Venta Rapid in Kuldīga, Latvia

In the late 1990s I spent a couple of days in Kuldīga, an historic town in Latvia's Kurzeme (Courland) region. Kurzeme reminded me of Illinois, it is very flat and the oil is black. The Venta River flows through Kuldīga. Pictured is the Venta Rapid--Ventas Rumba in Latvian. Although its height ranges from 6 to 7 feet high, it is widest rapid in Europe, ranging from 817 feet to 886 feet wide.

Swimming pools are rare in Latvia, so on hot summer days the people of Kuldīga head to the rapid to cool off.

In the bottom photograph, you can get a better idea of the width of the rapid.

Click on any image to make it larger.

The top photograph was taken by Mrs. Marathon Pundit in July, Little Marathon Pundit took the second one. Pictured with Mrs. MP (right) is her best friend, Sandra Priedīte.

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