On the globe there are many different interesting places. We are not talking here about inaccessible beauties, but only about those where anyone can get without special problems. A truly unique corner of our planet is the Curonian Spit, which separates the freshwater Curonian Lagoon and the salty Baltic Sea in a narrow strip . In 1987, it was in these places that the very first National Park of the same name was formed in Russia. We’ll talk about him today, but let's start with the story.
History of the Curonian Spit
This landscape object was created by nature about five thousand years ago thanks to the sand driven by the waves of the Baltic Sea and the wind. And about three hundred years ago, the Curonian Spit was transformed by the hands of man, moreover, specifically. It is for this reason that the peninsula (as a common Lithuanian-Russian international site) was included as a cultural landscape, and not a natural site, in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
Where did this name come from? Before the colonization of Prussia by the Germans, there lived the Curonian tribe - ancient tribes, that’s the name they came from. In the tenth century, the Vikings lived in these places, which was confirmed by excavations in 2008, although the first traces were discovered back in 1893.
What is this object now
What is the Curonian Spit today? Photos of local beauties and landscapes will help us to give an answer to this question. Only here in one day you can see completely different, sometimes completely opposite landscapes: sandy deserts and meadows covered with lichen and moss, dry pine forests and damp alders, stunted mountain pine and tall pine trees, southern taiga and broad-leaved forest, flat fields and sandy mountains , lowland and upland swamps.
Sandy beaches in these places stretch for tens of kilometers like lake and flood shores, several scientific stations and fishing villages. On the spit, human activity and natural, natural processes are very closely intertwined, which have significantly transformed local reliefs over the past thousand years. The same continues today, due to which the natural system of the braid is very vulnerable and fragile.
Description of the Curonian Spit
What is the Curonian Spit geographically? The map clarifies this quite intelligibly. The sandy peninsula has a total length of 98 km, including the Russian part - 48 km. Width varies from four kilometers to four hundred meters. The area of the park is 7890 hectares. Rybachy, Lesnoye and Morskoye are three villages located on this territory.
The top of the peninsula near the city of Klaipeda (in the north) is separated by a narrow strait from the mainland, and the base abuts against the Sambian peninsula near the city of Zelenogradsk. Similar objects can be found, but with such a length, size, dunes, rich fauna and flora, the beauty of landscapes, analogues of the Curonian Spit are not only in Europe but throughout the world.
Climate and local infrastructure
The weather here changes very often, and the seasons have the following characteristics: winter is mild, summer is moderately warm, autumn is warm, spring is cool. What else can the Curonian Spit boast of? A photo of the area invites us to look at the magnificent beach by the bay, near the village of Morskoye. Due to the shallow depth of the bay, up to a maximum of four meters, the water temperature in summer reaches 26 degrees.
A bird migration path runs along the spit, connecting Karelia, Finland and the Baltic states with Africa and southern Europe. In autumn and spring there is a very high density of migration flow. All this creates very favorable conditions for their ringing. Therefore, back in 1901, Professor Tinemann organized one of the first ornithological stations in the world in these places. Not so long ago, since 1957, it is a biostation of the Institute of Zoology of the Academy of Sciences of the Russian Federation.
How to get here
There are no problems with transport links. But, of course, these places are not pilgrimage, so buses do not go every five minutes. But the bus Kaliningrad- “Spit Curonian” runs regularly both from Klaipeda and from Svetlogorsk. They run approximately once per hour. By the way, tourists who come here do not have to stock up on food for the future, in every village there is a grocery store. And you need to remember the need for a visa when visiting Lithuania.
Information for those arriving by personal transport: prepare 300 rubles per entry by car, even if you have a vacation ticket. An environmental tax is not charged only for those arriving by public transport. Holidays on the Curonian Spit also include walking along the tourist routes developed by the park management. So, if you are tired of city bustle and you want peace, silence, clean air and the sea, come to these places - you will not regret it. Solitude with nature will renew you well before returning home to ordinary life.
Tourist routes and bans
What should travelers who decide to come here by bus Kaliningrad- “Spit Curonian” know? You can freely visit here only the zone of villages and the territory reserved for educational tourism. All other places need constant protection and care, as they are very vulnerable, entrance and entry paid on them.
