Vasaristi Waterfall

Vasaristi is a stream rather than a river, and its waterfall is correspondingly small - a drop of around three metres over a limestone step in the middle of forest. What makes it worth the walk is that there is no road to it, so it stays quiet even in the weeks when the rest of Lahemaa is busy.

What you actually see

Dark water falling over a mossy ledge into a small pool, surrounded closely by spruce and birch, with fallen trunks across the stream and very little sky. Below it the stream runs through a shallow ravine that is one of the more atmospheric bits of forest in the park.

The trail in is marked and easy, but genuinely a walk rather than a stroll from a car park.

When to go

• April - the meltwater peak, and the only time the fall carries real volume.
• January to February - in a cold winter the whole step freezes and the ice is the reason to come.
• September to October - colour and low water.
• Midsummer - the stream can nearly dry up.

Honest expectations

Three metres is small, and in a dry summer there may be almost nothing falling. If you want a waterfall to photograph and only have one stop in you, Jägala or Valaste will deliver more.

The trail is wet in places and the last section down to the stream is steep and rooty.

Nearby

Nõmmeveski and the Valgejõgi gorge are nearby in the same park. Käsmu and the coast are twenty minutes north.