Saaremaa: stories, campsites, saunas and trails

Ghost story 17 all over Estonia →

• The locking doors of Pädaste manor
• The haunted chapel of Kudjape cemetery
• Marta, buried alive, at Laimjala manor
• The lake spirit of Karujärv
• The woman in white of the Trammi burial ground
• The whirling spirits of Kaarlikivi
• The night visitors of Kingli manor's barns
• The restless dead of Kiritu village
• The grave in the middle of the Metsküla road
• The weeping house spirit of Uulispilli hill
• The lady in white on the Aaviku road
• The forester who would not stay buried, Mustjala
• The drowned baron who warns of wrecks at Pilguse
• Tõlli village and the haunted alder grove
• Old Toomas who came home to eat, Pamma
• The red light at old Andrus's house, Neemi
• The dead man who rode on passing sleighs, Kaarma

Legend 36 all over Estonia →

• The walled-up knight of Kuressaare
• Kaali: where the sun fell
• Suur Tõll's spear and the Odalätsi springs
• Suur Tõll's runaway cartwheel and Lake Koltse
• How Abruka island was born
• Suur Tõll's cabbage patch on Ruhnu
• Suur Tõll's apron stone at Viira, Muhu
• The manor that sank into Kaali lake
• The barn that sank into Iieniidi spring
• The guarded treasure of Koigi bog
• Where Suur Tõll lies buried
• Suur Tõll and the laughing women of Karja
• Black footprints: how Mustjala got its name
• The hammer that flew between Kärla and Kaarma
• Suur Tõll's nose print at Ninase
• The hoof hole of Tupenurme
• The Devil who drank Lake Järise
• Lake Sarapiku, the Devil's handful of sand
• Tondijaagu hill on Vilsandi
• Vaivere and Reo: names from the Devil's fall
• Unimäe, the hill where Tõll overslept
• The ship-furrow of Igaküla
• The coffin stone on the Põitse road
• Salme river and the curse on Sõrve's bees
• The thirty-six springs of Tõlliniit
• Pääkse pines on Lake Lümanda
• Harilaid, a sandbank from a giants' quarrel
• Kajumägi and the lost money cauldron
• Penimägi, the Devil's unfinished wall at Karja
• The hills of Pao near Pöide church
• How Maasilinn got its name
• Undva, where Tõll drove the wolves into the sea
• Türju, where Tõll drove the invaders into the sea
• Hirmuste, the hill of dread
• Tõll's beam in Linnulaht
• Uduvere, the village of blood and mist

Mystery or the unexplained 7 all over Estonia →

• The Salme ship burials
• The stones that fell on Kaanda farm
• The gold serpent ring of Ure
• Viking coins of a troubled Saaremaa
• The pagan signs on Karja church's ceiling
• Night at noon: the total eclipse of 1914 on Saaremaa
• A meteor roars over Vilsandi

True crime 5 all over Estonia →

• A raid at Reina ends in a fatal wound
• Bodies under the powder cellar of Kuressaare castle
• The islanders who arrested Ruhnu's Soviet garrison
• Kesselaid, the island that was to be Estonia's Sakhalin
• The wreck strippers of Tagamõisa and their 'nori' boats

Smugglers, spies & escapes 4 all over Estonia →

• Ruhnu's Swedes leave for Sweden
• The Nordstern sails from Kuressaare
• Liiküla cordon, watching the Iron Curtain
• The runaway missile of Oriküla

Shipwreck or sea mystery 15 all over Estonia →

• Three British warships lost off Saaremaa
• The Maasilinn ship, Estonia's medieval survivor
• Unknown wrecks off Ruhnu
• The destroyer Grom in Kassari bay
• The destroyer Okhotnik in the Irbe Strait
• German torpedo boat S31 off Ruhnu
• Marta, bombed in Soela Strait
• Torpedo boat TKA-24 under the guns of two cruisers
• A mystery wreck off Sõrve, probably the Iller
• Volare, the 'Greek ship' stranded in Ariste Bay
• Submarine S-11, sunk in Soela Strait and raised in 1955
• The last German boats lost off Sõrve, autumn 1944
• Islanders free a Dutch ship stranded at Pilguse
• The Norwegian steamer Gimle stranded off Sõrve
• The Norwegian collier Skogland wrecked off Vilsandi

Battle or uprising 12 all over Estonia →

• Siege of Valjala
• Battle of Karuse
• Siege of Pöide Castle
• Operation Albion landing at Tagalaht
• Night battle of Tehumardi
• Battle of the Sõrve peninsula
• Siege of the Muhu stronghold
• Surrender of Kuressaare
• Saaremaa uprising
• The failed landing at Vintri
• Gliders over Kübassaare
• Bombers for Berlin from Kogula

Fire, flood or disaster 9 all over Estonia →

• November storm of 1969
• Kuressaare learns to build in stone
• The giant hail of Sõrve
• Two girls and a man against a wolf at Pihla, Karja
• Professor Hausmann digs the Kalmumägi grave at Oriküla
• Twenty-nine people adrift on the ice to Kesselaid
• Ruhnu's winter of drifting ice and trapped steamers
• Four Kuressaare boys lost on the sea ice
• Ruhnu's mailmen cross the drifting ice to Saaremaa