You also need to know about the six hiking trails available in the Curonian Spit Park. The route map is placed on information boards. They are called: “Müller's Height”, “Fringilla”, “Efa Height”, “Dancing Forest”, “Royal Forest”, “Swan Lake”. There is a conservation area, which is located between 46 and 49 kilometers of the spit, where people are forbidden to be.
Also on its territory it is impossible:
- Use open fire and set up tents, except for places specially designated for this.
- Park cars and drive off paved roads, except for certain places.
- Collect medicinal plants and walk along the dunes.
- Walk dogs without a leash and ride ATVs.
- Chop shrubs and trees.
When you are on a hiking trail, follow the route and stay on the track.
Curonian Spit National Park and its famous “Dancing Forest”
“Dancing Forest” is a unique place of the Curonian Spit. Why is it so striking our attention? All its pine trees are twisted into a ring, branched or bizarrely curved. In addition, there are no other trees on this stretch of forest. According to environmentalists, this forest is the most fragile place in this area and tourists only harm it, cause irreparable damage. They touch the trees, climb on them, trample the soil. Therefore, a special ecological path was laid along the forest territory and vacationers are asked not to leave it, to move only on the flooring.
The behavior of pines taking such amazing forms is very surprising. After all, usually they grow perfectly even. The causes of the phenomenon have not been established. Experts spread their arms and admit a wide variety of versions - from the intervention of aliens to exposure to electromagnetic fields.
Dangers awaiting tourists on the Curonian Spit
The entire Curonian Spit was examined, tours to famous places were conducted. What to do next? You can swim and relax on the sea beaches located at the villages of Morskoye, Rybachy, Lesnoye, at the Museum of the National Park, at the tourist base "Dunes", not far from the car parks of the routes Vysota Efa and Korolevskiy Bor. But, traveling through the forest, passing along the routes, you must always remember the dangers that await at almost every step. In these places, ixodid ticks are common, which are carriers of Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis.
Before entering the forest, dress your clothes, do everything possible to maximize the probability of getting a tick on your body. Upon returning home, carefully inspect the body and clothing. In July-August, marching silkworm, a caterpillar, causes a rather strong allergic reaction with its hairs in some forest places.
Rest at the recreation center "Baltika"
We are considering vacation options for Russian, and not only tourists, but have not asked ourselves why many of them want to spend their holidays on the Curonian Spit? And the answer is very simple. Let us take only one category of people - those who want to spend time at sea, but cannot stand the heat of countries, such as the Mediterranean. These travelers are attracted by the cozy and beautiful places of the Kaliningrad seaside. Probably, the Curonian Spit is one of the most famous and popular places here. Fans of organized vacations choose one of the specialized places for this, the Baltika base, which is located in a very convenient place - the village of Lesnoy, which is directly on the spit. Here you will appreciate not only the quality of service, but also low prices and a homely atmosphere.
This recreation center, which has 24 rooms, is located just 200 meters from the seashore with a sandy beach, and nearby are beautiful
pine forests. It is intended mainly for a quiet family vacation, which will be not only pleasant, but also very useful. Especially for those who suffer from diseases of the nervous and respiratory systems, or have low immunity. Here they will feed well and tasty, organize excursions along the spit, beach vacations. You can get here and back without problems, in addition, there is a transfer order.
Tours of the Curonian Spit
Travel agencies organize a number of different, interesting excursions on the peninsula. Not only in Russian, but also in other languages. What can the Curonian Spit Park offer tourists? Several excursions of your choice:
- An orientation tour during which you will visit: the dead dunes in Pervalka, the Witches Mountain in Juodkrante, sundials, the Baltic Sea coast, the Gothic evangelical church and much more.
- A study tour of Nida, along the following route: Parnigio dune, Gothic church, Tom Mann’s house, etc.
- A trip to the National Park.
- A canoe trip in which you can observe the unique changes of the braid.
- A catamaran trek lasting about eight hours, with a picnic in Vent and a visit to the lighthouse.
We have considered only a few, but there are also many other, no less interesting routes. Have a nice rest!