Digital Wanderer

We live as long as we fly

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Snowdrop Walk on April 3, Vabole and Līksna, Part 2

2011-07-12

вылазки хайкинг туризм латгале латвия природа друзья подснежник фото

So, we continue walking towards Daugavpils. Līksna is already behind us, but ahead lies the ice drift. To be honest, I've forgotten everything due to the passage of time, I only remember that it was unrealistically cool. I never thought that walking, especially not in the summer, could be so cool, but here it was on par with my best bike trips.

Spring landscape with a narrow river, the banks of which are covered with dry grass, reeds, and thawed patches of snow. Tall leafless trees stand along the river under a clear blue sky. 

Such a river wouldn't be an obstacle for us, but we don't need to get to the other side

Early spring in the countryside: a narrow stream flows through a brown field with remnants of white snow. Bare trees and a clear blue sky are visible in the background. 

It's even boring, you don't have to jump or wade across

An old knotty tree trunk with rough textured bark covered in moss, and a large break where a branch used to be, exposing the inner wood. In the background, thin leafless branches stretch against a clear blue sky.

Little tree

 A man in a light jacket and green pants with a backpack jumps over a narrow stream. Around him, dry grass, thickets of bare bushes, and patches of melting snow are visible under a blue sky, indicating early spring.

But here you have to jump, which Visla is doing

A person in a brown jacket and green pants jumps over a narrow stream. Around him, bare bushes, patches of melting snow on muddy banks, and a blue sky are visible.

And Oleg too

A man in winter clothes lies in the snow by a rushing stream, smiling broadly at the camera and reaching out a hand dusted with snow.

Barely made the jump, falling right into the abyss, really

IMG_4189

But friends will always extend a stick at the right moment

 Two people with backpacks walk across a spring field with melting snow and dry grass; one is stepping over a small stream. In the distance, bare trees, bushes, and village buildings are visible under a clear blue sky.

That's like, not a jump, but a flutter

 A hiker with a large red backpack and an orange vest energetically crosses a shallow stream, leaning on a trekking pole. Around him is dry grass from last year, bare bushes and trees, and small patches of melting snow.

The stream is just way too shallow

 Dry, golden-brown grass, partially submerged in dark water with white foam bubbles.

Temporary

A beige wall transitioning into a ceiling, decorated with many small golden stars.

Wide is my mother river

 A fallen old tree with massive branches lies in a clearing with dry grass against the backdrop of a village house and a clear blue sky. Next to it stands a green trailer filled with firewood, and a large boulder is visible in the foreground.

Many are her (meaning, nearby) trees

Three men walk across a muddy spring field with patches of melting snow. A body of water is visible on the left, and on the horizon — village houses among bare trees.

Spread out

A man in a beige jacket, green pants, and a black hat walks across a spring field with dry grass, leaning on a trekking pole. Melting snow is visible in the foreground, and bare trees in the background.

 

 Close-up of a man in an orange vest, red backpack, and sunglasses looking at the camera. In the background, out of focus, another man in a dark jacket and hat smiles against a blue sky.

People like this can do anything

Spring landscape with a gloved hand holding a trekking pole over withered grass in meltwater in the foreground. The edge of melting snow is visible in the midground, and a person walks on bare earth in the distance. 

Even trudge ankle-deep in a grass-and-mud slush

IMG_4212

 

A dirt road leads up a hill overgrown with dry grass and leafless bushes, with melting snow along the shoulders. Farm buildings and a silo are visible on the horizon under a clear sky. 

Or they can just take the road

A smiling young man in a bright hat and gray fleece jacket with a backpack holds a trekking pole, looking to the left. He stands against the background of bare bushes and melting snow in early spring.

On the road, the pole is out of a job

 A man in a black hat, orange glasses, and a jacket with a backpack stands on a spring field with withered grass and melting snow. A narrow stream is visible on the right, and trees and village houses on the horizon.

Everyone's got infrared targeting goggles to jump better

So, we continue walking towards Daugavpils. Līksna is already behind us, but ahead lies the ice drift. To be honest, I've forgotten everything due to the passage of time, I only remember that it was unrealistically cool. I never thought that walking, especially not in the summer, could be so cool, but here it was on par with my best bike trips.

Spring landscape with a narrow river, the banks of which are covered with dry grass, reeds, and thawed patches of snow. Tall leafless trees stand along the river under a clear blue sky. 

Such a river wouldn't be an obstacle for us, but we don't need to get to the other side

Early spring in the countryside: a narrow stream flows through a brown field with remnants of white snow. Bare trees and a clear blue sky are visible in the background. 

It's even boring, you don't have to jump or wade across

An old knotty tree trunk with rough textured bark covered in moss, and a large break where a branch used to be, exposing the inner wood. In the background, thin leafless branches stretch against a clear blue sky.

