Wheel Hill Infrastructure

The highest point of the massif of inland dunes, located to the west of the village of Tomes, is Mount Rata (67.8 m above sea level). Light pine forests stand in its vicinity, allowing a good view of the backs and slopes of the impressive dunes. It is easy to get to Rata Hill on foot (0.6 km) from the "Sēņotaju māja" recreational area of the Latvian State Forests (LVM). On both sides of the small forest road along which we go towards the mountain, nature (and LIDAR maps) show more than 40 similar-sized quadrangular pits and three trench-like trenches about 50 m long. It is possible that during the First World War, a German army warehouse was located here, surrounded on three sides by the nearby dunes. It is thought that the concrete structures at the highest point of the Wheel Hill are the remains of the former fire observation (or triangulation?) tower, the wooden parts of which were attached to the concrete pillars. An article about a ski hike in the Rata Mountains can be found in a Soviet-era periodical. The annual mushroom picking championship takes place in the vicinity of the Rata hill.