Last Updated on July 12, 2024
In this article I will let you know how to reach the highest peak of Estonia Suur Munamägi and I will also share my personal experience with you. The mountain is located in a beautiful location in the Estonian national park Haanja looduspark. From its peak and tower you can have a nice view of the surrounding countryside and the local restaurant even offers a beer with the peak’s name. Follow my journey to this surprisingly nice mountain.
Important information for visiting the highest point of Estonia – Suur Munamägi
Short description of the ascent: Short easy walk
Essential equipment: Nothing special, it's a short walk
Best time to visit: All year round
Fees or restrictions: No
Camping allowed: Yes, wild camping is allowed but not on private land
Nearest recommended accommodation: Small camping houses in Haanja
Height of the peak: 317 m
Hiking distance: 305 m
Time to ascend: 10 minutes (one way)
Difficulty level: * (6 stars maximum)
Personal rating of the mountain: *** (6 stars maximum)
Beer on the peak: Suur Munamäe vaatetorn ***** (6 stars maximum)
Map of the route to Suur Munamägi
My story of reaching Suur Munamägi with personal tips
I arrived from Stockholm to Riga on a famous cruise ship with many partying people on board. My goal was to find a scooter and use it for the visit of both the Estonian and Latvian highest peak. That appeared to be a problem. I did neither find any online renter, nor did the local tourist information office have any tips. Luckily, my hostel reception gave me a tip to a local ice-hockey player whose passion was Vespa scooters. He rented me one.
Don’t bring a heavy backpack on your scooter
His advice to drive with a backpack on my back all the way was not the smartest though. Carrying 20 kg on a 500 km long journey on Baltic roads was a bit too much for my back, especially because half of the Latvian roads that I used were gravel ones.
The first peak beer
I estimated to travel to Suur Munamägi in around 4 hours (214 km) but it became a whole day trip in the end. I was lucky to come just before the closing time of the tower. Lucky me because I really liked the view. Extra points coming to the tower’s cashier who brought me a trophy from the already closed restaurant – a cold beer named after the peak.
Crazy mosquitoes at Suur Munamägi
What a nice evening even though I missed the sunset! And it could be even better if I had booked some accommodation in advance. Since my enjoyment of the local beer and photography took some time I left the tower at 22:00 and that was quite late to find a place to sleep. My first idea was to sleep by the tower but that idea didn’t end up to be smart because of too many neighbors in mosquito bodies.
I was looking for a more suitable spot then and I found a really nice place on a stand of a biathlon stadium. Thanks to a lot of concrete there was a smaller amount of these annoying insects and my sleeping place also offered a beautiful sunrise.
The next morning I came back for the sunrise to finally enjoy the mountain during daylight. Capturing the first sun rays with my drone was amazing.
My tips for Suur Munamägi
- Book your accommodation in advance.
- Bring a lot of mosquito repellent.
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