Kõrvemaa

Kõrvemaa is characterised by forests, bogs, mysterious forest lakes and moors. North Kõrvemaa Landscape Protection Area with its centre in Aegviidu, which includes a former Soviet military polygon, and Kõrvemaa Landscape Protection Area with its centre in Simisalu make sure that the natural landscapes remain pristine. Kõrvemaa is a habitat for various protected bird species including the golden eagle, the lesser spotted eagle and the black stork, and a number of fascinating plants.
In northern Kõrvemaa one can hike along the nature study route of Paukjärve, Jussi and Uuejärve. There are watchtowers on the Paukjärve glacial moraine and Venemägi. One of the most remarkable examples of untouched nature is the two-level Kakerdaja bog in Albu in the southern part of Kõrvemaa. Valgehobusemägi Hill nearby has hiking and ski trails and a watchtower.North-Kõrvemaa nature reserve, which covers an area of 12, 961 hectares. The distance to Estonia’s capital Tallinn is only 55 km. So it will take app. 45 minutes by car.

North Kõrvemaa occupies the northern part of Kõrvemaa and is an area full of small hills, forests, lakes and marshes. The nature here has been untouched for decades. During soviet times it was a restricted area where only the military had access. All of this means that the nature here is as wild as you can get. Our hiking trails lead you from our resort to forests, marshes and numerous lakes.

North Kõrvemaa Nature Reserve (Estonian: Põhja-Kõrvemaa looduskaitseala) is a protected area in Harju County, Northern Estonia, some 50 km east of Tallinn. With an area of 130.9 km², it is the third largest nature reserve in Estonia. Dominated by forests and bogs, it aims to protect rare and endangered species, their habitats, and valuable natural landscapes.

History
Põhja-Kõrvemaa Nature Reserve was established in the end of 1991, a few months after Estonia regained its independence. Throughout the Soviet Era a large part of the nature reserve's current territory was used by Soviet Army for military training and as such was closed to the public. The proving grounds were established in 1947 and in 1953 expanded to 33 304 ha (333 km²), making it the biggest Soviet military polygon in Estonia. Still, the Soviet Army damaged only about 10% of the proving grounds' territory, leaving the rest intact. Due to unsuitability for agriculture (poor and/or badly drained soils) the whole region has always been very sparsely populated - in the beginning of 1950s the population density was around 1 people per km² - but still a few hundred people were displaced together with the creation of proving ground.
Põhja-Kõrvemaa nature reserve was formed in the western part of the former Aegviidu polygon, which had been hidden behind the official name of Pavlov Forest District. In the 1990s, Estonian Defence Forces were interested to begin reusing some areas of the former polygon now situated on the nature reserve's territory. However, due to strong opposition by local people and conservationists, the idea was given up. In 2001, Estonian Defence Forces central proving ground was established in the eastern part of the former Soviet military polygon. The Valgejõgi River is the natural divide between the current proving ground and the nature reserve.
From 1997 to 2007 the nature reserves official status was landscape protection area. In 2007 it was expanded from 12,890 to 13,086 hectares and official status changed back to nature reserve. Since 2004 it is part of the European Union Natura 2000 network.

Nature
Forests around Soodla River. The landscape in Põhja-Kõrvemaa took shape in the end of the last Ice Age, when the glacier retreated about 12 000 years ago and is as such a typical glacial landscape. It is characterized by ice marginal formations and glaciolacustrine plains, the latter of which are now mostly covered by extensive bogs and, to a much lesser extent, fens. Forests cover about 40% of the nature reserve's territory and man-made open areas only 10%.
The region is richest in Estonia in ice marginal formations. The most remarkable relief forms of the region are eskers, which form steep-sided ridges of very complex relief that extend to a number of kilometers and are up to 25 m high. Along with eskers there are several kame fields — areas covered with hillocks consisting of sand and gravel. Jussi kame field is the best known in Põhja-Kõrvemaa.
There are more than 30 lakes in Põhja-Kõrvemaa. Most of the lakes are small, situated either in bogs (Kivijärv, Koitjärv, Venejärv and others) or between kames. Jussi Lakes is a group of 6 lakes (spanning from 2 to 20 hectares in area) situated in the eastern part of the Jussi kame field. In addition to the lakes, the three biggest bogs (Koitjärve, Kõnnu Suursoo and Võhma bogs), which cover about half of the territory, have developed extensive ridges of small bog ponds, which can be counted in hundreds.

Flora and fauna
A number of rare or endangered species can be found in Põhja-Kõrvemaa, which is one of the main reasons behind the area's status as a nature reserve. It is home to large predators such as Gray Wolf, Eurasian Lynx and Brown Bear. Small populations of European Mink endured until the beginning of 1990s, but are now disappeared, as in most of Estonia. Protected bird species include Black Stork, Golden Eagle, Capercaillie and Common Crane. 19 species of orchids can be found in Põhja-Kõrvemaa (for example, Goodyera repens and Platanthera bifolia), among other rare plants growing in the area are Pulsatilla patens, Sparganium angustifolium, Isoetes echinospora and Oxytropis sordida (the only place in Estonia where the plant is found).