Why Copenhagen Put A Ski Slope On A Power Plant

What do you do if you really want to go downhill skiing, but you live in a country that has no mountains? Well if you're Danish, you build an enormous power plant, slap a slope on the roof, and go skiing down that instead. I went to Copenhagen to try it for myself...
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MORE INFO
Copenhill official website - www.copenhill.dk/en
@wireduk video about Copenhill, including an interview with the architect - • Inside CopenHill: The ...
@CityBeautiful video going into MUCH more detail about Copenhill's heat production and the concept of district heating - • An Introduction to Dis...
Dezeen article about the opening of Copenhill - www.dezeen.com/2019/10/08/big...
Building.co.uk article about the project - www.building.co.uk/buildings/...
IMAGE CREDITS
Olympic skiier by John Wick - commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi...

[@mikeg4674]

You forgot to say the most important thing about Copen Hill. There is a scale replica made of Lego in one of the windows in the ground floor.

[@TheTimTraveller]

WHAT

[@pharol]

Would be cool if there was also a star destroyer out there somewhere with a scale replica made of Lego in one of its windows

[@mikeg4674]

@@TheTimTraveller i have send the picture on IG

[@worldtraveler930]

Now that just sounds Cool!!!!! 🤠👍

[@cr10001]

But *OF COURSE* there is... 8-))

[@thesteelrodent1796]

One of the reasons it's clean-ish is because they burn the trash at very high temperature under pressure which makes it burn more efficiently, and thus cleaner because this makes it release fewer toxins. When you just ignite trash, say in a bonfire, you release a lot of toxins because it effectively burns cold, but in Denmark the trash is compacted and burnt in kettles that are very similar to the ones used in coal and oil power plants. This in turn means they can get more heat out of the burning process and makes it easier for the smoke cleaning system to remove anything toxic. The downside of smoke cleaning is always that it produces a toxic powder that we still don't know what to do with, so it's compressed into barrels and stored in secure locations. But because we have facilities like this and have invested heavily into recycling, Denmark no longer have or need landfills - think the last one closed in 2005, but can't remember the exact date - and sorting your trash is mandatory (and comes with significant fines if you don't or do it wrong)

[@lyckli]

Uuh vi har skam 'landfills' .. kender til en på Falster bag nyk f travbanen. Som refa dumper alt muligt i.. 😉

[@chrthiel]

We do actually still have landfills though they're only used for things like asbestos, glass wool insulation and other materials that are stable and fire proof.

[@rowaystarco]

A next step of this is also capturing whatever that's left and storing it deep underseas. What Norway will be trying with Project longship. Transforming the CO2 to liquid form, transporting it by ship (electric ships are being worked on) and pumping it underseas from an on shore terminal. Almost like the reverse of what Norway is doing with oil and gas right now.

[@stepheneyles2198]

That's nice! We need fines for non-separation of waste in the UK - so much is still mixed (from my point of view as a member of the public, not working in the waste sector).

[@mstorgaardnielsen]

It’s not incinerated under pressure. The pressure in the furnace is a bit below ambient. It’s rather difficult to make entirely air tight. There’s a huge fan (ID fan) at flue-gas treatment part ensuring the entire smoke filled path from waste-inlet to exit is below ambient.

[@LisaMiza]

If you ever should find yourself in the situation of having to say powerplantskislopeclimbingwallhikingtrailpark in danish fear no more! It's Varmeogelforsyningsskiklatleroggåturbakkepark :D You're welcome

[@TheTimTraveller]

Hahaha, mange tak!

[@Very_Grumpy_Cat]

@@TheTimTraveller fedt!

[@lakrids-pibe]

"Gåturbakkepark"! hæhæhæ Kan du bakke snavlæns?

[@haffolderhaus]

In German: Das funktioniert wegen der Kraftwerkskilabfahrtskletterwandwanderwegsparkkombinationsarchitektur - a very good combination! 👍👍😂. Gets into Duden!

[@roderickjoyce6716]

@@haffolderhaus Meinst du etwa Kraftwerkskiabfahrtskletterwandwanderwegsparkkombinationsarchitektur? 😁

[@iainlindley]

It was 50/50 whether Tim or Tom Scott made this video first.

