Saare (county)

Saare (county)

Estonia’s biggest island in the Saare county is a world of windmills and juniper fields. The **Angla** windmill mount is the best place to see the traditional wooden structures that once covered every hill. Drive south to the **Sõrve** peninsula where the road gets narrower and the sea gets wilder until you reach the tall black and white lighthouse. The tip of the peninsula is a prime spot for watching migratory birds and looking for fossils in the gray coastal rocks. The **Kaali** meteorite crater is a must see with its perfectly round green lake formed by a massive impact thousands of years ago. It was a sacred site for ancient tribes and remains a powerful place to visit. On the north coast the **Panga** cliff offers a sheer drop into the Baltic with stone steps leading down to the waves. You can stand at the very edge and watch the sunset disappear into the endless blue of the northern sea. **Kuressaare** holds a massive stone castle surrounded by a moat where you can walk the ramparts and see the medieval armory. The island roads are straight and flat making it easy to hop between small craft shops selling juniper wood carvings. It is a place of sea salt and ancient stone strength. You will find that the island has its own unique flavor, from the local home-brewed beer to the traditional dark bread.

Saare (county) highlights

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The Scenic Route
The Heritage Drive
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History of Saare (county)

The largest island of Saare county has a history that stretches back to the **Viking Age**, when the local people were known as fierce sailors and warriors. In 1227, it became the very last part of the country to be conquered by crusaders, who had to wait for the sea to freeze over so they could walk their horses across the ice. To keep control of the island, the knights built the massive Kuressaare Castle in the 1380s. It is still the most perfectly preserved medieval fortress in the region. Life on the island was always a struggle against the wind and the sea, which led the locals to build hundreds of wooden windmills to grind their grain. In the 1800s, every farm had its own windmill and its own tradition of brewing strong home made beer. The island was also shaped by a massive meteorite impact thousands of years ago. That impact created a perfectly round lake that ancient tribes considered a sacred and magical place. During the Cold War in the 20th century, the island became a strictly guarded closed zone. For nearly 50 years, it was a military frontier where even people from the mainland needed a special permit to visit. This isolation actually helped preserve the island’s traditional way of life and its clean nature. Today, the roads are open to everyone, leading past old stone walls and remote lighthouses that have watched over the Baltic for centuries.
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