Pūsēni hill hiking trail
Dabas parks Bernāti, Nīcas pagasts, Dienvidkurzemes novads
Location: Bernāti Nature Park, Nīca Parish, Kaires Village. Recommended starting point: Info stand at the parking lot.
Time required for sightseeing: 0.5 h
Length: 1.2 km
Marking: Not marked, but easy to navigate by the trail.
Type: Circular
This trail is created to explore the Pūsēnu Dune and leads to the top of the highest dune in Latvia – Pūsēnu Dune (37 m). The locals call the dune a mountain. Stairs and a well-worn trail have been arranged for reaching its summit.
The dune itself was formed between 1785 and 1835, when about 80 houses, including the "Pūsēnu" house where a forest ranger’s family lived, were buried under the sand. The dune is named after these buried houses. In the 1970s, part of the Pūsēnu mountain was buried, and the sand was used in the production of silicate bricks. The works were stopped around 1980 when the sand deposits suitable for production were exhausted.