The rock curtain
Brown water falling from a broad bluff.
Diego Delso — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Diego Delso — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Diego Delso — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Ivar Leidus — CC BY-SA 3.0 ee · Aleksandr Abrosimov — CC BY-SA 3.0
Jägala Waterfall is the largest natural waterfall in Estonia, on the Jägala River in the north of the country. It measures about 50 m wide and 8 m high, and it is also the most powerful in the country, flowing at 12.8 cubic metres per second and reaching 200 in the spring high-water period. It formed as the river eroded limestone layers in a karst area along the Baltic Cliff, carving the bluff into a U shape. It is still retreating slowly, by up to 17 cm a year. The curved edge runs about 65 m, and the river continues beyond towards the sea. In warmer months brown water pours from the broad rock curtain into a noisy pool below, and you can view it from the top edge or from the stone bank beneath. In winter the flow stops and the fall freezes into a wall of white ice columns, which draws plenty of people out from Tallinn on cold days. The waterfall lies about 24.1 km from Tallinn in a straight line, a short trip from the capital. The edge rocks are slippery, so keep a safe distance from the water, especially with children and during the spring flood. In winter do not stand under hanging ice or walk on the frozen river, since either can give way without warning.
Brown water falling from a broad bluff.
White ice columns in winter.
Flow reaching 200 cubic metres a second.
Koogi, Jõelähtme Parish, Estonia
Spring for strong flow and a cold winter for the ice, and the two look completely different.
We do not advise it in high water or ice, since the rock is slippery and ice can fall.