Today started slowly, the morning was spent catching up on editing and organising stuff, so we didn’t leave our campsite until lunchtime. Sometimes the quiet, routine days feel just as important as the adventurous ones.

We took a detour to a palace in a town that had an unsettling vibe. The palace belonged to a count from the 1800s, and it was a little creepy. While it was interesting to see, I’m not sure it was worth the detour. Still, there’s something about places like that that make you wonder about the stories hidden beneath the surface.

Crossing into Lithuania brought an immediate change in the landscape. The farmland faded away, replaced by thick pine forests and calm lakes. Had we just transported back to Finland?

We spent hours looking for somewhere to camp that wasn’t in a mozzie infested forest, and finally at 8pm, we found a spot overlooking a lake. We don’t usually like camping near towns on a Saturday night due to local hoons, but a few other campervans are here, so it feels safe enough. There’s something comforting about ending the day beside water, even on the most average of days.

It got noisy for a while. A few loud motorbikes rolled up, then the pumping music from a bar up the road. But it all quietened down about 11pm and it was a peaceful nights rest.

Today we climbed the highest mountain in Latvia! But more about that later.

Despite being awake until after midnight last night, my watch this morning said I had a 92% sleep charge! Maybe I should go to sleep later more often. 

Today we went for a morning walk to a cave. It was down 1000’s of steps and all I could think about was, I have to walk back up these! It seemed like quite a long walk, and there were mozzies lurking, and the walk seemed to go on forever. When we finally reached the cave, it turned out we weren’t the only ones drawn to it. The place was swarming with mozzies! We took a quick photo and left. Mike found a different way back which thankfully didn’t involve walking up the steps.

We attempted some sightseeing in the town of Sigulda as it has two castles and some scenic walks. Unfortunately, it also has an alarming number of tourists and pay-to-park signs in every direction. We made a quick exit. I’m not sure why it’s so popular. The castle we saw yesterday in Cecis had nobody there and it was epic. It’s possibly it’s a hotspot for day trippers from Riga who enjoy queuing and paying for parking.

Next, we set our sights on the highest mountain in Latvia. Google directed us down a series of rutted dirt roads, which, to be fair, were still an improvement on the main road out of Riga. After about an hour and a half of bouncing around, we arrived at the carpark. From there, it was a gruelling 500 metre walk to summit. The mountain rises 312 metres from sea level, but as we are already at altitude, it was only about 50 metres of elevation to the top. I’m sure the steps we walked down this morning had more altitude! (They definitely had more attitude!) The biggest surprise? There’s a cable car you could take to the top, though it didn’t appear to be functioning. 

After our strenous climb, we settled down for an afternoon nap. We’ve decided to stay in the carpark here for the night, as it seems like a quiet spot in nature.

We were quietly enjoying our dinner when another campervan came in, totally avoiding the gravel parking area, and deciding instead to park on the grass. I thought it seemed odd, the way he sped in, and settled into a camping spot that looked like the perfect place to get stuck. And then he got stuck.

We heard the revving first. Then the spinning. A quick glance out the window confirmed that he was enthusiastically digging himself deeper. Of course we would go an help, but it was raining and we decided to finish our dinner first. By this time he had gotten himself well and truly stuck.

Mike took charge and  told him what he had to do. He needed to dig out the dirt in front of the rear wheels so he had less of a slope, and we gave him our chocks to put under the front wheel to try and give him more grip. We told him to let us know when we was ready and we would help push.

We’d just got our dishes done and settled for a game of chess when he knocked on our door. The three of us pushed while his wife drove. But she didn’t have the knack for getting out. Mike tried to explain, but our English to German translation must have eluded her. Or she just didn’t understand. So Mike hopped in the drivers seat and saved the day. With a kind of rocking back and forward motion of the van, he drove them out. They were absolutely elated. Bet they don’t make that mistake again (but no guarantees).

After that it was a nice quiet night at the base of Latvia’s highest mountain (AKA hill).

