Monday, 20 May Week 04

What a quiet night in complete solitude and at 9:00 am (an hour earlier) the barrier is opened especially for us so that we can drive out. What a service! Thank you!

The Gauja National Park is our destination today. That means that we have a few kilometers to go today. We have to cross Riga again. So we deliberately choose the route through the middle of the city and even see a few more sights.

We also stop at the entrance to the city for some shopping.

But we are happy to finally be able to leave Riga behind us.

First we head to the car park in Krimulda in the national park. A small cable car crosses the valley of the Gauja and this is the "mountain station". We are not yet able to find out how often the cable car runs. So we walk to the ruins of Krimulda Castle and then drive on past Turaida Castle. We plan to take a closer look at it tomorrow. At the moment we can hear the first rumble of thunder, and a storm is approaching today.

Of course we also stop at the Gutmann Cave. You just drive past here, so you can take the short walk, but the cave is not huge.

So we cross Sigulda and end up at the campsite "Lakeside" which, as the name suggests, is located on a beautiful little lake. A small oasis designed with a lot of love for detail and nothing is missing. We like it here very much.

Tuesday, May 21

So at 10 o'clock this morning we are in the car park of Turaida Castle. There is not much going on. But there are already three tour buses there. But we are always lucky during our tour and we don't see many bus tourists. The area is huge.

The castle is worth seeing, the view from the top of the tower is beautiful.

We enjoy the walk through the area of stone sculptures, as well as the pond landscape with the old buildings.

We've been on the road for two hours. Back at the parking lot, we spontaneously stop at the restaurant here. We're hungry and the food is good.

Strengthened in this way, our discovery tour in the Gauja National Park continues.

Finally we are at the Zagarkalns campsite near Cesis and here we are standing with the Pfüdinase directly on the Gauja.

After a late afternoon siesta, we set off on a Gauja hike that starts directly from the campsite. It almost feels like a jungle hike. After an hour, we are back at our motorhome full of impressions and enjoy the sun until 8.30 p.m.

We need a break!

First we do some shopping in Cesis and then we head to the next campsite, which lives up to its promise on p4n. It is located by a lake. Many of the motorhome pitches have their own wooden terrace with a table and bench and ours also has a small lounge table for an aperitif! The welcome is very warm.

We stay here and since the washing machines are clean and big, we fill a machine and the wind and sun dry the laundry in no time.



But that's the only work we're doing today. We're just enjoying the day.

Thursday, May 23

So today we have some work to do. We fill up the washing machine again. We may not come across machines this clean again any time soon. Our beds will be freshly made by midday and will give off a wonderful smell.

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Well, of course we have to cook, do the dishes, empty the toilet, etc.

But otherwise it's just time to do nothing. Finally time to read!

And just like that, the day is over!

Friday, May 24

And our journey continues today. Our fridge needs refilling and we do that at MaximaXX in Limbazi. Man, what's going on here! With great difficulty we manage to find a parking space and with even greater difficulty we find a shopping cart!

Is tomorrow a holiday and we don't know about it? The store is very busy, there is a lot of hustle and bustle going on. We find almost everything and as another cash register is opening, the queues are kept to a minimum. At the end I am asked for my Maxima card. Of course I don't have it. The cashier asks the next customer for the card and hey presto we have received a big discount!!! That is the solution to the mystery!! Today there is a 25% discount on everything.

But now let's move on. We want to go to Soomaa National Park in Estonia.

First we head to the parking information desk. A map always helps with orientation.

Equipped like this, we drive to the Ingatsi Trail and hike to the moor lakes. We are completely alone! In the park, there are a few places to stay overnight run by the RMK forestry administration. They are free, mostly in very idyllic locations, equipped with an outhouse, fireplace, table and bench.

We also find a place like that. A young woman from Germany who we know from the last campsite is already standing here.

We grill something like small sausages, have potatoes with them and then just have a long, cozy chat.

Later (that is, around 9 p.m.) locals arrive who are probably spending the night here in the open air, but first want to light a fire and cook.



We are standing close to the fire pit. For us, that means we move to the large parking lot near the parking information center to sleep. No problem for us.

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Day route: Reiskums - Soomaa National Park

Distance: 225 km

Average consumption: 8.2 liters

Average speed: 49 km/h

Travel time: 4 hours 31 minutes

​​​​​​​Pitch costs: 0 Euro incl. NOTHING

The night was absolutely quiet. Two women slept with us in their tent and very late a German drove onto the site in his car. He didn't even get out and must have slept in the car.

We start the day leisurely and then set off on our second hike in Soomaa National Park. The Riisa Trail leads almost 5 kilometers through the beautiful moor landscape.

We're sweating quite a bit because it's hot today.

We are experiencing the first hot day of 2024!

Then we continue to Pärnu. Since we still need water, mineral water and bread, we drive through the middle of the city. There is a lot going on here. Lots of people are strolling through the streets.

We're aiming for a place to stay overnight by the sea. There are a few RV parking spaces behind a restaurant. Well, it's Saturday and it's summer! People are on the beach, the parking spaces are pretty full.

But we want a quiet place to stay overnight, so we drive to the Solar Caravan Park just outside of Pärnu. Beautifully laid out with huge plots and wonderful peace and quiet - that's perfect.

Today we're off to the island! Muhu is the third largest island in Estonia and you can get there by ferry. In high season, it's advisable to book in advance. But today it's no problem at all - the ferry docks on the island shortly after 12 noon and we roll off the boat.

We explore the island with our Pfüdi and also on foot. Since we are not completely convinced by the overnight spots, we roll over the dam to the largest island in Estonia - Saaremaa.



The place at the Koiguste Marina is beautifully situated, we stay here and enjoy the rest of the afternoon and the evening.