The Forest Trail is part of the European long-distance walking route E11 in the Baltic States, passing through the most beautiful forests and national parks in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. The route starts on the Polish-Lithuanian border from the town of Lazdijai, continues in Latvia via Riga and reaches Tallinn in Estonia.
Name in Latvia: Mežtaka
Name in Lithuania: Forest Trail
Name in Estonia: Forest Hiking Trail
Length: ~ 2 141 km, 102-114 days
- In Lithuania - 747 km, 36-38 days
- In Latvia - 674 km, 31-38 days
- In Estonia - 720 km, 35-38 days
The route is divided into ~ 20 km long sections, indicating the accommodation and transport providers.
Road surface: forest roads and paths, gravel roads, asphalt road edges, sandy or rocky beaches.
In Lazdijai district, the Forest Trail starts a little further than 1 km from the Lazdijai Tourism Information Center on the Lithuanian-Polish border. The forest trail winds along the Lazdijai-Augustów road (No. 135), then turns into a small rural-forest road, which served as a border protection road during the Iron Curtain. In this section there are beautiful and wide views of the arable land in the Sūduva Uplands. After crossing a more open area in front of Kučiūnai village, the Forest Trail dives into the wooded surroundings again. After about 5.5 km, the route turns east, continues to meander through a maze of forests and lakes, crosses the Zapsė River and meets the Lazdijai – Kučiūnai – Veisiejai road (No. 2510). After less than 6 km, the route turns right to Dainaviškės village. Bypassing the bays of Lake Veisiejai, the Forest Trail leads to the city center through the park of Veisiejai Manor. The section to the town of Veisiejai leads to the territory of Veisiejai Regional Park.
After leaving the center of Veisiejai town, the Forest Trail crosses the gutter of Lake Veisiejai, then leads along Vytautas, Turgaus and Leipalingio streets (road No. 134) to the shore of Lake Snaigynas, where you can find an observation tower and resorts. After cutting a small forest massif near Veisiejai, the Forest Trail leads about 1.4 km on the Veisiejai – Barčiai (No. 2529) road, then turns right. The route continues to meander through a beautiful pine forest near Lake Ančia, which is rich in berries and mushrooms. Turning to the east, the Forest Trail approaches the village of Barčiai from the south. It continues to Lake Trikoji through cereal fields. At the bay of Lake Trikoji, the Forest Trail crosses wooded areas, getting closer to the road no. 2517. This section of the Forest Trail winds through the Veisiejai Regional Park.
From Trikoji lake and Bertašiūnai village Forest trail on road no. 2517 goes south, crosses the Leipalingis – Kapčiamiestis road (No. 2505) and Viktarinas village. The trail then turns around Lake Stirta and winds its way through wide forest massifs with places of sight and small villages. In summer, the forest is rich in blueberries and mushrooms. The forest trail crosses a canal connecting the White Bals and Black Bols lakes, rises on the steep bank of the lake and turns south. In this place you can see the village of Didžiasalis. The section from Lake Trikoji to Viktarinas village runs in the territory of Veisiejai Regional Park.
Information from the website https://baltictrails.eu/lt/forest
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