VENTA WATERFALL

At a width of 249 m, this is Europe’s widest waterfall. During the summer you can go swimming or stroll across the still stream. During the spring you will see flying fish which are trying to “climb” the waterfall. There are various legends about the history of this waterfall. One says that “the Devil wanted to block the Venta River to drown the city of Kuldīga and its surroundings. At midnight, he went two miles upstream along the river to the Brieži ford, where he put together a great pile of rocks. He brought the pile to the city and then hurried to get another one. Suddenly, however, there was a loud noise, which suggested that the local lord had woken up. He went outside and saw that half of the Venta River was already blocked. The lord 25. 26. 27. understood that it was the Devil who had done this. What to do? He ran to the chicken coop, hit his hands on his fur coat and crowed like a rooster. The rooster woke up, thought that another rooster had crowed, and did the same. The Devil, upon hearing the crowing, threw the rest of the rocks on the ground and fled.”