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The Nemuna River divides up into two large streams at its estuary at Kuršių Marios, and this has established the Rusnė Island. This is a unique environmental territory with wetlands, streams, ancient rivers, lagoon lakes and flood plains which are important places for birds to nest and rest during migration season. Vast tracts of this territory are flooded each spring. The park includes the territory to the N and W of Rusne (lagoons, swamps, fishing ponds, Kuršių Marios).
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The nature trail was built in 2003 supported by the WWF, the Latvian Environment Protection Fund, the International volunteering organization supporting conservation initiatives in the United Kingdom (BTCV) involving volunteers from Nīca and Rucava municipal parishes. The trail exposes the surrounding landscapes and related biotopes – dunes, forest, grasslands and bog, as well as bird and animal species found there. On the trail, there is a bird watching tower and two birdwatcher hides. You can see the rivers Paurupe and Līgupe, beaver activity areas, grasslands, black alder forest, spruce forest, floodland, wild horses, aurochs, the Šķilu lime tree, the Holy Grove, the Ezerskolas sacrificial stone, the Pape ornithological field station, the Papes polder grasslands and the Pape lighthouse. There are resting places en route. The trail leads through the historical Ķoņu village with the traditional coastal fishing village architecture of buildings and yards. The trail is 9 km (5 km one way by a gravel road, returning 4km along the coastline). The trail is in the Pape nature park
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The viewing tower is in a seaside meadow near Mērsrags. It is an unusual type of biotope in Latvia and is located to the North of the Mērsrags port. The tower offers a good view of reed-filled meadows, areas where wild cattle have grazed, and an amazing wealth of different kinds of plants. |
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Nepilnus 3 km garā taka iepazīstina ar dziļo Imulas ieleju – Abavas kreisā krasta pieteku. Īpaši iespaidīga ieleja izskatās bezlapu periodā, kad ir apjaušami tās izmēri un formas. Viens no takas iespaidīgākajiem objektiem ir Buses jeb Matkules pilskalns. Apskatāmi citi objekti – Baznīckalns, Bedrīšakmens, Ķauķa kalns ar avotiņu. Atrodas dabas parkā „Abavas senleja”. |
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As you travel from Kandava to Sabile, you will find a parking lot on the right side of the road. From there, there are steps to a viewing area on the highest hill in the Abava Ancient River Valley – Greiļi Hill. This offers a wonderful view of the ancient river valley and the local mosaic of meadows and forests. The landscape is enriched by the Imula and Amula valleys that are on the other side of the ancient river valley.
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Riežupes dabas parks veidots g.k. Riežupes izteksmīgās ielejas, tai raksturīgo dabas vērtību – nogāžu un gravu mežu, dažādu ģeoloģisku dabas pieminekļu - smilšakmens atsegumu, alu, ūdenkritumu, upes straujteču posmu, dažādu sugu, mežu masīvu un ainavas aizsardzībai. Parka atrodas viens no Kurzemes populārākajiem tūrisma objektiem – Riežupes alas - garākais mākslīgo alu labirints Latvijā, kura eju kopgarums ir 460 m. Sākotnēji dabas veidotās alas 19. gs. vidū mākslīgi paplašināja baltās smilts ieguves nolūkos, kuras izmantoja stikla ražošanai. Parkā izveidots velotūrisma maršruts. |
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Dabas parks, kura lielāko daļu aizņem neprastās formas un līčiem bagātais Cārmaņa (arī Cārmins) ezers. Ezera ūdens ir ļoti tīrs, tādēļ tajā sastopamas Latvijai retas augu sabiedrības. Tā kā parka teritorijā nav tūristiem veidota infrastruktūra, interesenti var baudīt skatus, kas paveras uz ezera un tā apkārtni no Aulejas – Grāveru ceļa.
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This territory in the northern part of the Dzūkija Highlands with lots of hillocks and lakes. The most interesting tourist destination is Velnio duobė (Devil’s Flowerbed) – a funnel-shaped hole that is up to 40 m deep and 200 m wide and is thought to have originated during the Ice Age.
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This park was established to protect Lithuania’s longest lake, Lake Asveja (> 20 km). The lake is in a sub-glacial valley carved out by ice during the Ice Age, and it actually resembles a wide and curvy river.
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The forests of Zvārde are located on land which used to be a Soviet air base. The territory was unpopulated and was not accessible to civilians. The vast area includes various types of forest - boreal forest, bogs of black alder, etc. The fact that the military used to control the territory is one of the reasons why the forests of Zvārde are a location where many rare and protected birds live, reproduce and find food. Some of the elements of the old air base are still in place, including a unique surveillance platform. It is recommended that visitors to the area drive only along general use roads. |
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This nature park is located in the most distinct part of the Dagda hillocks of the Latgale highlands. Part of it is the deepest lake in the Baltic States -- Lake Drīdzis, which is 63.1 metres deep and has nine islands. Also there is Lake Otis. The loveliest views can be watched from the ancient Lettigalian castle hill that is known as Sauleskalns, and from the eastern shores of Lake Drīdzis. Accommodations are available near the lake. |
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This nature park protects the landscapes of the Latgale highlands. Of importance here are Lake Ruskulis and Lake Cīrītis with its eight islands, along with the forests of the area. An ancient castle hill is on one of the islands in Lake Cīrītis – the Upursala island. There and on the Oši island, specialists have found more than 250 species of plants. |
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The terrain in this territory was created during the Ice Age. There are the ancient river valleys of the Minija, Salantas and Erla rivers, along with groups of rocks.
