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Today nearly all spit is overgrown by forests. On the Lithuanian part of the
spit only in Nagliai and Grobstas Strict Nature Reserves and Parnidis Landscape
Reserve are there dune areas where trees are absent. A few more such areas are
on the southern end of the spit, which belongs to Russia.
At present, the Curonian Spit is 97 km long and covers about 180 sq.km.
The widest part is at the Bulvikis Horn (app. 4 km) and the narrowest is a
little bit to the north from Sarkuva (appr. 400 m).
The highest dune in the spit today is Vecekrugs (67.2 m).
| The cross-section
of the Curonian Spit |
- The Baltic Sea;
- Foredune Ridge;
- Sea sand plain - palve;
- Blow-out remnants area - kupstyne;
- The Great Dune Ridge;
- The Curonian Lagoon
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Sand covered ancient forest soils
Fine-grained dune sand
Old eolian and marine sand
Organogenic sediments of the lagoon
Sea sand with gravel and cobble |
Landscape elements of the Curonian Spit change from west to
east. On the western coast the sandy beach meets the sea.
The foredune ridge borders the beach, which varies from 25 to 70 m wide on the
part between Kopgalis and Nida. Beach is formed mostly of quartz sand and only
between Nida and Preila some gravel grounds occur. The foredune ridge rises up
to 15 m high and extends from 120 to 130 m wide.
Behind the foredune ridge, the sea sand plain (palve) lies. The Kurshes word palve
means "yellowish". This sand plain was formed of sand, which was blown
from the sea. In some places the sand layer is more than 6 or 7 m thick. The blown
out tops of former dunes can be seen on the eastern edge of palve. This is so
called kupstyne, which means "hummocky".
Further to the east the Great Dune Ridge stands. Its height varies from 10 and
15 m to 67 m. In the past, the loose or quick sand appeared sometimes near the
Great Dune Ridge between Pervalka and Juodkrante, and to the south from Nida.
Sometimes the Great Dune Ridge faces the lagoon and sometimes there is a lagoon
sand plain or lagoon palve.
The carbonaceous lagoonal ooze can be found near Nida, where Great Moving Dunes
drop to the Curonian Lagoon. The huge mass of dunes press the silt lagoon sediment
and at the shoreline, where pressure isn't that great, the sediment breaks to
the surface. The exposure can be 2 or 3 m high. All the shoreline near the dunes
is covered with pieces of carbon ooze, which look like round stones. |
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