This is an interesting route in North Vidzeme. You can feel the breath of history on every step here as soon as you get off the beach and Riga – Tallinn road. You will see a spring that surfaces bellow a linden tree, the old Ainazi pier, which once had narrow-gauge railway running on it, scenic banks of River Salaca, bog walks and more…
There will be many bridges in this exciting route through North Vidzeme and along the seacoast, and they will surprise you with their historical diversity. For example, in Blome there is a unique bridge that is made of stacked stones and built without any cement, bridge on the former narrow-gauge railway line Smiltene – Ainazi, renovated by JSC “Latvijas valsts mezi” or River Vecsalaca concrete bridge, impressive in its size and age, because it was built already in 1908 and it is 90 m long! You will also be able to see the historical ambitions by looking at the Ainazi pier, which was intended as a narrow-gauge access road to the port of Ainazi. A unique place to see is Salacgriva – a fishing village, where a traditional way of lamprey fishing is still used to this very day. It is a specially constructed footbridge, over the river, with lamprey traps attached tactically by the fishermen. This way of fishing has been used here for hundreds of years!
The spring that flows under the roots of a linden tree near the Blome manor, a beautiful bog walk along the Niedraju – Pilka bog, the Red Cliffs near Salaca or the huge Zaku stone (Hare stone) – these are just some of the places that will not leave you indifferent on the part of this route that goes inland. However, when you reach the sea, you will be enchanted by a walk along the rocky Ainazi pier and lighthouses – one right there in Ainazi, the other in Kurmrags, when you reach Tuja. The Kurmrags Lighthouse has been swept of the sea cliff it was once built on and is now on the shore. And, of course, the value of always constant sea views! There will also be an opportunity to cross the River Zakupite on its shallow.
At the beginning of the route you can see the impressive Blome Manor buildings and the historic but abandoned Blome School building. In Vilkene, the monument to Baumanu Karlis, who is a Latvian composer and author of the Latvian national anthem. Do not miss learning a thing or two, by exploring the impressive exposition of forest fauna and flora in the only forest museum in Northern Latvia.
