Study tour programs leave room for some improvisation depending on the weather conditions – in March we can have snow as well as the first green leaves and birds singing.
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(For Parks&Benefits partners and Europarcs Nordic Baltic section members) |
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| March 23 |
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16:00
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Departure from hotel Radisson Blu Daugava hotel to Ķemeri National park
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Accommodation in spa hotel Arkādija.
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Evening meal
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Video film about Ķemeri National Park
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In late evening, owl excursions in small groups.
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March 24
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Breakfast
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09:00
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Excursion "Following the healing bonanza of Ķemeri National Park".
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Sites to see: Ķemeri historical resort (landscape park, sanatorium, sulphur spring “Little Lizard”), Administration building of Ķemeri National Park “Forest House”
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Short excursions in sanatorium "Jantarnij Bereg" and rehabilitation centre “Jaunķemeri” – use of healing resources in the past and nowadays
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Lunch in holiday centre “Valguma Pasaule” with short outdoor exercise afterwards.
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Short movie about the Soviet times in Ķemeri Resort and a tour around the venue.
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16:00
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Arrival in Riga or departure to partner meeting in Ķemeri national park.
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| 07:30 |
Departure from the conference venue - Radisson Blu Daugava hotel. |
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On the way, coffee at a country guest house.
The day's programme with Mrs. Dace Sāmīte, the director of the Slītere national park, will highlight the protected nature values in the park. You will see the unique landscape of kangari (long linear dunes) that alternate with vigas (narrow, marshy depressions). Kangari are covered with dry pine forests but vigas are dominated by fens. In one of the widest vigas lie the lakes Lielais Pēterezers and Mazais Pēterezers. Some beaver dams can be easily reached from the road. You will see Wooded dunes, a type of boreal forest which is a rare biotope in Europe while seen in large areas in Latvia. The 200 year old broad-leaved tree forests by the Lighthouse of Sītere lighthouse are called the "Nordic Rainforest". The Lighthouse was built in 1849, and it is the second oldest navigational building in Latvia. The height of the lighthouse is 102 m above sea level. It offers a wonderful view over coastal forests in Slītere National Park and over the sea as far as the Saaremaa Island in Estonia. During its operation (until 1999) the Lighthouse of Slītere was one of the highest lighthouses on the Baltoc seacoast and also the most distant (5.3 km) lighthouse from the sea in Latvia.
For lunch, tasting of traditional local foods, like fried Baltic herrring, smoked fish, "sklandrauši" and "pīrāgi" pastries in guest house "Pītagi". Final stop at the Cape Kolka (Domesnes) which is first mentioned around 1040AD on a rune stone on the Selaoen Island in Sweden. Cape Kolka is the symbol of the Western coastline of Latvia, where the Baltic Sea ends and the Gulf of Riga begins.
At ~16:00 hot meal on the way back at the guest house "Laumas", where the host has developed nature trails and offers nature educational excursion programs for schools and adults. The Slītere national park representatives will join the group here to discuss the day's impressions and answer questions. |
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| ca 20:00 |
Back in Riga. |
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