Amager Bakke is a cutting-edge waste-to-energy plant with a year-round, no-snow ski hill and walking and running paths built onto the roof. The slope-roofed structure, completed recently this year, dominates the skyline northeast of Copenhagen and was a prominent landmark when we approached the city from the north.

The innovative design is the product of Danish architecture firm BIG, whose inventive work we’ve really come to like. BIG also designed the Maritime Museum of Denmark in Helsingor and several of the spectacular buildings we’d seen in Orestad, such as 8 House, an apartment complex in the shape of a figure eight.

On our third day in Copenhagen, we explored the Christianshavn neighbourhood, taking in the view from the 311-ft (95m) high steeple of 17th-centre Vor Frelsers Kirke after climbing its exterior spiral staircase and also touring the commune Freetown Christiania, a former abandoned military base that was taken over by squatters in 1971. We then continued north to the island of Amager to check out Amager Bakke firsthand and walk to the top.

Below are trip highlights from October 9th, 2019 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.

Christianshavns Canal Position: 55°40.45’N, 12°35.64’E Boat-filled canal in Christianshavns Canal, south across the waterway from our moorage at Nyhavn in Copenhagen.

Vor Frelsers Kirke Position: 55°40.36’N, 12°35.65’E Looking up to the 311-ft (95m) high steeple of 17th-centre Vor Frelsers Kirke in Christianshavn.

Stairs Position: 55°40.37’N, 12°35.64’E 400 steps lead to the top of the spire of Vor Frelsers Kirke, with the last 150 running along the outside of the tower. People who are afraid of heights will want to skip this one :).

Top of Stairs Position: 55°40.37’N, 12°35.64’E The exterior stairs of the Vor Frelsers Kirke spire get progressively narrower as they ascend. Here Jennifer barely fits near the top stairs.

View from Church Position: 55°40.37’N, 12°35.64’E The spectacular view north from the top of Vor Frelsers Kirke spire (click image for a larger view). The neighbourhood of Christianshavn is in the foreground with the main Copenhagen waterway beyond. The brown spire near the center, behind the green-roofed buildings, is Christiansborg Palace with Frederiksholms Kanal to the right. A bit to the left is the slanted, black box-shaped structure of the Black Diamond. The entry to Nyhavn, where Dirona is moored but not visible, is at the far right, near the large brown and black building.

Church Bells Position: 55°40.37’N, 12°35.64’E One of the 48 bells in the Vor Frelsers Kirke carillon (bells played using a keyboard or automatic mechanism).

Keyboard Position: 55°40.37’N, 12°35.64’E Modern keyboard to control the carillon at Vor Frelsers Kirke, with the older keyboard in the background.

Bell Mechanism Position: 55°40.37’N, 12°35.65’E One of the earliest mechanisms to control the carillon at Vor Frelsers Kirke, dating from 1699.

Christiania Position: 55°40.41’N, 12°35.80’E At the entrance to the Freetown Christiania commune in Christianshavn. The former abandoned military base was taken over by squatters in 1971 and, after various standoffs with the police, the community has been allowed to continue. The police don’t take a completely hands-off approach though—while walking through the community we saw a large area cordoned-off for a police investigation.

Den Gra Hal Position: 55°40.48’N, 12°36.00’E The former military riding yard became the Den Gra Hal (The Grey Hall) concert hall in Christiania commune. Notable artists who have played here include Bob Dylan, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Metallica.

The Bridge Street Kitchen Position: 55°40.68’N, 12°35.82’E It was just warm enough to have lunch outside at The Bridge Street Kitchen. Our lunch of Korean BBQ ribs is being prepared on the smoke-filled barbecue in front of MAK-CIK at left.

Derelicts Position: 55°40.98’N, 12°36.60’E After lunch, we walked east from Christianshavn to the island of Amager. Generally everything we’ve seen in Copenhagen, and Denmark, has been pristine and well-maintained, but we found an exception on our walk. Dozens of derelict vessels, many partly or completely sunk, lined the waterway, and the police arrived as we were passing what appeared to be a stolen bicycle ring.

Amager Bakke Position: 55°41.05’N, 12°36.97’E We’d come to Amager to check out Amager Bakke, the innovative waste-to-energy plant with a year-round, no-snow ski hill built onto the roof that we’d seen on the way into Copenhagen.

Ski Slope Position: 55°41.06’N, 12°37.17’E Walking paths and hiking trails lead up the sides of Amager Bakke, with ski lifts on one side. Several skiers were on the “slopes” as we climbed. What a wild creation.

View East Position: 55°41.06’N, 12°37.14’E Looking east from the top of Amager Bakke to the Middelgrunden wind farm that we saw on the way into Copenhagen.

View West Position: 55°41.05’N, 12°37.16’E The view west to Copenhagen through glass panels at the top of Amager Bakke.

Industry Position: 55°41.06’N, 12°37.19’E The large white smokestack near the center of the picture is an old industrial facility adjacent to Amager Bakke that was being dismantled as we walked down. At the bottom left is a line-up of trucks carrying waste for Amager Bakke to convert to energy.

Inside Amager Bakke Position: 55°41.07’N, 12°37.15’E We were hoping to get a glimpse inside the Amager Bakke facility during our hike up to the top, but no windows into the facility were available. We learned that the elevator did have a view though. It was an effort for us to avoid taking the elevator about fifty times and completely wipe out any energy savings the facility might enjoy. :)

Ski Center Position: 55°41.04’N, 12°37.13’E Having a drink at the Amager Bakke Ski Center cafe, with a view to the facility at left.

Georg Stage Position: 55°41.01’N, 12°36.39’E Sailors were up in the rigging of the training ship Georg Stage as we passed the Holmen Navy Base on our way back to Dirona. The ship was purpose-built in 1934 at Copenhagen’s Frederikshavn Shipyard.

Float Home Position: 55°40.98’N, 12°36.28’E Just beyond the Georg Stage were several fabulous floathomes made from old ferries with huge sheets of glass at either end of the house where vehicles once passed.

Opera House Position: 55°40.83’N, 12°36.06’E A view from another angle to the dramatic Copenhagen Opera House that we saw as we arrived into he city.

Carsten Barner Nielsen Position: 55°40.75’N, 12°35.55’E Blog reader Carsten Barner Nielsen keeps a boat in Copenhagen and stopped by for a visit. We all work in information technology and share a love of boats—we enjoyed the discussion.

Maexico City Position: 55°40.72’N, 12°34.40’E We had an excellent dinner at Maexico City restaurant in Copenhagen’s Latin Quarter.

Walkway Position: 55°40.68’N, 12°34.64’E We couldn’t resist taking this arched pedestrian walkway between Stroget and Laederstraede.

Laederstraede Position: 55°40.70’N, 12°34.72’E Restaurant-filled Laederstraede in Copenhagen was filled with patrons enjoying an evening meal or drink outside under the patio heaters.

Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map, with the complete log of our cruise. On the map page, clicking on a camera or text icon will display a picture and/or log entry for that location, and clicking on the smaller icons along the route will display latitude, longitude and other navigation data for that location. And a live map of our current route and most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.