Little tree

 A man in a light jacket and green pants with a backpack jumps over a narrow stream. Around him, dry grass, thickets of bare bushes, and patches of melting snow are visible under a blue sky, indicating early spring.

But here you have to jump, which Visla is doing

A person in a brown jacket and green pants jumps over a narrow stream. Around him, bare bushes, patches of melting snow on muddy banks, and a blue sky are visible.

And Oleg too

A man in winter clothes lies in the snow by a rushing stream, smiling broadly at the camera and reaching out a hand dusted with snow.

Barely made the jump, falling right into the abyss, really

IMG_4189

But friends will always extend a stick at the right moment

 Two people with backpacks walk across a spring field with melting snow and dry grass; one is stepping over a small stream. In the distance, bare trees, bushes, and village buildings are visible under a clear blue sky.

That's like, not a jump, but a flutter

 A hiker with a large red backpack and an orange vest energetically crosses a shallow stream, leaning on a trekking pole. Around him is dry grass from last year, bare bushes and trees, and small patches of melting snow.

The stream is just way too shallow

 Dry, golden-brown grass, partially submerged in dark water with white foam bubbles.

Temporary

A beige wall transitioning into a ceiling, decorated with many small golden stars.

Wide is my mother river

 A fallen old tree with massive branches lies in a clearing with dry grass against the backdrop of a village house and a clear blue sky. Next to it stands a green trailer filled with firewood, and a large boulder is visible in the foreground.

Many are her (meaning, nearby) trees

Three men walk across a muddy spring field with patches of melting snow. A body of water is visible on the left, and on the horizon — village houses among bare trees.

Spread out

A man in a beige jacket, green pants, and a black hat walks across a spring field with dry grass, leaning on a trekking pole. Melting snow is visible in the foreground, and bare trees in the background.

 

 Close-up of a man in an orange vest, red backpack, and sunglasses looking at the camera. In the background, out of focus, another man in a dark jacket and hat smiles against a blue sky.

People like this can do anything

Spring landscape with a gloved hand holding a trekking pole over withered grass in meltwater in the foreground. The edge of melting snow is visible in the midground, and a person walks on bare earth in the distance. 

Even trudge ankle-deep in a grass-and-mud slush

IMG_4212

 

A dirt road leads up a hill overgrown with dry grass and leafless bushes, with melting snow along the shoulders. Farm buildings and a silo are visible on the horizon under a clear sky. 

Or they can just take the road

A smiling young man in a bright hat and gray fleece jacket with a backpack holds a trekking pole, looking to the left. He stands against the background of bare bushes and melting snow in early spring.

On the road, the pole is out of a job

 A man in a black hat, orange glasses, and a jacket with a backpack stands on a spring field with withered grass and melting snow. A narrow stream is visible on the right, and trees and village houses on the horizon.

Everyone's got infrared targeting goggles to jump better

A narrow stream flows through a spring field with dry withered grass under a clear blue sky. One bank of the stream is clear of snow, while the other is covered with a thick layer of melting snow cover.

Sometimes the bank breaks off right under you

Early spring landscape: a vast expanse of water with bare branches of trees and shrubs sticking out of it. Dark silhouettes of leafless crowns dominate the left side of the frame, a dark handrail is visible in the lower right corner, and in the background — a bright blue sky and a strip of distant land.

And sometimes there are boring bridges

 Power lines stretch across a plowed spring field with rare islands of melting snow. A pine forest is visible in the background under a clear blue sky.

And cheerful power lines

 Early spring landscape with melting snow in the foreground, a marshy area with open water and bare bushes, and a coniferous forest with birches against a clear blue sky.

The scenes of the Motherland take your breath away

 Three people walk along a muddy dirt road with large puddles of meltwater and remnants of snow along the edges. Wooden village houses, withered grass, and a coniferous forest under a clear spring sky are visible in the background.

And her puddles

 Bottom-up view of an old pine tree with a thick trunk. Its spreading branches with dense green needles fill most of the frame, through which a bright sky is visible in places.

And crooked little pines

A man in an orange vest lies on his back on dry ground, resting his head on a red backpack. A trekking pole is visible next to him. In the foreground — patches of melting snow, and in the background — pines and bare trees.

Edvin is resting with all his might

 Three men sit on dry grass with thawed patches of snow, against the backdrop of a pine forest under a blue sky. Power line poles and a small building are visible in the distance.

The rest aren't trying quite as hard

Just sitting there, gawking around

 Four men in warm jackets sit outdoors, smiling at the sun. Pines are visible behind them, and the ground is covered with melting snow.

