The pits created by the fall of meteorites are under state protection. The only object of this kind in the Baltic States.
As a result of the cooperation of representatives of the Ministry of Environmental Protection and the Ludza Regional Council, a new 1.5 km long nature trail has been created, starting from the local highway V517 and surrounding this object. There are also viewing points that offer a view of the natural monument.
As part of a survey and voting of geologists and natural experts, in 2020, the “Devil’s Pits ” was chosen as the geological place of the year. The object is located in the middle of the hill as if forming a crater. The deepening of the hill is slightly elongated, almost 200 meters long, with steeper inner slopes than the outer ones.
Geologists who have studied the terrain of the surrounding area agree that its peculiar forms arose during the freezing-thawing of glacial waters at the end of the last ice age, about 15,000 years ago. However, the origin of the terrain and its internal structure has not yet been fully studied. Research shows that the accumulation of peat began 5500-6500 years ago, and before that, there was a lake.
A geological and geomorphological natural monument was created to protect the territory.
The starting point of the trail’s GPS coordinates https://bit.ly/Velnadobe .
