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Estonian Landscapes
Estonia may be a small country but the richness and diversity of its landscapes is positively surprising.
Estonia’s forests cover half the country and are home to a wonderful range of wildlife including bears, wolves, lynx, flying squirrels, wild boar, deer and elk.
Wooded, coastal and flooded meadows are relatively common in Estonia, but almost non-existent elsewhere in Europe, and home to many varieties of wild orchid.
Estonia has thousands of wetlands, some of which are over 10,000 years old. The delicious cloudberry grows in Estonian swamps and for some people it’s worth coming just to taste one, “fresh from the bush”.
There are no mountains in Estonia but the hills near Otepää, in the south of the country, are popular for hiking and in winter, skiing.
Some people just love canoeing on Estonia’s 7,000+ rivers which run through the many forests and national parks and are home to tasty fish that attract humans, bears, birds and more.
There are over 1,400 lakes in Estonia and one popular activity (for Estonians) is to cut a hole in the ice in winter and do a spot of ice-fishing – probably followed by a sauna and a roll in the snow (or jump in the freezing waters of the same lake).
