Lahemaa with kids and dogs: Käsmu boulders, the Altja village swing and the Oandu beaver trail

Lahemaa National Park lies on Estonia's north coast, on the Gulf of Finland. In one day we walked three short trails run by RMK, the Estonian state forest agency: the boulder trail in Käsmu, the trail through the fishing village of Altja and the beaver trail in Oandu. Our dogs came along on all of them.

The day before, we had visited the Estonian Aviation Museum near Tartu. The whole route is in our post Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia by campervan with kids.

Käsmu: the boulder trail

From the campsite we first drove 4 km to Käsmu. A music festival was on, so the road into the village was closed. We left Beza outside the village and walked in, which added about 600 m.

Käsmu is known as the captains' village. A maritime school ran here from 1884 to 1931, and almost every family had a captain or a ship's mate. The RMK trail leads through a forest full of glacial erratics. It is the largest field of them in Estonia, and the biggest boulder, Matsikivi, is 4.7 m high and 14.7 m round. There are information boards along the path, and swings hang from the pine trees, which the girls were happy to try.

At the end, the trail comes out on the shore. Huge boulders sit in the shallow water, and the girls had no trouble climbing onto the ones right by the beach. We took a family photo there with the dogs.

We walked back through the village, where the festival was in full swing with stalls, music and food. It wasn't really our scene.

Altja: a fishing village and a giant swing

The Altja trail runs along the coast past old fishermen's buildings: thatched log cabins and net sheds. It sounded better on the information boards than it was in reality, because the cabins were closed. In the end it was simply a pleasant walk with the dogs through the forest and along the beach. On the way we crossed a suspension bridge.

The best part turned out to be the wooden swing at the start of the trail. We simply had to try it, and it was great fun. Village swings like this one (külakiik) have stood by Estonian taverns and villages for centuries. They inspired Ado Kosk, who in 1993 invented kiiking, an Estonian sport in which a swing on steel arms goes right over the top in a full circle.

After the walk we had a rest by the restaurant next to the car park at the start of the trail.

Oandu: the beaver trail

A kilometre further on is the RMK beaver trail in Oandu (Koprarada). It leads through the forest to the high bank of the Altja river, where you can usually see dams, lodges and trees felled by beavers. We were out of luck: no beavers and no dam, and the dogs didn't sniff anything out either.

Lepispea campsite

In the evening we went for a swim in the Gulf of Finland by the campsite. At Lepispea we had Czech neighbours with a dog. The cabins look like something out of the Moomins, the toilets are in a hexagonal building, and the shower has a window looking out onto nettles and forest. It has a wonderful atmosphere.

The next morning we drove to Viru Bog, also in Lahemaa.

Practical info

Checked in November 2026.

• The RMK trail in Käsmu is a 4.2 km loop. It starts by the cemetery and chapel, where there is a car park. A second car park is at the edge of the village. There is a toilet on the trail.
• During ticketed events in Käsmu, you may need a ticket to get into the village, and the road in may be closed.
• Käsmu has a private Maritime Museum about the history of the captains' village.
• The RMK trail in Altja is about 3 km long. It starts at the car park in front of the Altja kõrts tavern. Along the way there are thatched cabins, net sheds, the village swing and a big boulder called Altja Suurkivi.
• The Oandu beaver trail is about 1 km long and takes roughly half an hour. Park by the Sagadi - Altja road at the "Koprarada" sign.
• When we were there in 2026, we didn't pay to walk any of the three trails. RMK asks visitors to read its rules of conduct before visiting the national park.