The Onion Road

Russian Old Believers fled here in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries after the schism in the Orthodox church, settling in a narrow strip between the road and the lake. Land was scarce, so they grew onions intensively in tiny plots - and four hundred years later the villages of Kolkja, Kasepää and Varnja still do, in gardens directly in front of the houses.

What you actually see

• The village ribbon - a near-continuous line of single-street villages, houses turned side-on to the road with the onion beds in front.
• The braids - onions and strings of garlic hung from fences and porches in late summer, sold straight from the gate.
• The fish - smoked and dried perch, pike-perch and small lake fish sold from the same houses.
• The museums and prayer houses - a small onion museum, an Old Believers' museum at Kolkja, and the plain interiors of the tradition.

When to go

August to September is the harvest, when the braids appear and the roadside selling is at its peak. October has later onions and mushrooms and fewer people. In winter and spring the villages are still there, but the food economy moves indoors and much of it is closed.

Honest expectations

There is no single site to visit. This is a road with stops on it, and without a car it is very hard to do. The museums are small and irregularly open outside season - checking ahead saves a wasted drive.

This is a living conservative religious community. Prayer houses are not casual visitor attractions, and photographing people needs asking.

Nearby

Lake Peipus beaches at Kauksi are north along the shore. Tartu is an hour inland, and Alatskivi castle sits just off the road.