[@hanswoast7]

It would be like to different paintings coming from the same inspiration. Why not both? They both have a different distinct style and both focus on different aspects. I would happily watch both videos / works of art :)

[@benviolot8116]

That animation of your head going up the power plant is exactly what makes this channel better than most 😍

[@TrondBrgeKrokli]

Oh yes. It was so fun to see, it reminded me of the Amanita Design games, like "Morost". Lots of nearly static avatars, but they were either wagging their heads or moving a small detail that indicate to the player there is something to interact with in this spot.

[@alles_klar]

For me it's the royalty-free covers of songs that follow the voiceover that do it

[@aguimars]

Lol....that is true

[@westrim]

City Beautiful just did a story about district heating that started with this power plant! It's great to see an up close perspective on the plant.

[@TheTimTraveller]

Yeah the City Beautiful video is really interesting - and a weird coincidence! I filmed this video back in December...

[@tonys1636]

Three blocks of apartments over the Thames from the former Battersea Power Station were heated by the condensed excess steam from the old coal fired station piped under the river. Now the heating and hot water has to be provided by electricity as gas was never installed when built.

[@ITubeTooInc]

Link: An Introduction to District Heating Systems kzbin.info/www/bejne/l2muma2kqJV-f80

[@douglasboyle6544]

I just watched that too, I love it when my favorite channels inadvertently synch up

[@bennorwood8433]

@@TheTimTraveller excuse me what are you doing next for a video and I have a suggestion for a series on Andorra here’s a fun fact there’s no railroads there

[@sandervdbrink84]

Danger, danger, high voltage! Your music selection is perfect every time.

[@bortsimons7457]

came for that. Entering the Powerplant, Electrix Six start playing. Best song for this purpose ever😄

[@ChristofferETJ]

We do have an alpine ski slope on the Danish island of Bornholm that reaches 115 metres above sea level. There's even a ski lift and a snow cannon. But the base of the slope is much higher than anywhere in Copenhagen (with the possible exception of Christiania). And the snow cannon was out of order the few days we had proper freezing temperatures this winter.

[@Hamfrags]

I see your Christiania joke and I appreciate it.

[@TrondBrgeKrokli]

@@Hamfrags Love it. Thanks for pointing it out before I had read through all of the previous comment. 😄

[@drdewott9154]

Yeah we don't have many ski slopes here in Denmark and most are very short. The former biggest one before Copenhill opened was "Skibakken" or simply "Ski hill", which is a big manmade hill made from waste soil from former gravel pit mining in the west of Copenhagen. The Bornholm ski centre comes 2nd in size after that and I did go there one winter while studying on Bornholm. It's a very nice little place to spend an hour or 2, especially ever since they got the money for a proper ski lift so you didn't have to hold onto a rope to get to the top.

[@carlemilsrensen6322]

It´s really exciting to see you making videos about Denmark! My mum found your last video through the article that TV 2 wrote about it and she really liked it, so I can hereby bestow to you the highest honour in my power: my mum's approval. (she has a bachelor degree in geography, so I guess it has some merit) On a different note, one of my classmates broke their finger going down Copenhill, so you might have just dodged a bullet there. But seriously, great video! You always lighten up my mood and make my day better with all the interesting things that you find and the humorous way you present them

[@SIC647]

And that's how you know you live in a small country, when it is newsworthy that some KZbinr made a couple of videos about sights worth visiting here.

[@SupremeLeaderKimJong-un]

People of culture know the legendary music at 0:27 as the Ski Sunday theme! Which hasn't just been used for Ski Sunday, but also used in past intros for Winter Olympic Grandstand coverage up until Turin 2006. The actual name of the theme is Pop Looks Bach by Sam Fonteyn. First recorded in 1970 for the Boosey & Hawkes Music Library, but not written for the BBC. Sam Fonteyn's work has not only been featured in Ski Sunday, but also cartoons like The Ren & Stimpy Show, Family Guy, and even SpongeBob SquarePants through his works Dirty Work at the Crossroads, Galloping Gertie (a saloon piano song), and Sword Fight respectively. He lived from May 1925 to August 1991, passing at the age of 66.

