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From Worldtraveller

My last excursion in Latvia was to the amazing Sigulda region, where the Gauja River winds down an impressive gorge, over which crumbling castles stand guard. After a slow, clanking train ride from Riga, I walked down to the gorge and took a cable car across.

Distant view of Turaida Castle

Over the Gauja

Woods in the winter sunshine

On the other side, I explored the decaying ruins of Krimulda Castle, and walked for a while in the forests. There was no-one else around, and the silence was incredible.

Snowy clearing	Crumbling castle wall	Forest junction
Following the trail	Winter sun but the temperature was far below zero	Far from home
In the middle of Krimulda Castle	Krimulda's shell

After a few hours in the forests, I got the cable car back over the Gauja River, and took the train back to Riga. A vicious cold wind howled down the carriage, but I was paying less than a pound for an hour and a half's journey so I didn't mind too much.

Back over the Gauja

Evening sunshine

Waiting for the train to leave

On my last day in Riga, with the temperature still at -15C, I began to feel a tiny bit bored of being cold all the time. But the snow-covered city was beautiful, and I felt like I was seeing a much more genuinely Latvian city than you'd see in the summer with many more tourists around. After one more day it was time to return to London, and I was sad because I'd had a great trip. Sadder still that my flight, far from arriving at Stansted just in time for me to get the last train home, was diverted to Luton because of fog. I arrived home at 5am, shattered, but at least pleased that it was 25C warmer in London than it had been in the Baltics.