To start the day, we headed to the Vilsandi
National Park visitor centre, located quite close to our accommodation, at
Loona. The Vilsandi NP, established in 1914, comprises an area of some 70km2,
including a number of islets off the western side of the island. Once we got to
the centre, we were sure the place was empty as there were no cars and the
lights were out. However, on closer inspection, we heard footsteps coming from
upstairs and an Estonian woman called Kardri soon greeted us, very warmly. She
became even more enthusiastic when she learnt that we were Australians, the
first to visit here. She continued to tell us about the area and even showed us
a video of a nearby traditional farm. She also informed us that she had planned
a car tour for 40 odd people that evening of some local attractions north of
Kihelkonna. By the time we left we were primed to go exploring and had the day’s
itinerary planned.
We started by heading to Papisarre, a small-disused
harbour to the south, accessed by an ancient three-kilometre cobbled roadway.
Here we found a collection of ramshackle soviet buildings and old jetties and
such. Surprisingly the buildings are still in use.
During the Soviet times, the
whole of Saaremaa was a no go zone because of Soviet airbases based on the island.
We continued on to another seaside town, this time accessed by some narrow roads.
All seemed ok to begin with but, with the melting snow, the road was fairly muddy
in places. However, when we reached ice and started slipping, we decided to
turn back. However, this was not as straightforward as it seemed. Patsy had to
put her defensive driving skills into action to get over one rise, with a
couple of attempts needed. It was very nice to get back to the bitumen.
Continuing along the coast, we happened upon a visitor’s centre (closed in the
off season), with a tall viewing tower alongside. We ate our lunch and Patsy
and I climbed (as in up ladders) to the top of the platform. It was a bit hairy
near the top, but the views were quite good.
We then drove back to Kurrasaare,
the islands main town. We stopped along the way to check out a collection of
Soviet era war graves, and find an associated geocache.
In Kurrasarre we only had time to see the
Bishops Castle fortress and do some shopping before we had to dash back to
Kihelkonna for the sharp 5pm start of the car tour. We got back just in the
nick of time. There were 16 cars parked and some 40 people, all of whom were
Estonian and most from the local area. We were hurriedly stashed into the back
of an Audi with two Estonian nature tour guides, named Ingar and Marika. Both
spoke perfect English and kindly translated for us. Highlights of the two-hour
trip included:
-
The
Kihelkonna Maalin: The earthen remains of a 6th century stronghold,
built to protect the islands iron ore. This iron, then considered to be the
‘Gold of Estonia’ was exported to be made into weapons elsewhere.
-
Odalatsi
Springs: These springs are home to much local folklore, a good example of such
a story can be found here: (http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?wp=GC18RW7)
-
Spotting a
Yew tree. These are quite rare in the wild, as the strength of its timber is
comparable to that of steel, meaning that in the past it was much sought after,
particularly in the construction of windmills and the like.
On our way back home, Marika explained to us
that the countryside we were driving through was once full of farms and people.
Now it is quite sparsely populated (in European terms, anyway). During the Russian
Communist era, these people’s land was taken from them and they were forced
into farming cooperatives. When the country regained its independence in 1992,
many farmers left the land and moved to the bigger towns and cities.
This was a most enjoyable day, and we were so
lucky in many respects. This was a very good way to kick off our time in
Estonia.
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