We had a nice nights sleep in the carpark in the town of Cecis and were up bright and early to explore the castle.

We arrived at opening time of 10am and were the first people through the door. And we both got in for half price as seniors! Senior age here is 60, so I’m not quite there yet, but they didn’t question me. I’m still not sure whether to be offended or elated.

On payment, they handed us a lantern with an actual candle burning inside. How cool is that? It was for the darker corners of the castle, and when they said dark, they meant it. The stairwells were pitch black, winding up through towers that probably hadn’t changed in centuries. The candle barely cut through the blackness, making us double and triple check our footing. I’m pretty sure it wouldn’t pass health and safety anywhere else in the world, but that’s what made it so cool. It felt gritty and real, like we were discovering some forgotten fortress rather than following a marked tourist trail..

After the castle, we made a stop in Līgatne, a little town that used to revolve around a paper mill. The neat thing about this town was the cave cellars. Locals dug them into the sandstone cliffs to store food and keep things cool before fridges were a thing. Some of them even had little wooden doors and signs, like hobbit holes with a Soviet twist. They continued to make caves as late as 1975, but then they turned the area into a national park, preventing any further caves.

We also stopped by Zvārtes Rock, a giant sandstone cliff rising out of the river. There’s a local legend about it being a gathering point for witches. We didn’t see any.

After this we were very sightseed out. I found a place to camp for the night, down a rutted bumpy dirt road. They all seem to be down these places for some reason. Neither of us felt the “vibe” here, so we had an afternoon nap and moved on. 

We ended up in a carpark for a cable car across the river. We’re not doing that, looks too scary! It was about 7pm and very peaceful as there was no one else around. So we decided to stay. But then cars kept turning up all hours of the night. They weren’t noisy, no loud radios or anything, but it just made me wonder why people were turning up at midnight. It was weird.

Today we went to Latvia! We finally made it to the border town of Valga. This is an interesting town as it runs through two countries. It was once one big town called Walk, which was part of the Russian empire. In 1920, when Estonia and Latvia gained their independence, they ran a line through the middle of the town, and made it into two towns. Valga is in Estonia, and Valka is in Latvia. We had a little walk around, crossed the border and back again, as you do. Mike bought a satnav for the car as he likes to know where he’s going.

We then took a detour to check out another sandstone walk. The drive in was along a long dirt road, pretty typical once you leave the main roads in Latvia. It felt like we were completely alone out there, so we were surprised to find about half a dozen cars in the carpark. 

The walk is actually part of a much longer hiking trail. We met a couple of girls with big packs who were on day one of their 192 km trek. We just did a short 3.5 km loop to see the cliffs.

It was an easy walk, with steps and boardwalks most of the way. The cliffs themselves are tall sandstone formations that really stand out against the forest. Their pale surface is dotted with bee holes and some graffiti, the oldest we saw was from ’84, which I assume means 1984. There were natural arches, ledges, and cracks carved by wind and rain. The cliffs stretch for nearly half a kilometre and rise up to about 15 metres high. They were impressive.

After that, we made our way to the town of Cēsis, which has a castle we wanted to check out. We got there around 5pm (not sure where the day went), so we decided to leave the castle for the morning when we’d have more time as it closed at 6pm. The old town was nice to wander through, with its cobbled streets, old buildings, and a relaxed feel. We ended up going out for dinner and spent the night in a carpark not far from the castle.

It’s the halfway mark! We are allowed 90 days in the Schengen zone of Europe, and we’ve used up half of it already! We navigated to Valga, a town on the border with Latvia, only 1 hour away. But then I decided on a detour to a walk to some sandstone cliffs.

The trail wound through a peaceful pine forest alongside a quiet river, with sandstone cliffs towering on both sides. Along the way, we found caves, springs, and some interesting local folklore. We stopped at the sacred mother spring, where people traditionally came to collect water for its healing powers. Then there was the devil’s cellar. Legend says the Devil once lived there. The walk was lovely… apart from the swarm of mozzies tagging along. Strangely enough, it was still an hours drive to Valga.