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This is a shallow lagoon-type lake which, along with the area around it, is a wetland of international importance. The presence of 271 species of birds has been found in the area, including 43 birds which are listed in the Latvian Red Book and 15 that are listed in the European Red Book. The nature park includes the Nida swamp and the part of the sea which is alongside the park - newly estabilshed sea protected area "Nida - Pērkone". Between Lake Pape and the Baltic Sea we find Latvia’s oldest bird ringing station, where rings are attached not only to birds, but also to bats. Lake Pape is the first territory in Latvia where livestock adapted to life in the wild have been released for the proper management of the lake’s flood-land meadows. First there were wild horses (“Konik” horses), then aurochs and the European bison. Visitors can use bird and nature observation towers, nature trails, etc. The Ķoņi village is a unique example of a seaside fishing village. Pape is popular among bird-watchers, and the park’s visitors centre is found in the “Nature House” of the Worldwide Fund for Nature. |
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The Tērvete Nature Park is located in an area which is not particularly typical of the Zemgale region – the distinct Tērvete River valley. Along its banks there are vast forests which have been nicely adapted to leisure activities. There are natural treasures, as well as an outstanding cultural and historical heritage in the area. The Tērvete Nature Park is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Zemgale. People are interested in the Park of Old Pines, the lovely pine forest, the Sprīdīši arboretum, the Tērvete, Klosterkalns and Svētkalns castle hills, the memorial museum “Sprīdīši” which commemorates the great Latvian author Anna Brigadere, various attractions for children, lovely landscapes, a dense network of pathways, etc. The nature park was nominated as the most family-friendly location in Latvia in 2004. |
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The viewing area is near the top of the Vilce castle hill, with a view of the Rukūze River valley, Zaķi meadow, and surrounding forests. This is an unusual landscape for the region of Zemgale. The Vilce baronial estate is nearby.
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This nature park features the most beautiful and distinct parts of the Vanema hillocks in Northern Kurzeme, and the aim is to protect the hillocks of Talsi. This is one of the loveliest parts of Kurzeme, with small but distinct hillocks and ravines among them. There are small but fairly deep lakes in the area – the Lake Ābeļi, Lake Čumals, Lake Sirdsezers, etc. Some of them are reminiscent of nothing other than deep craters. The territory is very good for active tourists – hikers (there are nature trails), bicyclists, etc. |
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The trail climbs up and down along the bluffs of lower River Pilsupe and reveals a fascinating sight of three white dune exposures (the largest is called the White Dune). The trail is 900m long, and the White Dune is ca 20m high. It has formed ca 6000 years ago, in the period of the Littorina Sea which is a foregoer of the Baltic Sea. Here the first Stone Age settlement on the North Western coast of Latvia has been found in 1934 by geologist S. Burhards. In the sand, some 500m from the sea, he found some pottery fragments, a sandstone hone, a piece of flint, parts of bones and an amber bead. He handed the findings over to the National Museum of History. In October 1934, the site was checked by archaeologist E. Šturms, who found the archaeological layer, typical for such settlements, in the landslides of the Pilsupe riverbanks. In 1936 he started larger excavations to continue by 1938. Totally seven, chronologically different settlements were detected and many artefacts found, including fragments of the so called Sārnate and pit-comb pottery, as well as some pieces of corded pottery. Based on these findings, the settlement is dated back to the beginning or middle of the 3rd millenary B.C., and it has been inhabited till the beginning of the 2nd millenary B.C. Especially remarkable are three clay figures in human shape which have probably been used for some religious cult purposes. Since 1993, archaeologist Ilzes Loze has discovered several pit-comb ware culture settlements in large area around Pūrciems village. They are known in research literature as „the Ģipka settlements”. |
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The Bauska Nature Park runs for several dozen kilometres along the Lielupe River and its tributaries – the Mūsa and the Mēmele. This is a protected territory. The shores of these rivers contain some of the largest dolomite cliffs in Zemgale. These are protected both as biotopes and as geological monuments. The rivers are important places for river lampreys and vimbas to spawn. Tourists will be attracted by the cultural landscape of the area, as well as the cultural monuments such as the Bauska castle, the Jumpravmuiža park, the Mežotne castle hill, Vīna Hill, the Mežotne castle, etc. The rivers are used for water tourism. |
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Established: 1931. The arboretum was set up at the suggestion of Latvia’s distinguished author Anna Brigadere. After her death and until 1935, the arboretum was supported and expanded by book publisher Jānis Rapa. There are some 180 foreign trees and shrubs of various kinds here. Some of the plants are outside the arboretum itself.
Unique plants: The Bunge’s Ash (Fraxinus chinensis), the Eastern Black Walnut (Juglans nigra), the American Buckeye (Aesculus glabra), the Smoketree (Cotinus coggyria), the White Mulberry (Morus Alba), and the Kentucky Yellowwood (Cladrastis kentukea).
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