Lasīt tālāk
10.Aug
1836 - FIRST DAY OF THE FOURTH EXPEDITION
30 Jul
- 2016 -
Author
Andis Pikāns
2016-08-05
We are awoken by the sound of motor saws that are operating in the nearby forest. The men have worked throughout the night to eliminate the effects of the 3rd July thunderstorm, because the epicenter was here, in Zvārtava parish. Agrita says that the tornado started very suddenly, the muggy swelter turning into a tornado in 15 minutes. This is a great loss for people who own the forest lands, because the trees destroyed by the hurricane can only be used for firewood.
Fredis has to fix the handle bar that was bent in yesterday’s accident and we find the needed tools in Agrita’s shed.
Agrita assists with the repair work and recalls her youth and how she rode through the country on the backseat of her boyfriend’s motorcycle. Our next destination is ravines of Kalameci-Markuzi, which are near Gaujiena, eight kilometers from the Estonian border. Jānis Cimiņš says his goodbye and leaves his Garmin GPS device with us. We can’t take Fredis’ route because the forest is torn up after the storm.
At three pm. we are covered in mud and, sporting this look, ride through Gaujiena town. After a couple of kilometers, we enter the ravines, which are relatively untouched and breathtakingly beautiful. There are several waterfalls, caves and uncovered layers of earth. Kalamecu river flows through the ravines and there are 7 waterfalls.
The ravines are surrounded by houses built from dolomite which remind me of similar structures I’ve seen in South Asia jungle. We dreamed of sleeping in a hay shed and we’ve finally find such spot, only 100 m from the ravines, with fresh hay and a roof over our heads. At the campfire, a curious young doe and a pair of cranes visit us. We want to stay longer, but other duties call.
Ape and Raganu cliffs are our destination. Renārs manages to find a spot for the Huskies at Matīss Karro friend’s Aivo Līv’s place and that is where we finish the expedition. We’ll meet again next week in Ape moto race track and in a guerilla bunker on the border!
