Orange Track - Water, Water and More Water…

The Vidå is one of the major Danish streams with the 5th largest catchment area with a total of 1370 km2 of which 260 km2 is in Germany. The Vidå’s inlet arises from small creeks, some more than 50 km east of Tønder. The four big streams; Arnå, Hvirlå, Grønå and Sønderå, contributes the bulk of the water flowing through the Vidå. The Vidå itself starts 4 km east of Tønder by the confluence of Hvirlå and Arnå. The Vidå continues through Tønder and the Tønder marsh towards the outlet in the Watten Sea through the Vidå lock in Højer. During the 1929 drainage the stream was surrounded by dikes with pumping stations to avoid the flooding of the Tønder marsh. The orange track runs two kilometres from here along the northern dike of Nørresø towards the big pumping station by Lægan. On the south side of this route is Nørresø and the current course of the Vidå while the old course of the Vidå now working as a pumping channel is on the south side of the dike.

The Bluethroat Listen carefully – especially if its springtime and morning or dusk. Then you might hear the lovely melodic tones from the ditch. That would be the Nightingale of the North– the Bluethroat – singing. The Bluethroat has only been nesting here for the last two decades. And now it thrives right here in the marsh region and can be heard in many places.