Famous life 7 all over Estonia →

• Bellingshausen's birthplace at Lahetaguse
• Juhan Smuul's Koguva and his wandering statue
• Ruhnu's seal hunters and their three-day rule
• A bride for the bachelor stag of Abruka
• The 'jumpers' of Piila
• A bear walks across the ice to Saaremaa
• The Kuressaare medium who took dictation from Goethe

First or record 3 all over Estonia →

• Vaika, the Baltics' first bird sanctuary
• Professors measure the Kaali crater, 1927
• The first airmail lands on the ice at Ruhnu

Film or book location 2 all over Estonia →

• Men Don't Cry on Kõinastu islet
• Melchior the Apothecary at Kuressaare castle

Remembered by people who were there 8 all over Estonia →

• Villagers of Suuremõisa on Muhu remember their village
• Vladimir Maripuu remembers founding Estonia's first collective farm in Sakla
• Survivors remember the forced removal of the Sõrve people from Mõntu in 1944
• Heino Tuum remembers the deportation of March 1949 in Kihelkonna
• Old Saaremaa sailors remember shipbuilding at Tagalaht
• Arseni Aedma, the self-taught master of Matsi farm
• Mustjala and the other '-jala' villages of Saaremaa talk, 1969
• Jüri Tuulik on Abruka, the island of his books

Castle or fort 4 all over Estonia →

• Pöide Castle
• Ridala kindlustatud asula
• Asva fortified settlement
• Kaali fortified settlement

Ancient hillfort 10 all over Estonia →

• Kaarma hill fort
• Pöide hill fort
• Purtsa hill fort
• Päälda hill fort
• Valjala Stronghold
• Muhu hill fort
• Kihelkonna maalinn
• Paatsa maalinn
• Pidula maalinn
• Võhma maalinn

Manor 22 all over Estonia →

• Kaali Manor
• Loona Manor
• Paju Manor
• Loona Manor
• Pidula Manor
• Võlla Manor
• Elme Manor
• Ilpla Manor
• Kandla Manor
• Karja Manor
• Kasti Manor
• Koikla Manor
• Kotlandi Manor
• Lahetaguse Manor
• Lööne Manor
• Muratsi Manor
• Mustjala Manor
• Mõntu Manor
• Parasmetsa Manor
• Pilguse Manor
• Roobaka Manor
• Võhksa Manor

Folk song 20 all over Estonia →

• Folk song from Muhu: “Sirise, sirbikene!”
• Folk song from Kaarma: “Sõõru, lehmakene!”
• Folk song from Mustjala: “Metsa puid raiuma”
• Folk song from Mustjala: “Nooriku virkuseõpetus”
• Folk song from Muhu: “Teomehe nädalapäevad”
• Folk song from Orinõmme: “Lastelaule, mõistatusi, lüpsilaul”
• Folk song from Kallaste: “Muhu saare laulikud ja pillimehed”
• Folk song from Suuremõisa: “RAHVALOOMINGU VARASALVEST. Pauline Vapper 01”
• Folk song from Suuremõisa: “RAHVALOOMINGU VARASALVEST. Pauline Vapper 02”
• Folk song from Suuremõisa: “Esineb Pauline Vapper. 02”
• Folk song from Suuremõisa: “Suuremõisa küla laulik Pauline Vapper”
• Folk song from Nõmmküla: “Esineb Muhu rahvalaulik Raissa Uulits”
• Folk song from Liiva-Putla: “Esineb perekond Kald Muhumaalt”
• Folk song from Muhu: “Esinevad Muhu rahvamuusikud Rudolf Kindel ja Vassili Saarkoppel”
• Folk song from Laheküla: “Oh sa armas aeg nüid aga (Sepa maja)”
• Folk song from Laheküla: “Sie Muhumaa üks merelaid”
• Folk song from Laheküla: “Oh poisid, jätke kurvastus”
• Folk song from Laheküla: “Laul oli otsas, nüid mina puhka”
• Folk song from Laheküla: “Nüid algavad nuodiluod (tantsulaul, labajalg)”
• Folk song from Laheküla: “Kus lõpeb aga meie põllusiht”

Ancient site 12

• Pähkla Spring
• Tuulingumägi
• Viltina stone grave
• Mäla stone grave
• Liiva-Putla stone grave
• Loona stone grave
• Lümanda Leedri Kabeliväli
• Pajumõisa settlement site
• Naakamäe asulakoht
• Tuiu Rauasaatmemäed
• Kuningate haud
• Tornimäe asulakoht

Landscape 1

• Kaali crater

Memorial or cemetery 7

• Monument to the War of Independence in Valjala
• Tumala manor cemetery
• Monument to the War of Independence in Kuressaare
• Tehumardi memorial
• Tehumardi cemetery
• Kudjape Cemetery
• Monument to Juhan Smuul

