A New RMK Nature Centre Has Opened in Soomaa
Text Timo Raussi Photos RMK
Located between Pärnu and Viljandi, Soomaa National Park has gained a new visitor centre serving nature tourists. The opening of the new RMK—State Forest Management Centre—nature house was celebrated last weekend. The building is located in the very heart of the national park, making it equally accessible from both the Viljandi and Pärnu directions, about a 35-minute drive from the Tallinn–Pärnu highway, on the site of the former Kõrtsi-Tõramaa farm.
The staff at the nature house can advise visitors on the park’s sights, trails, guided nature services, and free camping areas, as well as on the rules in force within the national park. Visitor groups can book a meeting room and an educational nature presentation at the centre. Hikers travelling along the Oandu–Aegviidu–Ikla long-distance hiking trail, which passes through the national park, can rest at the centre, charge their phones, and use the free Wi-Fi. The nature house also features a new interactive exhibition about traditional dugout boats.
Soomaa is best known for its so-called fifth season—the extensive flooding that occurs in spring and sometimes also in late autumn or winter. Throughout the year, visitors can explore and admire vast bog and fen landscapes, winding rivers and their wildlife, as well as forest meadows that bloom with colourful flowers in summer. As is typical of wetland areas, Soomaa is rich in insects, which serve as food for the area’s diverse birdlife.
Among the most popular attractions in the national park are the Riisa and Kuuraniidu nature trails, various birdwatching towers and suspension bridges, as well as the Ingatsi boardwalks, which lead to Europe’s highest raised bog ridge, rising eight metres above the surroundings.
The visitor centre is open during the winter season, from September to May, Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 to 16:00, and in summer Monday to Friday from 9:00 to 17:00 and Saturday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00. Further information and detailed driving directions can be found here.
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