Møllehøj (Mill Hill)

Denmark is a notoriously flat country, with an average elevation of just 101 feet. As such, climbing its highest point is not a particularly strenuous feat. However, finding that elusive location has proven difficult. Møllehøj, what is currently considered the highest peak in the country, was identified in 2005, and only rises above the rest by an inch or so.

Previously, Himmelbjerget, 10 miles to the northwest of Møllehøj, was regarded as the tallest mountain in the country. When it was decided that elevation should be measured from sea level, however, Ejer Bavnehøj was measured to be the "true" highest point in the country. In honor of this and the reannexation of Northern Schleswig after World War I, a memorial and observatory were built at the top of that hill in 1924, and are still standing today.

That claim was upended in 1941, when it was discovered that Yding Skovhøj, just over a mile northwest, was three feet taller if one counted its bronze-age burial mound on top. Ejer Bavnehøj also had a mound, but it was bulldozed during the construction of the memorial there. A debate then ensued for the next twelve years, with some defending Ejer Bavnehøj because they did not believe any manmade structures should be counted in a hill's elevation. Finally, the National Geodetic Institute ruled in 1953 that the mound should be disregarded, and they measured Ejer Bavnehøj as higher by just over two inches. Another measurment in 2005 found that hill to be actually the third highest point in the country, at 16.5 inches lower than Yding Skovhøj. Trumping both of them was Møllehøj (Mill Hill), measuring 3.5 inches higher than either.

At a glance, Møllehøj does not appear to be particularly higher than Ejer Bavnehøj. Particularly because of Ejer Bavnehøj's towering observatory, which still has a plaque proclaiming it as the highest point. By contrast, Møllehøj is marked only by a millstone — a remnant of the mill from which the hill took its name — surrounded by some benches and interpretive signs.

Considering how close the hills all were in height, and how easily dirt can weather, it is quite plausible that the highest point in Denmark has shifted again since 2005. As such, the debate over which point should truly take the title may never be settled.