Then we stopped at a road museum. We had no idea what that was, so we parked in the carpark, had some lunch then fell asleep for the afternoon. The road museum was going to cost 24 euros, so we still don’t know what the heck it is! Somehow the drive to Valga is still an hour away. I’m not sure how this happens.

The rest of the afternoon was spent making our way towards Valga. We started the ritual of looking for somewhere to camp for the night. The first place I navigated to was a bog. And not in a good way. The second place was overgrown, and was quite possibly taking us to another bog.

We eventually found a nice place on the edge of a gravel road. It also had a bog, but it was the good kind (a drop toilet), but there is a watchtower here. So of course we had to climb up.

It was 25 metres tall, and it was quite scary climbing up, especially when the wind picked up. But the view from the top was incredible. Oh, and we’re still 30 minutes from Valga! Only we could take a day to progress by 30 minutes. Maybe we’ll get there tomorrow. 

Today we realised we’d completely bypassed a singing beach, apparently 15 km behind us. We didn’t want to risk missing something called a singing beach, so we turned around and went back. As it turns out, the beach only sings on certain days, and today wasn’t one of them.

The beach stretches along the shore of Lake Peipus, a huge lake shared between Estonia and Russia. The sand is super fine, and under the right conditions it apparently hums when you walk on it. It was windy, and the waves were crashing in, so all we heard was the lake doing its best ocean impression. The beach has 30 kms of uninterrupted sandy shore. That is pretty amazing for a lake! We had a quick wander along the beach, then carried on.

The rest of the day we followed something called the Onion Route. It’s named that because they grow a lot of onions in the area (obviously), but also because of the old-believer villages dotted along the lake. Sounds a bit like something from a cult novel, but the old-believers are actually Russian Orthodox Christians who didn’t go along with church reforms back in the 1600s. The lakeside is lined with colourful wooden cottages, which were neat to see.

I was hoping to try an onion or fish pie, since that’s the local specialty, but no luck. So we stopped at a little shop and got some Russian potato chips instead. They were just normal chips but with a bacon flavour. They were okay.

Nothing much else happened today. It feels like we’ve seen the main sights now, so we’ll probably head into Latvia tomorrow. Not sure what we’ll do there, but we’re avoiding the cities, so we’ll see what we see on our way to Poland.

Tonight we found a quiet little forest parking spot to sleep in. It was peaceful, except for one car that drove past around midnight. Otherwise, all good.

Today was another great day in Estonia. On our way to the border town of Narva, we stopped at a place that was once top secret.

Sillamäe is a small town on the northern coast and used to be one of the Soviet Union’s closed cities. It was kept off maps and sealed off to outsiders until the early 1990s. Back in the day, it played a big role in the Soviet nuclear program, processing uranium for atomic weapons. Entry was strictly controlled, and the whole place was heavily guarded. It was pretty surreal wandering around, knowing its secretive past. There are still a lot of Soviet buildings from the Stalin era, and I found the town really interesting.

Our next stop was Narva, right on the border with Russia, separated only by a river. I loved this place! We walked along the river, looking across at Russia. Just over the water were colourful houses, or mansions really, judging by their size. It looked like any other well-off European city, which I guess it is. But the best part was still to come.

On the Estonian side of the river is a huge castle. On the Russian side? An even bigger one. It felt like the two were in a permanent stand-off. There’s a footbridge connecting the two, but it’s heavily guarded, and you need a visa to cross. We wandered around the Estonian castle, free to explore, with hardly any tourists around. I don’t know why more people don’t come here. In Tallinn, we saw loads of English and American visitors, but here it was just a few locals out enjoying their Sunday.

