Winter in Latvia

Weather During the Winter

Although I am not a big fan of winter in Latvia whatsoever, I still am really fascinated by Latvia's nature during this season. I have lived here my whole life, but every year I await it with anticipation(at first). For about 2 months It's pretty much enjoyable, but then, for me at least, It's getting too depressing. I mean - it's cold and it's mostly cloudy, as it's rare to see a couple of sunny days in a row. I would say, that the ratio of sunny vs cloudy days is about 1/3 at best. For me it would be perfect, if the winter in Latvia would last only those two months, but four - that's too much. (Officially it lasts from December 1st till February 28th, but practically November and March are also pretty cold, so you still have to wear warm clothes)

The main activities that are doable in this time of year include skiing, snowboarding, ice-skating, and sight-seeing. We do not really have any huge mountains here, but then again for such a small country the amount of skiing and snowboarding routes is pretty reasonable.

We have:

• 59 mountains (Highest peak - Gaiziņkalns is 311,5 m  high)
• 35+ skiing routes
• Unofficial skiing record of  107 km/h 

It is worth mentioning that because of the variable climate the weather conditions here can change – even though the average temperature in this season is mostly around – 6°C, the cold can reach even – 30°C. The coldest month is January, where it is strongly advisable to wear warm clothes(I, for instance, wear a hat only when the temperature outside is below 15°C, but then again, I'm Latvian.)

But man, when you get a sunny day, you really should get outside and go for a road trip to see some awesome winter views! If the weather is not too cold and you don't have any plans for the day, go for it!  Just take a look at the pictures below, you will see the reason!

Gallery

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