home area of Midtjylland. The boys never tired of all the different paths. We also loved that we were making family memories that would last a lifetime.

We also thought that going to the mines was one of the best things to do in Denmark in June. This was because the weather during that month is always so unpredictable, and June would also be (normally) a time when we could ride the mine train!

If you want a one-of-a-kind experience, you really should visit the Mønsted Kalkgruber. The uniqueness of the history and the location made it one of the top things to do in this area of Denmark for us. It is also in a great location being within driving distances to many other towns in Denmark.

Mønsted Kalkgruber is not far from Vibork, Aarhus, Aalborg, Herning and even Billund, where Denmark has its second-largest airport. You could easily make a day trip from Billund to Mønsted Kalkgruber. I suggest that you bring your flashlight, though, and be prepared to get a little dirty!

Getting in Touch with the Mønsted Kalkgruber

Website: https://www.monsted-kalkgruber.dk/

Address: Kalkværksvej 10, Mønsted, 7850 Stoholm

Telephone: +45 86 64 60 11

Email: INFO@MONSTED-KALKGRUBER.DK

Cafe Menu: https://www.monsted-kalkgruber.dk/cafe-kridthuset/

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