Something like that

While we were sitting, an old lady walked up and in brisk Latgalian started asking who we were and where we were going. To my admiration and shock, Edvin, whose talents we had mostly observed in posing up to this point, glibly started answering her. It's hard enough for me to understand Latvian when it's casual and conversational, and Latgalian made an utterly alien impression. For those out of the loop — I live in Latgale (a part of Latvia), and since there has always been a strong influence of Russians, and, say, Poles here, the local villagers speak some beastly hybrid language that even has the letter "Ы". I think we should fight to make it a state language too — it would undoubtedly help mutual understanding between the Latvian and Russian peoples. The old lady, by the way, informed us that in 1956 the Daugava flooded all the way up to the spot where we were sitting. And that, mind you, is about 15 meters in elevation from the visible bank, and even more in width.

IMG_4239 

A logical bottle — in the forest, a forest one

A man with a large red backpack and in an orange vest stands on a forest dirt road with puddles and points his hand towards the trees. A dense coniferous forest with remnants of melting snow on the shoulder rises around him.

I'm not gonna walk on the road, it's boring! Let's hit the forest instead, right over there!

 A group of tourists with backpacks walks across a dry grassy field with rare patches of snow. A large metal bridge is visible in the background.

Suddenly, the Svente bridge

 Spring ice drift on a wide river with heaps of melting ice floes on the water and along the shore. The opposite snow-covered bank with a strip of leafless trees under a cloudy sky is visible in the background.

And a flood, though not a sudden one

The river during the spring ice drift: numerous ice floes of various sizes float on the wide brown water. Sparse trees and shrubs under a bright cloudy sky are visible on the gentle banks.

I don't know how Oleg timed it so perfectly, but we caught the best part

A wide river during an ice drift, with a large ice floe in the foreground and a forest on the far bank under a cloudy sky.

Giant ice floes drift unhurriedly, but they're not gonna survive anyway

 Spring landscape with a blue sky, dry grass on a slope, dark plowed earth with remnants of melting snow, and bare trees on the horizon.

The circular saw did a number on it. I wonder where the radiolaria is?

 A long gray metal truss bridge on concrete supports crosses a river with drifting ice floes. A forest under a clear blue sky is visible in the background.

The ice drift in all its glory

 Spring landscape with a river during the ice drift, along which numerous ice floes are floating. A flock of wild ducks flies low over the water, and brown fields and a pine forest are visible on the far bank.

The ducks were putting on a whole play for us

 

The ones with green heads are the drakes

 On a body of water with drifting ice floes, several green-headed mallard drakes take off, splashing water.

And the grey-brown ones are the hens

A crowd of drakes was flying after just two hens, after which they would all land on an ice floe together. It would drift up to the bridge, causing the flock to have to fly forward again. And so they kept riding it, like a merry-go-round. From the looks of it, they were planning to do this all day, they weren't getting bored of it.

 In the foreground is the back of a person with a large red-and-gray backpack. Behind them, across a plowed field under a blue sky, walk several more hikers with backpacks and trekking poles.

Watched the enchanting spectacle — and back to walking again

A group of five people with backpacks and trekking poles walks in single file across a plowed field. Remnants of snow are visible on the ground, the sky is clear.

Through the fields

 An empty asphalt road stretches into the distance between fields under a clear sky in early spring or late autumn. On the left in the foreground is the back of a person in a dark jacket and hat, looking along the road.

And even on asphalt. Ew, of course, but you try walking 30 km knee-deep in snow and mud, then we'll see how you feel

 A small old log cabin on a hill amidst dry grass and bare trees in early spring. In the background, a landscape partially covered with melting snow is visible under a clear blue sky. 

A little hut

In early spring, a person in camouflage with a backpack walks along a dirt road beside a river covered with ice floes and a dry field. On the horizon — a forest; along the road — bare trees and utility poles under a clear blue sky.

The lonely trailer of a guesthouse

 A large dark anchor stands on melting snow in front of a massive stone wall, above which tower two wooden log buildings under a bright, slightly overexposed sky. Two tourists with backpacks stand on an asphalt country road amidst fields in early spring or late autumn. One of the men holds a bottle, while the other, in a bright orange vest, leans on a trekking pole.

Suddenly, an anchor

A red ATV with the license plate 'DANIK' parked on a country road next to a large tree, against a backdrop of leafless bushes and melting snow.

Trendy dudes ride ATVs

 A man in a gray hoodie and hat sits on a red-and-black ATV on the road. Behind him stretches a dry landscape with bare shrubs and trees under a bright sun, remnants of snow are visible.

The guy caught up with us, asking who we were and where we were headed

A concrete cubic structure stands in a clearing with dry grass among sparse bare trees and birches. A snow-covered river under a clear blue sky is visible in the background. 

Rainis memorial site. Don't tell anyone, but I desecrated it by taking a leak behind the cube (there was nowhere else to go)

A person's feet on the ground covered in dry leaves: one is bare, the other in a black sock. Muddy hiking boots, a backpack, and a trekking pole lie nearby.