[@AverytheCubanAmerican]

When Ain't No Mountain High Enough played when you showed Denmark's highest "mountain"...I lost it 😂. Honestly, I prefer tubing over skiing as it's a great way of feeling refreshed without figuring out how to ski. Putting a ski slope on the power plant is the same energy as Beijing putting a crystal high-heeled shoe sized extra-extra-large next to cooling towers as their big air venue for the 2022 Winter Olympics. People during the Games thought it was a nuclear power plant because of those cooling towers, but it's actually a STEEL MILL. The plant's a part of Shougang Park. The plant was shut down in 2003 before the 2008 Summer Olympics as it was the cause of a lot of Beijing's pollution. So by the time the city hosted the Olympics again, the plant entered an era of urban regeneration as it's turned into a low-carbon museum and leisure complex. It's the same thing Bethlehem, Pennsylvania did with their steel mill by turning it into a casino/entertainment resort complex called Bethlehem Works!

[@erpatitube]

Once again the background music is on point. The timing with the elevator chime was perfect!

[@mhyzon1]

Elevators are electric. Power plants are electric. But are friends electric?

[@TrondBrgeKrokli]

Myself, I found the short appearance of "Ain't no mountain high enough" while showing the clip of the area with Denmark's highest mountain to be the funniest.

[@stepheneyles2198]

Gary Numan, Are 'Friends' Electric. Took me a couple of listens to remember what it was called! Nice song which I'd forgotten about..

[@daddyspooge1]

@@stepheneyles2198 Thank you! I recognized the song but couldn't remember the name!

[@TheNgandrew]

I love the rendition of 'Are Friends Electric?', the song I think has the best ever synthesiser riff

[@darth_yoda]

As I Dane and from Copenhagen I am sooo happy to see this Video Tim :P ALSO your last video made the National news a few days ago :P

[@dontspikemydrink9382]

better than the artificial news I am sure

[@BoyKissBoy]

At 2:07 there's a sign: "You are on top of pressure equipment. Occasionally we release excess steam from our production. It is completely normal and harmless." The Danish version of the sign says "ganske ufarligt". "Ufarligt" means basically "un-dangerous" or simply "safe", so "harmless" is a decent translation… _but,_ "ganske" means "fairly" or "somewhat". So in Danish, the sign says "It is completely normal and fairly safe." 🤣 I just wanted to share that 😊 Edit: ah, apparently I misread this, because "ganske" in Danish has a different meaning than "ganska" in my native Swedish. According to replies from other users, it actually means "completely", at least in this context. Sorry about that! (Still a funny sign for us Swedes though!)

[@HannahJ]

And smells funny but not all the time 😂😂

[@danesorensen1775]

Never mind that. How many times do you need to sound like you're puking to pronounce "ufarligt"?

[@ctheede]

ganske = i sin helhed = in its entirety = completely

[@Happymali10]

Well parachuting is fairly safe too, people rarely complain that their kit didn't work.

[@peterfireflylund]

As Christian said, another translation would be "entirely harmless". "Ganske" is one of those words with a slippery meaning.

[@Mt.Trashmore]

Oh I thought I saw you the other day in Copenhagen. I hope you enjoyed your stay here!

[@proudsnowtiger]

Danger, danger electric friends! Was hoping for a sneaky Beefheart or OMD from the days when they still had IT, but nothing to complain about. Long way up on a cold day for no coffee and a twenty euro bunslide: your heroism is laudable.

[@TheTimTraveller]

Tbf the bumslide was only 5€ if I remember correctly. And that gets you up to 30 minutes! Admittedly it becomes somewhat repetitive after the first two or three runs...

[@njdevilku1340]

@@TheTimTraveller That's useful info we all needed.

[@Xyzabc998]

Bjerke Ingels BIG were the architects. The original plan was to have a smoke ring generator on top of the stack to blow a ring when it has made two tons of CO2, then light it up at night, not implemented. There is even a running race up and down it. Close to Noma too.

