Riga, Tallinn and Kronstadt and the long road north

We left Riga Thursday and set out towards Sigulda in Gauja National Park where we shopped for supplies and found an adorable little (and very new) camp site by a lake called, well, 'Lakeside Camping'. There was a very nice walking path through the woods. We waited out the rain and the next morning headed to the Turaida Museum Reserve. The main feature there is a castle built in 1214 with some surrounding buildings restored to their former glory.

Heading north next, we crossed into Estonia, the 7th country of this trip. Katie needed a nap, so we parked up near a beach and Max and the dogs took a walk. The dogs made two friends on the beach and played for a little while.

We left the coast and headed inland for Tallinn and found a rainbow along the way. Must have been the luck of the Irish. That evening we met up with Piret, an old friend from our days in Ireland. We had contacted her only three days earlier not really thinking that she would be at her family's home. Yet here we were playing board games together, just like in the old days! We also got to meet her adorable 10 month old son Joshua. On Saturday Piret and her brother showed us around the old town of their city. In the afternoon they took us to a beautiful sea cliff outside town for a different view of the city. We followed this up with a tasty dinner at a Georgian restaurant and more board games. Thanks Piret and family for a wonderful visit!

Tallinn is gorgeous!

Sunday we headed east again to a little camp site near the northern coast of Estonia for a much needed relaxation day, washing some clothes and making new plans. Katie opened an impromptu barber shop, too.

We also organised an appointment with a veterinarian in Rakvere to get the certificate that the dogs needed to cross the border into Russia. Which we did on Tuesday, the 13th at Narva. The no-man's land between Estonia and Russia is very picturesque and features a river with castles on both banks. Unfortunately, photography is not allowed at the border, so we can't show it here. The crossing was uneventful and took about 4 hours including the waiting in line, and we were in Russia, again. We headed to a brand new camp site south-west of St.Petersburg which is part of a ski resort. We were the only (summer) guests and staff opened up the facilities just for us. They were a bit sad that we only stayed for one night. When we woke in the morning we found we sharing the campsite with two grazing horses!

Tuutari Ski Resort and camping is recommended!

Wednesday we headed north to Kronstadt, an island in the bay of St. Petersburg. We went shopping for food and a Russian SIM card, so that we would have internet while we are here. Kronstadt was where Peter the Great had his first castle built and eventually founded St. Petersburg. To defend against the Swedes pretty much every tiny island in the bay sports some sort of fortification. Quite interesting.

We turned north next onto the R-21/E-105 road in the direction of Murmansk. Only 1600 kilometers to go! Our first stop for the night was at a small lake near the very big lake Ladoga. Interesting lake facts: Lake Constance/Bodensee (which is near Max's family in Germany) has an surface area of 536 sq.km, while Lake Ladoga is the largest lake in Europe with a surface area of 17'700 sq.km. It is huge!
We camped at a sandy beach and Bruce made a Russian military friend - a GAZ 69 (Russian jeep-like vehicle) from 1950. A family was taking a swim in the lake there. Their grandma, a former physics teacher, spoke German and was over the moon to talk to us. She gave us some tips about what to see in the area. Thank you for the advice!

Next destination: Lake Onega and Kizhi Island