Hiiu County
Hiiumaa - an island in the Baltic Sea is rich in diverse, beautiful and untouched nature and nice people. The area of Hiiumaa together with the surrounding islands is 1,019 sq km, population 11,490. 500 million years ago near the site of the current town of Kardla, a cluster of atolls was formed as a consequence of a meteorite explosion. These were the first islands on the current site of Hiiumaa and the fore-mentioned hundreds of millions of years make Hiiumaa one of the oldest islands in the world. It is hard to find a more diverse place in Estonia than the Island of Hiiumaa. Landscape types and views change very quickly, being at the same time beautiful and miniature they combine to make Hiiumaa what it is. In summertime almost everyone is attracted by the of several kilometers long, sandy beaches in Tahkuna and the Kõpu Peninsula. The small islands surrounding Hiiumaa are like colorful pearls around the neck of a beautiful woman. Among the more than 200 islands and islets there are bigger islands with forests as well as islets that have risen from the sea just recently and are not yet covered with vegetation.The most interesting sights of Hiiu County :Kõpu Lighthouse is the most famous tourist sight of Hiiumaa, one could even say it is a symbol of the island; it is the third oldest working lighthouse. It is known that in 1490 the Hanseatic League requested the erection of a signal light. The completion date of the building of the lighthouse is considered to be 1531. The light of Kõpu can be seen for 35 nautical miles. It is possible to ascend to the top of the lighthouse.
The constructions of the Tahkuna Lighthouse were made in Paris in 1874 and set in 1875. The Lighthouse is 42.6m high and the light can be seen for 18 nautical miles.
Mihkli Farmhouse Museum. The Open Air Center of the Hiiumaa Museum is a farmhouse complex dating from the 19th century. Visitors may get acquainted with the farmhouse buildings and order a picnic with a smoke sauna. Here the TV series "Farm" was filmed by TV3 in 2002.
Reigi Church. The stone church was built in 1802 by the owner of Kõrgessaare Manor and landlord of Hiiumaa O.R.L. von Ungern-Sternberg, also known as the Beach Robber and the Count Ungru. He built the Church in memory of his son Gustav. The first minister in the Church of Reigi was Paul Andreas Lempelius, the name of whose was recorded in the story by writer Aino Kallas "Reigi Minister" ("Reigi õpetaja").
Rebastemäe Nature Trail. The marked walking trail 1.5km long starting from the Kõpu Road, from the Unikivi (Sleep Rock), passes over high hills covered with different types of forests that were originally ancient islets and coastal formations. The Track passes through the highest point of the region of the West-Estonia - Koplimägi (63.5m); a beautiful view of the Gulf of Mardihansu opens from the Rebastemägi (Fox Hill) 45 meters high.
