Lithuania – The Hill of Crosses, Curonian Spit National Park, Klaipeda

Tuesday, October 2

Today’s drive took us from Latvia into Lithuania and through multiple changes of weather along the way.  

Our first stop was the Hill of Crosses, a spot in the Lithuanian countryside where, since the 14^th century, pilgrims have left crosses of every size and material, rosaries, and devotional messages by the hundreds of thousands.  During Soviet times, leaving a cross would lead to arrest, yet the practice continued as a protest against deportation and state-sponsored murder.  The authorities bulldozed the hill multiple times, and in 1961 sealed off access and dug ditches around the base of the hill; overnight more crosses appeared.  And, so it continues to this day.  It’s quite a sight, the scope of which can only be appreciated by climbing the hill and wandering the narrow paths among the stacks of crosses; it’s a bit like a forest maze.

 
















The damp chill of early morning changed to bright sunshine that showed just how lovely the Lithuanian rural landscape is.   Deep green, gently rolling fields were punctuated by the beginnings of fall foliage in the bordering forests; it was picture perfect.

However, as we neared the coast, the sky changed to a dark gray and, as we neared the ferry slip, heavy rains began.  We were headed to the Curonian Spit National Park in hopes of enjoying the dunes, forests, and perhaps some wildlife sightings this afternoon.  The five-minute ferry trip crosses the strait between Klaipeda and the narrow, 60-mile long Spit between the Klaipeda Lagoon and the Baltic Sea.  The National Park encompasses about half the length of the Spit and just beyond the park’s southern boundary is the border with the isolated Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, a part of Russia totally surrounded by EU countries.  

We drove the Lithuanian half of the Spit, through pine forests, several small towns and former fishing villages – all rather quiet on this wet fall day.  At the southern end of the park, we waited out a brief downpour and walked a short path to a viewing platform atop a dune where we had views of the Lagoon, the Baltic, and Russia.  Other than that, and a short walk around the harbor in the town of Nido, the rain, or its wet aftermath, kept us off the parks trails and in the car. 

We took the ferry back to Klaipeda and yet another very nice apartment.  Tomorrow, we head inland to Vilnius, Lithuania’s capital.