A trip to Sidrabiņi can be planned around two distinct themes: the protected oak avenue and the history of the former Ozolmuiža manor. There are also other tangible traces from different periods—the pond associated with the manor, the former cheese production, and an earlier skijoring event. When planning your trip, you can decide whether to focus on natural history or on the area’s economic and cultural past.

Oak Avenue and Natural Monument

The Ozolmuiža (Sidrabiņi) Oak Avenue is designated as a protected avenue and natural monument. Oaks, ash trees, maples, and lindens predominate. The avenue’s name thus stands alongside a collection of trees that includes several species. Wildlife is also part of its natural history: two specially protected invertebrate species have been recorded in the avenue’s area—the shiny wood ant (Lasius fuliginosus) and the hermit beetle (Osmoderma barnabita). The scientific names help identify the two species precisely. Taken together, the information about the avenue provides a tangible connection to nature: it encompasses both the mixed tree population and the protected invertebrates recorded there.

The Ozolmuižas Daugaviņa pond is also associated with the former Ozolmuiža manor. Its name offers another link between Sidrabiņi and the manor’s history. The avenue and the pond thus represent two different points of interest in the landscape: a wooded area designated as a natural monument and a place whose name recalls the former manor.

Ozolmuiža: From Manor to New Settlement

The Ozolmuiža manor was once located in the center of Sidrabiņi. Its origins are associated with the beginning of the 17th century. The manor house burned down in autumn 1905 during the manor house fires. This turning point is important to the area’s history, because its later development did not continue as a history of the manor house: in 1925, Sudrabs founded the new settlement of “Sidrabiņi.”

After the new settlement was founded, the agricultural manor complex, a manager’s house, and a park remained. Thus, both the former manor house and the parts of the manor that remained after 1925 belong to the area’s history, but to different periods. This distinction helps keep the 1905 fire and the later settlement and economic history from being conflated into a single period.

Cheesemaking Tradition and Skijoring

Food production is also part of Ozolmuiža’s past. During the years of Latvia’s independence, a dairy and cheese factory were established in the former milk house. At the historic cheese factory in Sidrabiņi, square cheeses were made and sent to Riga for sale. The cheese’s shape and the stated sales destination make this production a tangible part of local economic history.

Another historical topic is winter sports. At an earlier event, skijoring athletes met in Sidrabiņi in Sausnējas parish, at Liepkalne, a place well known among skijoring riders, on February 27. Sidrabiņi thus brings together a range of interests: nature conservation and tree species, the history of the manor grounds, former food production, and a connection to skijoring. These themes can offer different focal points for your trip, without conflating the manor’s history with the natural monument.

Discover more destinations: Jumurda, Sausnēja, Ērgļi

Go to the broader travel overview: Ērgļu Novads.