You Will Never Get Lost in Estonia

In the midnight hours of September 28, 1994 the ferry MS Estonia capsized and sank in a swirling and frigid Baltic Sea.  The ship, named for the country she served, was just one of many cruise ferries that transport millions of people annually between the Baltic States, Scandinavia and Europe.  Cruise ferries are large vessels capable of carrying upwards of 2,000 passengers and 500 vehicles on generally overnight or two-day cruises to port cities throughout the North Sea and the Baltic.  The Estonia was bound for Stockholm when she went down.  The ship went to the bottom taking 852 people with her.  It was the worst peacetime maritime disaster in the Baltic Sea.  It was the darkest of many dark chapters to befall Estonia, the tiny Baltic state of just over 1.3 million people.      

Estonia did not fare well under the Soviet system and for many years was one of the poorest non-African countries on the globe.   The ferry disaster only led the country to fall further into decline.  With the Soviets out of Estonia in 1995 and with the country fully embracing a free society Estonia began to move ahead by leaps and bounds.  And also by bandwith.  Estonia today bills itself as the “most wired country on earth.”  It is the unofficial WiFi capital of the world.  Almost immediately after the fall of communism in the Soviet Bloc, Estonia embraced technology.  Pent up demand for the modern world manifested itself with the now free country’s enthusiastic acceptance of the internet.   

Today, the World Wide Web and its capabilities are woven into the fabric of the country.   A state-wide public internet infrastructure is everywhere from the usual hotels, cafés, and government buildings but also to state forests, beaches, and small shops.  Soon 100% of Estonian schools will have WiFi.  Estonian doctors provide e-prescriptions, voters cast their votes online, commuters pay bus fare with smart phones...  And this is from a country that for many years had landline telephones in only half of all homes.  This positive trajectory in the country led three Tallinn residents (the Estonian capital city) to invent a method of conversation that combined the technologies of instant messaging and webcams.  They called it Skype.    

All of this WiFi (look for the signs, pictured) means excellent biking in Estonia because with your smart phone SAT/NAV you will never get lost.  Old Town Tallinn dates back to medieval times with some structures and churches built in the 1300s.  All of that history juxtaposed with all of that new technology is stunning so begin your ride here.  Tallinn, due to its age still retains many cobblestone streets so be aware but the city offers plenty to see and do and for history and culture fans Tallinn offers a great ride.  The town is the oldest capital city in Northern Europe and parts of the Old Town section are a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  Don’t let the old world charm fool you, Tallinn is a modern city.  A ride out of town will bring bikers to very rural locales.  Half of the population lives in Tallinn meaning the rest of the country offers little in terms of population overcrowding and congestion.      

Estonia has five National Parks and they aren’t hard to find--over 18% of the country is protected land area.  The SBT crew recommends picking one, setting the coordinates into your phone and start pedaling.  Estonia is about the size of Vermont and New Hampshire combined with 50% of it forested so you will enjoy your ride with our deciduous and coniferous friends.  The one requirement the country has for bicyclists is reflectors.  They are 100% mandatory.  The best part of the little country may be all of the saunas (just part of the culture) and there is nothing like warm steam after a long ride.    

We have a travel video of some tourists visiting Tallinn, Estonia on our website www.stickybottleteam.net.

Tallinn, Estonia with the Gulf of Finland to the north.  The Estonian forest begins to creep in....