A gastronomic adventure dedicated to Latvian and Baltic natural ciders and their harmony with food, with an emphasis on local small bakeries and cheese producers. Cider makers will share their stories and experience, sommeliers and cider experts from Latvia and abroad will share their recommendations, chefs will discover the best combinations of food and cider to share a unique taste experience with gourmets. Guests are especially invited to appreciate the ciders produced in Latvia and the Baltics in accordance with local products - rye bread or rye flour products and cheese.

The Bread and Cider festival will mean a meeting between the Rye Road and the Cider Route – two culinary tourism routes which inform visitors about bearers of Latvian identity – traditional rye bread, as well as cider that is made from natural Latvian apples.

On July 31, people honour the new harvest of rye bread at the Āraiši windmill. This year the festival will have a broader sound, because Latvian cider made of apples will be involved.  This symbolises the merger of ancient and new traditions. Rye bread has long since been the bearer of ancient Latvian culinary traditions. Cider, in turn, is a new identity product for Latvia, because cider culture began to appear only 30 years or so ago. We are justified to be proud of our bread and cider that is put on the festival table. It can be brought as a housewarming gift or enjoyed on an everyday basis.

As we observe public interest in a healthy and natural life environment, there is a new way of learning about countryside tourism.  This allows urban residents to “adapt” to a rural life model so as to think about a lifestyle change or simply spend a few days like a “rural resident.”  This is a story about a lifestyle that changes accustomed ideas about the countryside, creating a rural environment which merges traditional and contemporary values.

Fully completed – with marking signs, maps, guidebooks and specialised website – the Baltic Trails are there offering marvellous nature experiences to hikers in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The Baltic Coastal Hiking Route and the Forest Trail are two long distance hiking trails in the Baltic States. Jointly referred to as the Baltic Trails, they open Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania for the world’s hiking community, and are linked with the European network of long-distance hiking paths. Trail developers have put great effort in exploring the trail in full length, involving local communities to set the best route and prepare for visitors, marking and signposting the trails, producing guidebooks and maps. Hiking in the Baltic States means enjoying great nature diversity and true local hospitality. 

Join our 17 km scenic Forest Trail section #95 from Kandava to Sabile (Zviedru cepure) Spring Hike on April 23. Bring hiking boots, drinking water, spare socks, and remember to dress accordingly to weather. The hike route starts at 9:00 at Ozolaji open-air stage in Kandava (GPS: 57.030567, 22.773616).

>>> EVENT PROGRAM (PDF).

Registration >>> ej.uz/springhikingfestival.
Registration for the event closes midnight on the 10th of April or earlier if the maximum number of participants is reached. Participation – free.

The Pan-Baltic hiking online conference on November 9, 2021will celebrate the success of the Baltic Trails (baltictrails.eu) connecting Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania with the European network of hiking paths as part of the routes E9 (Baltic Coastal Hiking) and E11 (Baltic Forest trail).

The conference will bring together stakeholders sharing experiences in planning, implementation, management and maintenance of long distance cross-border hiking trails. The keynote speeches will present experiences from the Baltics, Sweden and Norway. Presentations will be followed by Baltic panel discussions highlighting challenges and solutions in practical aspects such as local acceptance and support, benefits and sustainability of long distance hiking trails.

Please register to receive the conference Zoom link!

>>>The registration is open until 05.11.2021.
>>> Full programme (PDF).
The conference working language is English.

>>> Contacts and information: anna@celotajs.lv.

With a hiking tour on September 4 in Lahemaa national park, Estonia the Forest Trail will be launched as part of E11 long distance hiking path of the European hiking path network. Everybody is welcome to join the 13km opening hike from Vainupea to Oandu villages in Lahemaa national park: Forest Trail section #41.

Tallinn in Estonia is the final destination in the E11 long distance hiking path of the European hiking path network. The E11 route goes: Scheveningen (NL)–Osnabrück (D)–Potsdam (D)–Poznań (PL)–Ogrodniki (PL)–Lazdijai (LIT)–Rīga (LAT)–Tallinn (EST).

Event PROGRAMME and REGISTRATION.

!!!! Only people who can show a COVID-19 certificate will be able to participate or negative test not earlier then 72hours.

Baltic Coastal Hiking is a part of E9 long distance hiking route along the Baltic Sea coast. It starts in Nida resort town, Lithuania, near the border of Lithuania and Russia; crosses Latvia through Rīga and ends in Tallinn, Estonia. This is a map of the Southern Part of the Baltic Coastal Hiking for hikes in Lithuania and Latvia from Nida resort town on the border of Lithuania and Russia to Rīga.

Due to Midsummer holidays and the postponed working day, the office of "Lauku ceļotājs" will be closed from June 23-27. We will work on June 21-22 and then return on June 28. Happy Midsummer!

Kas jāzina un kam jāpievērš uzmanība pirms dodies atpūsties “Zaļajās brīvdienās”? Pēc kādiem kritērijiem atpūtas vietas Latvijā izvēlas trīs bērnu mamma un TV personība Dace Grimze? Ko ģimene iegūst, atpūšoties Latvijas laukos, “Zaļā Sertifikāta” saimniecībās?

Ieskaties https://www.celotajs.lv/zalais.

Materiāls tapis ar Latvijas Vides aizsardzības fonda atbalstu.