We tried to leave the castle a different way but ended up having to take a long detour around the border. There was a big line of people waiting to cross into Russia. I wish I had the confidence to interview them and ask where they were from, but alas, I don’t… so we’ll never know. St. Petersburg is only about a two-hour drive from the other side, so that might explain it. The crossing here is only for foot traffic, but we saw buses with “St Petersburg” as the destination. We figured they drop people off at the border, and another bus picks them up on the other side.

After Narva, we headed south and stopped at a convent with a beautiful Russian Orthodox church, similar to one we’d seen in Tallinn. There were a few people around. Babushkas in headscarves, people crossing themselves in that Catholic style. I felt like a phony, not a religious bone in my body, as I stood there marvelling at the onion-domed cathedral. The whole place had a real sense of peace, and the grounds were quiet and beautiful.

Then it was time to find a camping spot for the night. I’d saved a few forest sites to check out, but I’m not a fan of forest camping . Too many mozzies! Still, it’s free, so we gave them a look. It turns out it must be school holidays here, because the locals were out in full force, camping in the woods, music blaring, fires burning. Not really our vibe. We passed at least three camps like this. We finally found one that wasn’t too crowded, but the second we got out of the car, we got attacked and bitten. Abort! Abort!

We kept driving until we found a lovely spot right by a lake. Still a few mozzies, but at least we’re not surrounded by trees. We didn’t even have to cook dinner as we had a sausage from the local service station. Almost as good as Norway!

Today was in interesting day that started with an accidental sleep in. I woke up, looked at my watch and it was 9.45am! That is unheard of for me!

We started with a quick supermarket shop. I’m loving the different foods they have here. I got a couple of pastry type things that looked a bit like enclosed sausage rolls. Mine had cabbage inside, and Mikes had meat. They were delicious. I also bought some pickled cabbage and roasted chicken pieces to have for lunch. I do love me some good pickled cabbage.

As we left the small village of Loksa, we noticed lots of Soviet-era abandoned buildings. For some reason I find this fascinating. We stopped to explore one of the old buildings. It felt surreal, stepping through a crumbling doorway into a space that, not so long ago, would have been completely off-limits and probably even top secret. A lone security camera was still mounted on the building, adding an eerie layer to the atmosphere. Were we being monitored? Or was it a relic from the past? 

These buildings have likely been empty since Estonia regained its independence in 1991. One building still had faded curtains fluttering in the broken windows.

We continued driving along the north east of Estonia, no great plan. We are the worst tourists, and google isn’t much help either. We stopped at a little food truck set up on the seaside that was selling smoked perch, so we stopped and had some for a snack. It was yummy.

Then we turned down a rutted gravel road, with no idea what we’d find. In the distance, I spotted some castle ruins, and this excited me. So we took a short walk to check it out.

It turned out to be Toolse Castle, an impressive structure perched on the edge of the Baltic Sea. Though crumbling, it’s still clinging to the life, hanging on since the 1400s. It’s one of the northernmost medieval castles in Europe. Wandering around the ruins was fascinating, and best of all, it was free to visit. Bonus!

Tonight we are camping in a campground again as the free spots we’ve seen are not that great. We are planning to go to Narva tomorrow, a town on the border with Russia.

Today we left the city of Tallin, and headed east for Lahemaa national park. We had a bog walk lined up that we wanted to do. It sounds gross eh, but it’s actually quite cool.

Viru Bog is one of Estonia’s most famous peat bogs, and it’s really neat. You walk along a wooden boardwalk that winds through twisted little pine trees, rust-red mosses, and dark pools that reflect the sky. It feels untouched, probably because you would sink and drown if you stepped of the boardwalk. But even if you did, you wouldn’t disappear completely. Keep reading and I’ll tell you why!

The bog here is ancient. The peat beneath is up to metres deep, built up over thousands of years. And it grows about 1 millimetre each year. 

Even cooler, bogs are great at preserving things. Because the water is low in oxygen and packed with peat, things don’t rot like they normally would. Archaeologists have found ancient tools, animals, even human remains in bogs, perfectly preserved after thousands of years. So Viru Bog is basically a time capsule. 

