The best waterfall hikes and walks in Vidzeme

Gauja sandstone outcrop in the ravine at the left bank of Vējupīte. The highest point in the ravine is 11.5 m (~34 ft). A small triangular cave has formed in the rock wall. The high vertical walls are covered with visitors' names, dates, and random drawings. A small triangle-shaped cave, about 5 meters deep has formed in the wall. There is an old story about Raven's ravine. In the old days, there was a very kind "vagars" - a supervisor of serfs. He treated the serfs with dignity and would even defend them in the face of a baron. For this reason, the barons could not stand him and threw him down in the ravine. So the man disappeared and people could not find him until they saw a flock of ravens flying over the ravine. Then they descended down and found the body of the poor man and ever since then this ravine has been called Raven's ravine.

Paradise Hill is also called Painter's Hill because the view over the Gauja Valley and the towers of Turaida castle with the Gauja River 80m below has been painted by famous Latvian landscape artists such as Jūlijs Feders (1838-1909), Janus Rosentāls (1866-1916), and Vilhelms Purvitis (1872-1945).

Kropotkin's family cemetery in Sigulda was established at the end of the 18th century in a beautiful place with a view on Gauja valley and Turaida castle towers. It is known that Olga Kropotkina, born as von der Borch and the mother of Prince Nikolai Kropotkin, was buried here in year 1898. To honour her memory, a memorial plaque with moulding has been installed in the Sigulda Lutheran Church. Today, this plaque is stored at Turaida Museum Reserve. Sister of Prince Nikolai Kropotkin - Aleksandra Sarina, born as Kropotkina, was buried in the family cemetery before the World War I. It is possible that grandmother of Olga Kropot- Laval, also lies in this ground. Memories of Sigulda's people bear witnesses that Kropotkin's nanny Helena, who worked at the family for many years, could be buried here, as well. In 2014 the last legatee of Kropotkin's family - Nikolai Kropotkin (1924-2014), who was born and spent his life in Germany, was laid to rest here. Here have been reburied Nikolai's wife Nina Kropotkina (1919-2005), born Knecht- Hansherly, father Dmitri Kropotkin (1895-1931), mother Nina Kropotkina (1901-1940), born as Stolnikov and his grandfather Nikolai Kropotkin (1872-1937). Burial place was restored by Sigulda district municipality. Nobiliary roots of the Russian family of Kropotkin's stretch back to Grand Princes of Smolensk. Fun fact, Peter Kropotkin, arguably the foremost theorist of the anarchist movement, also belongs to the same family. He was a cousin to the builder of Sigulda New Castle.

Very nice view point quite close to the parking lot via flat terrain. Then for more adventures by the river Gaujas, let’s take the stairs and go down !

Cliff and cave, with some history (a sign post is describing in Latvian and English the history of the place). The colors with the snow are really amazing. Not that far away from the view spot above, even if tired, do the detour ! Then the way down to the bottom of the ravine is really nice, and the stream twisting on the bottom is really deserving a sight.