Description of the attraction
Soomaa National Park is located in the southwest of Estonia. Soomaa translates as "land of swamps". The park was formed in 1993 with the aim of protecting swamps, flowering meadows, forests and rivers. The area of Soomaa National Park is 390 km2, it is the second largest after Laahemaa.
Most of the park's territory is covered with swamp complexes, which sometimes give way to tributaries of the Pärnu River. Soomaa has the largest swamp in terms of its territory - Kuresoo or "crane swamp", where there are really a lot of these birds. Cranes walk freely in pairs through the swamp and can often let people get close enough to them. The marshes of Soomaa National Park are famous for their large number of rare species of wild orchids.
The eastern part of Soomaa is home to the highest dunes in all of Estonia. In addition, the so-called "fifth season" makes the park an interesting phenomenon. This is a spring flood, during which the water level in the park's reservoirs rises to 5 meters. High water covers almost the entire territory of the park, even some houses suffer from a large influx of "spring water". On average, the spill area ranges from 7 to 8 km. However, this phenomenon can be used with benefit. For example, such kind of tourism and recreation as canoeing and kayaking becomes possible. Only in the Soomaa National Park are the original Estonian boats, the haabja, preserved in ancient times for fishing and hunting.
Along with canoeing excursions in the park, there are also many hiking trails. On the territory of the park there are several equipped trails of different lengths, as well as equipped places for making a fire. A visitor center has been established in the center of the park in Kyrtsi-Tõramaa, where you can get detailed information about hiking trails and local services.
Cases in the form of complete flooding are extremely rare, so many representatives of the animal world have found their home here. These are bears, wild boars, lynxes, deer, moose, wolves and beavers. Among the rare species of birds that can be found in the swamps are the golden eagle, wood grouse, black grouse, black stork. In total, about 160 species of birds live here. Among the inhabitants of the rivers, the most common are pike, roach, bream, bleak, perch.
Small ponds of regular rounded shape, which are found among swamps, are of great value to the National Park. These ponds, filled with cold and frequent water, with a diameter of no more than 2 meters, you can swim in them.
In 1997, Soomaa Park was included in the Ramsar List. In 1998, Soomaa was nominated for the UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site.