It’s also full of life. Tiny insect-eating plants, birds, frogs, and bugs all call this place home. It’s strange, peaceful, and a little bit spooky. But definitely not gross.

After our walk, we found a camping ground. It was only 1pm, and Mike said it was too early to stop, but I put my put down. We needed to shower, do laundry, and most importantly, empty our toilet!

It was a really nice spot overlooking the Baltic sea. And the sun had come out and it was toasty warm. We had our much needed showers, and put our laundry on. The washing machine had signs asking not to touch the buttons. So we loaded up, pressed start, and were surprised to see it would take 4 hours! Is this washing machine so smart it knows how dirty our clothes are? Was it like, FFS, I’m gonna need 4 hours to get that smell out! (We had been doing hand washing so I don’t think it was that bad) I’ve never known a wash to take that long before, but we just had to roll with it. The lady on reception didn’t speak very good English, and it seemed more of an effort to let her know. Just as well we stopped early!

We spent the afternoon lounging in our chairs, soaking up the sun and the view of the calm sea. It was hard to believe we were in a campground. It felt more like a freedom camping spot that we had to pay for. Apparently this place gets very busy in summer, so I think we got lucky being a Friday night and it being quiet. They even had internet, so I was able to upload next weeks video.

This is what I love about campervan travel.  It’s the little things you learn to appreciate, like sunshine, clean clothes (eventually) and a nice view.

Today we were up bright and early to drive to Helsinki and catch a ferry to Tallinn, Estonia. It’s about a one-hour drive to Helsinki, and since our ferry was at 10:30 am, we planned to leave at 8:00 to arrive by 9:00. In the end, we left at 7:00, and still only made it there at 9:00! We got a bit lost along the way. Finland didn’t exactly make it easy to find the ferry terminal.

The ferry was super big and super flash. It was also super crowded. But we managed to find a seat at the rear of the boat which was covered in glass. So, out of the wind and cold, but still with a nice view.

It was a 2 hour crossing to Estonia, and it went very smoothly. When we arrived we parked in a carpark in the main city of Tallinn. It was a paid carpark, but we were able to stay the night and it wouldn’t cost us more than 18 euros for a 24 hour period. And it was right on the edge of the old town so that was ideal.

We walked up a steep hill and the first thing we saw was the old Russian orthodox church. But first, a little history about Estonia. Estonia’s been passed around a bit over the centuries. First, it was taken over by Danish and German crusaders in the 1200s, then ruled by the Teutonic Order – a German religious-military group. After that, the Swedes took over in the 1500s, followed by the Russian Empire in the early 1700s. Estonia declared independence in 1918, but during World War II it was occupied by the Soviets, then the Nazis, and then the Soviets again. It wasn’t until 1991 that Estonia became fully independent, and it’s stayed that way ever since.

So that’s why there’s a Russian Orthodox church sitting at the top of the hill. It was really striking with its bulbous onion domes and it’s got to be the coolest church I’ve ever seen. It’s called the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral and was built in the late 1800s when Russia was still in charge. 

Tallinn is such a neat town full of charm, cobbled streets, and medieval towers that make you feel like you’ve stepped back in time. We spent the day wandering around, taking in the old stone walls, colourful buildings, and hidden courtyards. Every corner had something interesting, whether it was a quirky shop, a creepy pub, or a view over the rooftops.  It’s the kind of place that’s perfect for our type of exploring with no real plan. And the guys here talk with a kind of Dracula accent which makes it extra cool!

I wanted to go for a medieval feast at one of the tourist restaurants, where they all dress in character from the period. A guy with a Dracula accent almost talked me into it, but Mike reckoned it would be too touristy, so we opted for a normal restaurant just on the edge of the old town. It was actually really good. 

We had a great day being tourists, and exploring the old town. It was just so nice to be able to walk around and see something other than trees and not get attacked by mozzies.