Early autumn is the perfect time to visit Kemeri National Park, namely – the footbridge along the bog. There are several reasons for that, firstly, there are not going to be that many bugs. Also the clear nights are perfect for watching the Milky Way and ealry mornings right before sunrise will let you appreciate fog filled scenery.

This swamp is more than 8000 years old and is one of the oldest moss swamps on the Latvian shore. Since the footbridge was renovated in 2013, this place is becoming increasingly more popular among locals. Last time I visited during the night, even at 1 am there was plenty of people, since the park is so close to the capital city Riga. But if you get lucky, you can enjoy the swamp all by yourself, especiallyduring the working week.

Footbridge is easy to walk on, you can use the small or the great circle. The great circle is roughly 3,5 km long, you also have to take into consideration that it doesn’t start right next to the parking lot and you have to walk a bit from it. The second parking lot is not accessible any more due to the sign „no entry” on the road. The main advantage of the great circle is the viewing tower. You also have to take into consideration that there are no garbage cans or restrooms on the footbridge, the last ones are near the parking lot. Everything you take with you, you should also bring back and that includes cigarete butts. Unfortunately, someone already burned a hole in the towers floor in August.

If you plan to walk the footbridge in the morning, firstly check when is the sunrise. You shoould be at the tower at least 30 minutes before sunrise, and walking briskly from the parking lot to the tower takes roughly 25 minutes, so you should be at the parking lot at least an hour before sunrise. The mornings are chilly here, so you will appreciate and extra coat, blanket, flashlight, thermos and some breakfast. Last time we went there in the morning, one couple was already there, well prepared – not only they had coffee, tea, mineral water, but also a pan, gas for cooking, eggs, bacon, olives, pesto and a ton of other delicacies. We were just fine with out hot water thermos, some tea bags and sandwiches and protein bars from the gas station.

If you are lucky, the day will be slightly cloudy, this makes for the best colors during the sunrise, bright oranges and pinks. You will also appreciate the numerous spider webs covered in dew. The smallest ones on the ground will look like snow and the largest one are on the trees. You will hear birds waking up in the distance. With the sunrise the fog will start to rise, so it’s worth to go down and explore the path underneath the fog. You will also see the unique insect-eating plant sundew which does not grow anywhere else.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures, all of those done by my husband Jekabs Andrushaitis, check out his Facebook page for more wonderful pictures.

Pictures and text copyrighted to Jekabs Andrusaitis and Alina Andrusaite.