Baltic Coastal Hiking trail - Haapsalu

In this section of the Baltic Coastal Hiking Route, the landscape is constantly changing. Small villages interchange with cultivated fields, pastures, individual farmsteads and limestone quarries. The route along the seacoast is limited by wetlands and private properties so the itinerary returns to the sea only at Kiviküla and Pusku villages, where you will see the Väinameri Sea Strait and a lot of islands, and at the Rohuküla port.

A multifarious section of the Baltic Coastal Hiking Route. The first three kilometres of the itinerary go along the former Haapsalu – Rohuküla broad-gauge railway line, takes you on a stroll along Haapsalu Bay through Pullapää cape, crosses coastal forests, which contain health trails, and continues via coastal promenades and small streets around Haapsalu Town. After crossing a small wetland beyond the town, this section of the trail ends in the beautiful Uuemõisa Park.

The Baltic Coastal Hiking Route mainly goes along the side of the road and it only winds through smaller country roads between Ingküla and Aulepa Villages, where you can enjoy rural landscapes with individual farmsteads, boulders and pastures.

The Baltic Coastal Hiking Route leads you to the unusual Noarootsi Peninsula where the Swedish have been linked with shaping the cultural environment. The Noarootsi Peninsula is an excellent site for birdwatching in Estonia. The itinerary leads you through Österby, Pürksi, Hosby and Hara villages, in which you will see different kinds of buildings surrounded by fences. In the north of the peninsula, the trail bypasses the overgrown Vööla meri Lake that has once separated from the sea as a bay. Near the shallow Hara Bay, you can see picturesque landscapes with vast reedy areas, coastal juniper meadows and cattle.

With the exception of the first 3 km, the itinerary goes along the seashore. It is mainly a sandy beach with beautiful foredunes, grey dunes and sea boulders. The beach may be covered in algae that has been washed ashore and it is occasionally overgrown with dense vegetation. Opposite Rooslepa village and in other places in the sea and on the coast, there are badly weathered stones or the so-called breccias that have melted and weathered as a result of an ancient meteorite explosion. At the destination of the itinerary, you can spend some time in a pub and from its terrace you will have a beautiful view of the sea and the port.

An exceptionally multifaceted section of the Baltic Coastal Hiking Route in terms of landscapes, where you can already get an insight of the nature characteristic to the north coast of Estonia. The itinerary leads you along the seacoast for almost its entire length, where you will find beautiful sandy beaches near coves, beaches covered in boulders at capes, while dolomite layers uncover themselves in the northern part of Cape Põõsaspea (an excellent birdwatching site). The Baltic Coastal Hiking Route goes through Nõva Nature reserve where you will have exceptional views of the white and grey dunes. The beaches are popular for fishing and kite-boarding.