Baltic Forest Hiking - Setomaa region

SETOMAA – DIVERSE NATURE COMBINED WITH AUTHENTIC CULTURE
Vana Vastseliina – Ristipalo: 73 km, Day 19 –21

Setomaa or “the Land of Setos” is inhabited by Setos – an ethnographic group with specific ancient traditions and a unique language dialect. Forest Trail hikers can visit the traditional Setos homestead and enjoy Setos cuisine. The forests of the region are especially charming in early autumn, when the ground is coloured lilac by the blooming heather. One of the most beautiful sections of the trail in Setomaa leads along the Piusa River, where the river is surrounded by sandstone outcrops. Located at the Värska Bay, underneath a beautiful pine forest there is Värska resort with its sanatorium and SPA which use the strengths of local nature: mineral water and lake mud. Värska mineral water is well known in Estonian and elsewhere.

Highlights: Unique culture – traditions, architecture, handicrafts, language, cuisine, Seto leelo – Seto traditional polyphonic singing, UNESCO intangible cultural heritage, Forest sites for picking wild mushrooms and berries, Valley of the Piusa River, caves and bats, Härma Walls – Estonia’s highest Devonian sandstone outcrop, Mustoja Landscape Protection Area, Seto museums in Värska, Saatse and Obinitsa, Värska mineral water and healing mud, National Geographic yellow frames in the villages of Obinitsa and Podmotsa.