Historic recording 3

• Estonian folk music festival in Kuressaare, 1991
• Tagaranna Sass, the fiddler of Kantsi, 1956
• The radio guest studio visits Kaarma kolkhoz, Saaremaa, 1975

Sacred stone, spring or grove 9

• Väkra sacrificial stone
• Mualjakivi offering stone, Koguva
• Mualjastekivi offering stone, Lõetsa
• Võlla tamm
• Sacred site at Kaali
• Hiiekivi offering stone, Kehila
• Viidumäe grave and sacred site, Viidu-Mäebe
• The healing footprint stone of Viki
• Kalev's stone at the gate of Kuressaare castle

Erratic boulder 22

• Pireti kivi e. Silla suurkivi
• Suur-Tõlli kerisekivi; Suure Tõllu kerisekivi; Raka kivi
• Hookivi e. Hobusekivi; Ookivi
• Kiratsi rändrahn; Kiratsi ristikivi
• Aavakivi; Kõrkvere hiidrahn
• Sauemäe kivi; Saumäe kivi
• The dog stone of Parasmetsa
• Tõll's fist stone at Hämmelepa
• Footprints of the cabbage race at Suure-Rootsi
• The Devil's bagpipe stone at Kaavi
• The Devil's footprint stone at Lõmala
• The petrified boat of Atla
• The cockcrow stone of Mätasselja
• The red stone of Piiri forest
• The apron stone and springs of Rinsi
• The flicked stone between Lõetsa and Lalli
• The rooster of Pälli: seize the stone carrier!
• Piret's stone on Lõuka hill at Merise
• The Old Boy's stone at Kõruse
• The giant stone in Kulli pasture
• The Devil's stairway to heaven at Igaküla
• The stone at Kandla in Kärla

Historic building 2

• Kuressaare suursild
• Sadamaait

Church or chapel 11

• Jaani Church
• Kihelkonna St. Michael's Church
• St. Lawrence's Church
• Kärla Church
• Pöide Church
• Tiirimetsa house of prayer
• Ruhnu Church
• St. Nicholas Orthodox Church
• Karja Church
• Valjala Church
• Muhu St. Catherine's Church

Lighthouse 9

• Laidunina Lighthouse
• Vilsandi Lighthouse
• Ruhnu Lighthouse
• Kiipsaare Lighthouse
• Sõrve Lighthouse
• Abruka Lighthouse
• Anseküla Lighthouse
• Viirelaid lighthouse
• Kübassaare Lighthouse

Protected tree 1

• The pine that grew from the Devil's beehive

Archive documentary 3

• A motor schooner is launched at Kihelkonna, 1937
• Icebreaker Merikaru opens the Muhu crossing, 1935
• The Sõrve lifeboat crew at practice, 1940

Campsites 13 all over Estonia →

• Abula campsite
• Elda campsite
• Harilaiu campsite
• Käkisilma campsite
• Kalasma campsite
• Karjääri campsite
• Konati campsite
• Kulpri campsite
• Meiuste campsite
• Raketi campsite
• Triigi campsite
• Tuhkana campsite
• Veere campsite

Free forest huts 2 all over Estonia →

• Ninanuki forest hut
• Sopi forest hut

Nature houses 1

• Mändjala Nature House

Saunas 4 all over Estonia →

• Hiievälja smoke sauna
• Pidula Forell holiday village saunas
• Grand Rose SPA sauna centre
• Loode farm smoke sauna

Hiking trails 1 all over Estonia →

• Vilsandi hiking trail (6 km and 8 km)

Nature study trails 10 all over Estonia →

• Abula-Kalasma study trail (11,2 km)
• Allikasoo study trail (2,5 km)
• Audaku study trail (2.3 km)
• Harilaiu study trail (12 km)
• Kalja study trail (1 km)
• Koigi study trail (5,7 km)
• Loode oak stand study trail (2.8 km)
• Mändjala study trail (1,6 km)
• Viieristi study trail (1 km)
• Viidumäe pärandkultuuri õpperada (3,3 km)

Observation towers 4 all over Estonia →

• Koigi study trail’s observation tower (1.5 km from the parking)
• Loodenina observation tower
• Rauna rest stop and observation tower
• Vilsandi hiking trail’s observation tower (900 m from Vikati Harbour)

Viewpoints 7

• Kaali meteorite crater
• Mihkel Rand’s arboretum
• Suure Tõllu kerisekivi rest stop
• Veere observation platform
• Vikati information hut and campfire site
• Ameerika mets
• Viidumäe väliekspositsioon

Rest stops 6

• Harilaiu rest stop
• Järve rest stop
• Keskranna rest stop
• Taimeaia rest stop
• Väike-Vilsandi rest stop
• Viieristi rest stop

Visitor centres 1

• Vilsandi National Park Visitor Center

• Panga cliff
• Sõrve lighthouse
• Kaali meteorite crater
• Kuressaare castle
• Vilsandi
• Angla windmills
• Koguva village
• Kiipsaare lighthouse
• Ninase cliff
• Pöide church
• Karujärv
• Abruka island
• Ruhnu island