[@hairyairey]

A new parkrun course perhaps? 😂

[@BeezerWashingbeard]

Your Danish pronunciations in these recent videos are very good for someone who doesn't speak the language.

[@i-am-ber]

Here for the Ski Sunday theme

[@ritchiehenshaw9075]

Incredible music selection this week Tim. I'm happy that Ski Sunday, Electric Six and Tubeway Army are all peers on your channel.

[@wlpaul4]

Very happy I'm not the only one who heard that.

[@ritchiehenshaw9075]

@@StuartPoore I thought the song I heard was are friends electric? In reference to it being a powerplant.

[@StuartPoore]

@@ritchiehenshaw9075 My previous reply has been deleted to hide from the world what an idiot I was ! Only you know :-)

[@AttilaAsztalos]

I was wondering whether I'm actually hearing Electric Six... :)))

[@jg-7780]

I was literally just reading about this plant yesterday when looking for things to do in Copenhagen and now I get a Tim Traveller vid about it!

[@lordsleepyhead]

Tim, as long as you're in Copenhagen, can you do something on the adorable little fully automatic metro trains they have there? It's absolutely one of my favourite modern metro systems to date.

[@worldtraveler930]

I second that motion!!! 🤠👍

[@AnnabelSmyth]

Right, that's what we'll see when we go to Copenhagen in June! Thanks, as always, Tim.

[@lakrids-pibe]

Same level of snow. It should be doable.

[@thastump]

In mid/late June, you can even watch Copenhell from Copenhill!

[@mattcraven4758]

Great video, I visit Copenhagen quite a bit and can recommend grabbing a bike and cycling to Copenhill to anyone who wants to visit. The route from Nyhavn over the Inderhavnsbroen footbridge and then through Christiania isn’t far at all and is great fun. Certainly faster and easier than the bus 👍

[@OnkelJajusBahn]

As an Austrian, this really fascinates me. Great video.

[@TrondBrgeKrokli]

Love the use of the tune "Ain't no mountain high enough" when showing off the famous mountains of Denmark. 😂😂❤

[@hekkensnatser]

I went to Copenhagen on a school trip last april. There's a massive food court called Reffen, about two kilometers north from Copenhill. They serve food from all over the world there in all kinds of stalls. Even if you just want to go for something simple like a grilled cheese, you can skate there or watch the seaplanes land and take off. We went there on the last day of the trip and the atmosphere was incredible. Worth a visit for sure, but keep in mind that its not open year round.

[@mstorgaardnielsen]

There’s also a water skiing factility near copenhill

[@mrzooropa93]

1:28 Danger! High Voltage! Loving the Electric Six tribute - 20 years since the song came out! Brilliant! 😃🎸💥🙌🏽

[@johanreis]

The heat in my radiators comes from there! 🔥

[@couscousimworthit]

4:49 the moment where Are Friends Electric turns into a lift chime - *chef's kiss*.

[@polyblank73]

i really recommend visiting smaller towns like svendborg or the island of bornholm. they are beautiful, quaint and cozy.

[@noyopacific]

I'm sure I would prefer to visit the smaller towns. As for watching travel videos however, quirky is often more interesting than quaint. I live in a small town where one of the biggest visitor attractions is the former town dump where trash was actually dropped from bluffs into the sea. The bottles and ceramic garbage has been polished by the waves and the metal rubbish has turned into sculptures of rust. It's called Glass Beach.

[@nickart4506]

As a Swiss person who just recently moved to Denmark I appreciate the possibility to go skiing. If I ever miss the inclines of my beloved mountains and hills I can at least simulate walking up and down the roof and feel right at home :D

[@laurakastrup]

Oh boy you moved to the wrong country if you wanted hills. You can drive right across the bridge to Sweden and experience hills and mountains for days if that’s of interest.

[@bakedstreetyt]

wouldnt the lack of snow be a problem?

[@ravenfeeder1892]

Weird. I just learnt about this from City Beautiful a week ago.

[@TheTimTraveller]

Yeah the City Beautiful video is really interesting - and a weird coincidence! I filmed this video back in December...

