Doubilet-Benson Scandinavia Bike Trip 2013: A Day of Island-Hopping in Estonia

We spent most of our day today (Tuesday) on the Estonian islands of Hiiumaa and Saaremaa, the largest islands in the West Estonian Archipelago. They are located in the Baltic Sea west of the mainland of Estonia.

After beginning the day with a 6 mile bike ride from Haapsalu, we boarded a 10 am ferry for the 75 minute trip to Hiiumaa. This island has a population of 9200 and is 4-5 times the size of Martha's Vineyard. It was formed by a meteor collision 455 million years ago, and the Kardla meteor crater is one of the biggest in the world. We kept looking up all day, watching out for a repeat meteor hit.J Hiiumaa is reachable by both ferry and air, and also by an ice road from the mainland in the winter. It is a quiet, pretty place that is a popular spot for cycling. We biked 44 miles on the island, stopping for lunch in Kardla, the island's largest town with 3300 residents.

Our ride on Hiiumaa ended in the late afternoon at the island's southern coast, from which we boarded a ferry for the hour-long trip to Saaremaa. Saaremaa is more than twice the size of Hiiumaa and has a population of 39,000. According to archaeological finds, Saaremaa has been inhabited from at least 5,000 years BCE.

Once we arrived on Saaremaa at 7:15 pm, we still had a 5 mile ride to our destination, the Laugu "tourist farm". We didn't know what to expect, but it turned out to be a great accommodation. We had our own well-appointed, recently renovated cabin with kitchen, dining area, and loft bedroom. The owners brought over a multi-course Estonian dinner shortly after our arrival.