Curonian Spit and Dancing Forest: UNESCO Dunes, Efa Height and Fringilla

Beginning just north of the seaside resort of Zelenogradsk, the Curonian Spit (Kurshskaya Kosa) is a 98-kilometre-long curved sand-dune peninsula that separates the freshwater Curonian Lagoon from the Baltic Sea. Shared roughly equally between Russia and Lithuania, the spit narrows to just 400 metres at the village of Lesnoy (former Sarkau) and widens to 3,800 metres further north. Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000, the Russian half has been protected since 1987 as Curonian Spit National Park covering 6,621 hectares.

Stops Along the Russian Curonian Spit

• Fringilla Bird-Ringing Station (23rd kilometre, near Rybachy): It continues the bird-ringing work begun in 1901 by German ornithologist Johannes Thienemann at the Rossitten observatory (now Rybachy), the world's first bird observatory. Because the spit lies directly along the East Atlantic Flyway, 10 to 20 million migratory birds pass overhead each spring and autumn, and guided tours explain the giant funnel-shaped Rybachy traps.
• Müller's Height (32nd kilometre): A forested trail climbs Dune Bruchberg (named after forestry chief Ludwig Wilhelm Müller, who pioneered dune-stabilising mountain pine plantings) to an observation tower overlooking Lake Chaika, Rybachy, and the Baltic coast.
• The Dancing Forest (37th kilometre): Planted in 1961 on Round Dune (Dyuna Kruglaya), this pine grove is famous for trunks that twist into low spirals, loops, and horizontal rings just above the sandy forest floor. Stay on the raised wooden boardwalks to protect the shallow roots.
• Efa Dune (42nd kilometre, near Morskoye): Named after dune inspector Franz Wilhelm Efa (who stabilized the shifting sands that once buried old Pillkoppen villages), wooden boardwalks lead to panoramic viewing decks over the Great Dune Ridge, the Curonian Lagoon, and the settlement of Morskoye.

How to Visit from Kaliningrad

Regional buses and excursions run from Kaliningrad and Zelenogradsk through the national park checkpoint to Lesnoy, Rybachy, and Morskoye; visitors pay a conservation entry fee at the park barrier (check current rates on the official Curonian Spit National Park website).