Hiking 
Sailing 
Fishing 
Cycling 
Visit attractions 
Foto: Øm Kloster Museum
Interaction between Gudenå and people
All along the Gudenåen you will find traces of human interaction with the Gudenåen. Stone Age hunters and gatherers entered the country via Gudenåen and settled down. Medieval monks and nuns built monasteries and harnessed the power of the Gudenå River’s water for milling. The power of water was also the basis for significant constructions such as hydropower plants and factories during early industrialization – where the river was also an important transport and trade route. Gudenåen and its landscape have also inspired artists and writers.
Foto: Mogens Lykkegaard
Gudenåen's many monasteries
One of Denmark’s largest concentrations of monasteries can be found along the Gudenåen river. Not much remains of the centers of learning that the monasteries once were, but you can still sense a special atmosphere where they were located in the Middle Ages. And with a little imagination and knowledge, you can almost hear how prayers of the hours were called here, just like in other medieval monasteries in Europe. The photo is of Tvilum church, which today serves as the parish church.
Læs mere om kirker og klostre ved Gudenåen
Tvilum kirke. Foto: Kristoffer Uhre Knattrup
Stone Age settlements by Gudenåen
Der er gjort så mange fund fra stenalderen ved Gudenåen, at man i en stor del af 1900-tallet opererede med en egentlig Gudenåkultur. Senere fandt man dog ud af det ikke kunne kategoriseres som en selvstændig kultur men det ændrer ikke ved, at der er fundet spor at rigtig mange bopladser ved Gudenåen. Åen gav mulighed for at komme ind i det skovdækkede land og udgjorde et solidt spisekammer.
Læs mere hos Museum Silkeborg
Hydropower plants and early industrialization
Gudenåens vand er blevet brugt som energikilde, siden munkene og nonnerne i middelalderen begyndte at bygge vandmøller. Især på den sydlige strækning af Gudenåen var det også i mange år efter middelalderen mange vandmøller. I slutningen af 1800-tallet blev Gudenåen udnyttet i den begyndende industrialisering – bl.a. Vilholdt mølle, Klostermølle og Vestbirk Vandkraftværk og Gudenåcentralen/Tangeværket.
Foto: Gudenåcentralen
Film about Hakon Mielche, who in 1969 repeats his trip on Gudenåen - this time with his granddaughter Eva
The film below is from 1969 and shows the globetrotter Hakon Mielche who, together with his 13-year-old granddaughter Eva, makes the entire trip from the springs to Randers. The movie moves at a leisurely pace - so sit back and enjoy Gudenåen in 1969.
Turen var en gentagelse af den, han foretog i 1935 sammen med sin kone. Den kan du høre en podcast om via linket herunder. Serien har fem afsnit.
Podcast om Hakon Mielches første tur på Gudenåen