Ghost story
The bottomless Roopjärv and the spirits' road
On the boundary of Palupera and Rõngu lies a small lake called Roopjärv, said to have no bottom at all, only slime. Some men once rowed out to measure it. The first line did not reach the bottom, the second snapped, and the third time they hauled up not their stone but a bloody ram's head, while a voice from the lake warned: "Play on and you'll drown." Herd boys who cursed on its shore were attacked by a grey pig from the water. A farmhand sleeping there at night was dragged away by his feet and told: "Don't lie on the spirits' road!" The little lake lies between Palupera and Rõngu in Elva parish.
Open it on the map See the spot on the old maps and as it is today
Eesti keeles
Palupera ja Rõngu valla piiril on väike umbjärv, mida kutsutakse Roopjärveks ja millel arvati üldse põhja ei olevat, vaid ainult limane pori. Mõned mehed sõudsid kord järve keskele seda mõõtma. Esimene nöör põhja ei ulatunud, teine läks katki ja kolmandal korral tõmbasid nad kivi asemel välja verise oinapea, kusjuures järvest hoiatati: „Kui veel hullate, siis upute järve.” Karjapoisse, kes kaldal vandusid, ründas järvest tulnud hall siga. Sulast, kes öösel kaldal magas, tiriti jalgupidi eemale ja öeldi: „Ära mine vaimude tee peale!” Järveke asub Palupera ja Rõngu vahel Elva vallas.
Source: Estonian Folklore Archives E 27292 (J. Kukrus, 1896), Rehepapp database ↗