The road becomes quieter as we drive across the countryside towards Tukums - rolling fields, sleepy villages and a few landmarks in the area. Every stop feels like stumbling into a secret. The pace changes as we tackle Milzkalne and Baldone, two days of pure 4x4 trails — nothing extreme, just enough bite to give the tires some work. For a change of scenery, we can swap mud for cobblestones and take a detour to the old town of Riga before heading back into the wilderness. From there, the adventure meanders towards Sigulda, with a stop at the eerie, underground Soviet bunker in Līgatne - a Cold War relic that still holds secrets. We sleep one more night in a tent or guesthouse before spending a final day of back roads, rivers and forests. And then Strenči. The last stop. This is more than a journey — it’s the story of a country waiting to be felt mile by mile.
Things to know before traveling to Latvia:
Latvia is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, together with Estonia in the north and Lithuania in the south. It borders Russia to the east, Belarus to the southeast and Sweden to the west. Latvia has 1.9 million inhabitants. The capital and largest city is Riga. The Latvians belong to the ethnolinguistic group of the Balts and speak Latvian, one of the only two surviving Baltic languages.
History:
After centuries of Teutonic, Swedish, Polish-Lithuanian and Russian rule, the independent Republic of Latvia was founded on November 18, 1918. Latvia’s de facto independence was interrupted at the beginning of the Second World War, starting with the Soviet Union, followed by occupation by Nazi Germany in 1941 and re-occupation by the Soviets in 1944, which lasted for the next 45 years. The peaceful Singing Revolution of 1987 led to the restoration of independence on August 21, 1991. Since then, Latvia has been a democratic, unitary parliamentary republic.
Development:
Latvia is an industrialized country with a high-income, advanced economy that ranks 39th in the Human Development Index. It is a member of the European Union, the Eurozone, NATO, the Council of Europe, the United Nations, the Council of the Baltic Sea States, the International Monetary Fund, the Nordic-Baltic Eight, the Nordic Investment Bank, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the World Trade Organization.
Geography:
Most of the Latvian territory is less than 100 meters above sea level. The longest river on Latvian territory is the Gauja with a length of 452 km. The highest point in Latvia is Gaiziņkalns at 311.6 m. The length of the Latvian Baltic Sea coast is 494 km.
Latvia has four distinct seasons. Winters have average temperatures of ‑6 °C and are characterized by stable snow cover, bright sunshine and short days. Summers are generally warm and sunny, with cool evenings and nights. In summer, average temperatures are around 19 °C, with lows of 35 °C. Spring and fall bring fairly mild weather.
Kitchen:
Latvian cuisine is very simple and hearty — pork is the most common ingredient. Combined with various vegetables, depending on the season, fresh or pickled, it is a staple food for Latvians. For those with a sweet tooth, the traditional Latvian desserts are honey cake and bread soup, both of which taste much better than the name suggests.
Latvia is famous for its beers — we have many historical and contemporary breweries. In fact, we are currently in the midst of a brewing renaissance — many new craft breweries are springing up, each with their own interpretation of a centuries-old classic.
Our truly unique traditional drink is black balsam. It is said to have a healing effect — it contains extracts from numerous plants. The locals prefer to enjoy it with their coffee on long winter evenings.
Nature:
Our route takes us through the Milzkalne nature reserve, which not only offers breathtaking views of nature, but also exciting geometry. Apart from Milzkalne, there are many natural beauties to enjoy during the tour — most of the land is covered with forests. In October, you can still catch the flaming colors of autumn leaves or enjoy the Nordic character of tall, slender pine forests reaching for the clouds while firmly rooted in a colorful carpet of moss.
It is more than likely that we will see some wildlife on our trail — Latvia has a large population of deer, elk, wild boar and various birds of prey.
