The Bluffs of Latvia

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Amata River

 The country of Latvia is generally flat. We've driven around in it enough to attest to that. It has rolling hills south and west of Riga, and of course, the man-made hill in Riga itself. 


So, we were surprised by the gorge running between the castles that we've seen over the last couple weeks. This river and surrounding gorge compromise Guaja National Park which covers a large part of central Latvia northeast of Riga. 

Scenic walkway


Since we were in the area visiting castles, we decided to check out the national park and the small creeks winding throughout it. Our trusty travel guide informed us about a walking trail to see some of the cliffs. 


It was amazing to be winding through the Latvian woods after experiencing city life up to this point. We thoroughly enjoyed the peace and quiet of the deep forest. 


Red cliffs 

We came upon the red cliffs with the small caves worn into them. The rushing of the spring rivers helped to cut the holes into the rock walls. We never thought that we'd see something like this in Latvia before this trip. 


Cave in the rock wall
As I remember, it was a rainy day when we explored this trail in the park. We were the only  ones on the trail at the time. Once in a while we were able to view a larger cave carved out in the growing underbrush. 



The overall beauty of the national park will stay with us for a long time. It will be calling us back this summer for more exploring if we're unable to travel abroad again. 

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