Kallaste cliff in Hiiu County

Kallaste cliff is a limestone outcrop, about 400 metres long and up to 10 metres tall.
There is an old pine forest on the cliff, through which you can walk along the terrace. In the southern part of the cliff, there is a biohermal reef, formed from coral and other marine invertebrates. It is one of the most representative of its kind in Estonia. Several rare species of fern and flowering plants grow in the cliff’s fissures.
According to legend, Vanapagan used to make weapons inside the Kallaste cliff for the locals during the ancient war for freedom.

Kallaste cliff has formed about 2000 years ago as a result of abrasional activity of sea. On the cliff extending up to 10 m above sea level there is cropping out an extensive section of Silurian (about 400 million years old) layers belonging to the Tamsalu Regional Stage. They were formed in shallow coast water and consist of numerous fossils and small coral riffs of that time. One of these coral riffs is cropping out as an irregular rock body in the southern part of the cliff and is considered one of the most interesting denuded reef-like formations in Estonia. Three and half meter layers of limestone, which contains corals, and clayey limestone are clearly distinguishable from each other. Clayey layers are less durable and the weathering has brought out two visible niches in the rock.