[@no-damn-alias]

what an odd time for an upload. Still very happy about the new video

[@TheTimTraveller]

Since when have I ever had a normal time for an upload? Cheers for watching anyway :D

[@no-damn-alias]

@@TheTimTraveller well I've never tracked them to be honest but somehow many fellow youtubers stick to full hours. Of course I watched it your videos are brilliant and thank you for the reply. I feel honoured :)

[@ellieshine]

That building is so interesting! Those Danes sure are crazy, but you gotta love them for it.

[@seatedliberty]

For the integrity of the space time continuum, I think it is vitally important that you and Tom Scott are never at the same place at the same time.

[@ellefields8878]

Adding this to the bucket list of stuff I need to go see.

[@austinrhodes3311]

3:58 "Are Friends Electric?" Excellent.

[@CallMeStaci]

Tim: The steam is completely normal and not harmfull Also Tim: "Almost dying"

[@johnfahey7215]

My favorite part of the intro is blowin the whistle on the little train!

[@HannahJ]

We sat at the cafe (more like rooftop bar than cafe…) and watched one skier who was crazy enough to go down in the fog. We didn’t know when he got to the bottom so tried to guess when he’d get back to the top for his next run. When my husband moved to Copenhagen in 2020, his challenge to pass some time in January 2021 and get out of his apartment when he could was to climb Copenhill 104 times so it was the equivalent of climbing Everest… he did post a couple of videos to his FB page so maybe I need to put them together and stick them here on KZbin. It took him 27 days. Some days he did 1 or 2 trips up. I think a few days he did 4 or 5 to catch up. He had some of our friends join him along the way for company (he also raised money for U.K. Foodbanks and for our church’s (here in DK) community fund 🙂

[@bobsrailrelics]

"Are friends electric" was a nice touch 👍 Really good.

[@whyyoulidl]

Ty Tim - another one for the bucket list!

[@pscheu100]

May be your best video to date... Informative and fun. Thank you.

[@McRocket]

Amazing building. Thank you for this. ☮

[@Sim0nTrains]

Love the amination of you walking up the power plant, really a bizarre thing to see, great video

[@chris_is_here_oh_no]

Amazing video, quite the unique discovery.

[@SwantNoLimits]

What an interesting place this is. I'm putting it on my to-do list for Copenhagen in June. Thanks Tim!

[@MA9494AM]

Was fully expecting a cut to Tom Scott at 4:25 😂 The closest proper ski slope to København is Vallåsen in Våxtorp (Laholm) built in the 80's and relies on snow cannons

[@robertcolon6719]

That is the most amazing use of space I have seen!!

[@robbybobbyhobbies]

That word "nearly" does a lot of heavy lifting in the sentence about how clean the exhaust gases are. But perfection is the enemy of good, so 9 out of 10 for Copenhagen's efforts. Better than the continent I now call home (bit west of Europe, bit north of South America).

[@stekra3159]

Well in Vienna we let a local artist transform our waste burner into a work of art. The only thing Hundertwasser wanted was for them to install the best filters they could.

[@darrenwilson8042]

another lesson learning mad stuff I didn't need to know but feel better for knowing thanks to Tim

[@gregoryclark8217]

Great video! I love the cover of Electric Six - Danger! High Voltage!

[@doublestufpenguin]

Love the "electric" musical work! The hidden meanings in the songs is maybe my favorite part of your videos, Tim.

[@RobSchofield]

Excellent choice of music, as always! Great vid.

[@MrNickdesmedt]

Really, that's a ski slope!!!! If only we knew when passing it this summer

[@martingillard6572]

Majestic indeed! A natural athlete....

[@ChokyoDK]

Love to see you doing videos on my hometown =)

[@kevinfitzpatrick444]

Soundtrack on point as ever 👍

[@Luxus97]

Great video Tim. Always enjoing your content, keep up the good work!

[@thedanishman10]

I lived and worked very close to Copenhill when it was first built. Looks beautiful at sunset and it was a great place to go for a run!

[@PopeLando]

Ski Sunday! Gary Numan! Great music choices as ever, Tim.