This is how lovely our boots look after the hike

A pair of worn brown leather hiking boots stands on the ground covered with dry autumn leaves and twigs, against the backdrop of an old stone wall in warm sunlight. One boot is standing upright, while the other is toppled on its side.

 

 Two hikers rest on a wooden bench among leafless trees. One is pouring a drink from a thermos into a mug, and the other is looking through the contents of his backpack.

 

A commemorative granite stone with an inscription in Latvian and Russian, installed in a field with dry grass at the site where the Latvian poet Rainis lived. Bare trees and a two-story residential house with a red roof are visible in the background. 

 

A green-and-blue An-2 biplane in camouflage livery stands on a field with withered grass and melting snow. In the background is a cloudy horizon with rare trees and buildings.

 

An old, deformed, and rust-covered green 'STOP' sign is set up on a wasteland with dry grass behind a wire fence. In the background, a gray hangar, outbuildings, and remnants of melting snow are visible under a bright sky.

A rare green stop sign

 A man in a beige jacket, olive pants, and a black hat, with a backpack, walks along an uneven dirt road, leaning on a trekking pole. Around him are dry grass and bare trees.

Visla is marching along as if nothing happened

A man in a black knitted hat, glasses, with a beard and a striped scarf looks directly at the viewer. In the blurred background, a road and three blurry figures walking in the distance are visible.

But Edgar has finally fully realized what he signed up for

 A dry field with long shadows, beyond which is an old wooden fence, several outbuildings, and a row of bare trees under a clear blue sky.

A rare metal fence

 Spring landscape with melting snow on slopes covered with dry last year's grass. On the left is a single-story brick building, on the right grow bare trees, and in the distance, power lines are visible under a clear sky.

Hills

Five men with backpacks and trekking poles walk along a muddy, rutted trail with melting snow. The nearest hiker on the left, in a colorful headband, looks back at the group, against a backdrop of bare trees and a concrete wall under a low sun.

Even at the end, we're walking through the fields, not on the road

 Early spring landscape with melting snow on brown fields, flooded with water in places, and bare shrubs. A wooden pole with wires is visible in the foreground, and the blurry outlines of buildings on the horizon.

Because we are  - a gang the "Snowdrop" club.

Railroad tracks stretch into the distance against the backdrop of a low sun, illuminating a metal portal with signals on the left and a power line support on the right. Leafless trees and reflections in the water are visible on the horizon.

Rails, rails. I always wanted to cross a railway bridge on foot, but there are guards

 A man in a cap with a dog on a leash walks across a dry field in the soft light of sunset or dawn. Silhouettes of trees and power lines are visible in the background.

A young man in an orange jacket with tousled blond hair looks straight into the camera, raising his right hand in a black fingerless glove. He is illuminated by golden light against the blurred background of a country road and a blue sky.

Bye-bye

A smoldering campfire pit with gray ash on dry grass, from which light white smoke is rising.

A volcano

 A river covered in an ice drift, with a bridge and a city on the far bank. A tall industrial chimney and dry grass in the foreground are visible.

In the city, the ice had already completely shattered

A village landscape in the soft sunset light of late autumn or early spring. In the foreground, a tree with exposed bark and a rope swing, dry grass with remnants of snow are visible, and in the background — several old houses. 

Especially for us - might as well just hang ourselves, having marched almost 30 km already

An ice drift is observed on the river, many ice floes float on the water under a bright sky. City buildings behind an earth embankment are visible on the far bank.

Shards of former greatness

People on the riverbank are feeding numerous seagulls and swans. In the background, a road bridge over the ice-filled river, residential buildings, and parked cars are visible.

City folks are feeding the birdies and admiring the sunset 

People, including adults and children, have gathered on the muddy shore of a body of water to feed many seagulls and several swans. A slope with dry grass and remnants of snow is visible in the background, indicating late winter or early spring.

Birdies in more detail

A top-down view of a picturesque lake and a city stretching along the coast at the foot of gentle mountains in a light haze. On the right, green tree branches frame the perspective.

Sunset in more detail

In conclusion, I want to say that this hike was just unrealistically cool. I liked it very much, you rarely experience such impressions in life. Almost a ++++ on the Shulgin scale. (Or as close as I'm even capable of experiencing such a thing). Incredible beauty — and it was my first time watching the moment an ice drift began. It was also a lot of fun, with all these river stormings and fordings. And extremely diverse — you don't get this kind of variety on a bike in the summer, no matter how you spin it: forest, dirt road, highway, and that's about it.

So a huge thanks to Oleg, and to my comrades as well, since everyone turned out to be daredevils and waded into the water themselves. Then again, from the members of the "Snowdrop" club, nothing else was expected!

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