[@kevwang0712]

We really should have something like this here in Taiwan, what with the conspicuous lack of skiing facilities here. I think the closest thing we got is a revolving restaurant on top of the chimney of the Beitou Refuse Incineration Plant near Taipei -- imagine taking your date on a rooftop dinner with a glorious view of the city skyline and trash burning right under your feet, now that's romantic!

[@random13627]

10/10 idea and 10/10 way to show ho clean the energy is😊

[@votenanocratic]

I love the sequence of 1. 2. "Uh oh" 3. when you have barely moved at all yet.

[@JordanBozas]

Danger, danger, High Voltage! Ha ha ha ha epic music pairing for this one Tim!

[@tomr8657]

One of your best! 👍

[@MrSprinkles]

We visited Copenhagen last September and saw this place! I had no idea you made a video about it just months before!

[@tonys1636]

Here in Ireland we have waste to power plants producing electricity (from non recyclable waste) and some producing Biogas from compostable waste and farm slurry/sewage (anaerobic digestion) to supplement the natural gas bought from the UK and Norway. Production has dropped on our only offshore gas field. The dry compost residue sold back to arable farms as fertiliser. Most of our landfill sites have been closed to new waste and just being managed/maintained to avoid polluting.

[@johnbee7729]

ÀWESOME. Thanks for this Tim

[@malteplath]

I see you are making the most of your trip to Denmark! 😁 Thanks a million for another fun video.

[@TomLuTon]

Nice cover of Danger! High Voltage

[@Happymali10]

The best part is that Ford used the ski-slope in a ad for some SUV-thingy, and when asked about the location their response was that it's a montage, hillside -> Building.

[@HenrysAdventures]

I reminds me of the Opera House in Olso. That two you can walk up onto the roof and in the Winter you pretty much end up skiing down it as its all ice.

[@MrGreatplum]

That is awesome - like you, I too was brought up in southern England and therefore incompatible with skiing - going down on a rubber ring looks fun though!

[@aedanjmcghie]

Ohhhhh nicely done on the Tubeway Army. Saw Mr Numan last year, he’s still great.

[@MirkoC407]

4:25 I see this ball flying very straight into Tom Scott's direction...

[@SandstormCloudwave]

There's an awesome vintage market nearby too!

[@FrauWNiemand]

What an incredible idea.

[@iKiWY]

Didnt expect to vibe to a cover of Electric Six while looking at a power plant with a ski slope on top of it but here we are

[@Phetteren]

I live in Copenhagen, this reminds me to go on a hike there at some point..

[@peter5486]

Electric Six?! Gary Numan?! Music choices are absolutely flipping awesome as always Sir!

[@rowanmorgan457]

Want want want. This is absolutely magnificent and absolutely the content I'm here for.

[@asleep909]

A piano version pf 'are friends electric?' CHEEKY!!!! Great video Tim!

[@kalpeshwani8520]

Cleaniest plant really.....👍

[@stepheneyles2198]

I would certainly visit there just to take a trip in that elevator, and see inside the plant! Always been fascinated by industrial plants...

[@ukjentukjent9945]

Wonderful video, I must admit I laughed seeing you go downhill!

[@CorentinHarbelot]

Style is everything

[@jezdavies4917]

Great song choice to mix in to when the lift reached the top floor lol 😂

[@beccabeme]

Love the use of Are Friends Electric

[@TomWoodland]

Love the electric six cover!

[@michelq29]

I've went there last year, and a danish guide told me this incinerator causes absolutely no pollution on Copenhagen because it's been build on the east coast and fortunately wind pushes smokes on Sweden (common local joke about swedish neighbours).

[@sanashi27]

That actually looks like a fun place and it's also interesting cause it's not something you'd expect in a power plant.

[@MianCowell]

You've excelled yourself with the cover versions in this one Tim

[@atinofspam3433]

Reminds me of where I used to go sledging, skiing and toboggans in Cornwall; It had the same net-like surface you slid on.

[@RootoFrance]

The Gary Numan lift music was exquisitely done. Chapeau, Tim!

[@garyonnen7634]

That looked like fun.

[@Exploited89]

Danger! Danger! High voltage! 😂 And like that flashbacks from the Electric Six video are back 😅