What Is Rummu Quarry? A Flooded Prison Quarry in Estonia

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• Paldiski & Rummu Quarry from US$127 Duration7 hours^[7]Rating4.15 from 6 reviews^[7]Group sizeLimited to 8 participants^[7]GuideEnglish^[7]CancellationCancel up to 24 hours^[7] See this tour

What is Rummu Quarry?

Rummu Quarry is a flooded limestone quarry in Estonia, and the thing that makes it strange and beautiful is what the water swallowed. The quarry began to fill with water after the nearby prison closed after 1991 and pumps that kept the quarry dry were shut down.^[1] The prison walls, stairwells and outbuildings are still there, standing in a lake that has turned a milky turquoise, and on a still day you can make out the pale shapes of them just below the surface.

The maximum depth of the lake at Rummu quarry is 14 metres.^[2] The colour is the giveaway that this is limestone country: fine pale rock dust, cut from the same beds for generations, stays suspended in the water and catches the light. That is what gives the lake its glow on a bright day, and the water looks different in every photograph you see of it.

Getting the picture right matters, because Rummu is not a manicured attraction with turnstiles and lifeguards. Rummu quarry is an unofficial and unguarded place for swimming or diving, where locals usually come to swim in summer.^[11] You are walking into a landscape that nature has taken back: gravel underfoot, concrete edges, reeds at the margins and birds working the shallows.

Where is Rummu Quarry?

Rummu sits west of Tallinn, in the same coastal corner of Harju County as Paldiski and the Pakri cliffs, and the countryside between them is a mix of pine forest, bog, small farms and pale limestone. On Daytrip's Rummu Quarry & Prison to Tallinn transfer page, the total distance is 45 km and the estimated time is 50 min.^[4] That is the road transfer between the quarry and the capital, and it is a useful number to keep in your head while you plan.

If you are travelling without a car, FlixBus runs 2 rides each day between Tallinn and Rummu.^[10] That suits a straightforward one-way hop if you are happy to build your day around those departures, and it means you do not have to rent a vehicle just to see the lake. Driving gives you more freedom: the coast road west of Tallinn passes Keila-Joa, Keila Waterfall and several small beaches before the turn for the quarry.

As for the Rummu quarry address, the simplest approach is to search the site by name rather than by a street number, because the lake, the car park and the prison ruins all sit together on one small road. A Rummu quarry map online shows the water with parking and the ruins clustered along its shore. If you are relying on Rummu Quarry Google Maps directions, save the route before you leave Tallinn, since signal along the coast is patchy and there is little on the last stretch.

Concrete ruins standing in the turquoise water of Rummu Quarry.

Opening hours and what a visit costs

Rummu Quarry is open all year round every day from 10:00 to 20:00.^[3] Those are the listed hours for the site, and they are worth checking first when you build an itinerary around the lake, because a winter afternoon runs out of daylight long before the gates close. Estonian summer evenings are long, so arriving later in the day often means softer light on the water and a slow walk around the ruins.

A ticket to the Rummu skating rink includes access to the Rummu quarry in winter, along with the skating rink, the prison and an audio guide.^[8] Tickets are €10 per person or €20 per family.^[8] In the cold months that is the neatest way to see the site: the rink, the prison and the quarry come as one visit, and the audio guide fills in the history while you skate.

Outside the skating season the visit is mostly about walking: a slow loop past the ruins, a look at the water from the gravel edges, and time spent watching how the light changes the colour of the lake. Wear shoes you do not mind getting dusty, watch where the ground gives way near the water, and take any litter back out with you.

Swimming, diving and the water

The summer water temperature at Rummu Quarry is 15.0-20.0 °C.^[9] That is cool but perfectly pleasant once you are in, and the shallows along the edges feel warmer than the middle of the basin. Locals treat the lake as a summer swimming spot rather than a formal lido, and Rummu is an unofficial and unguarded place for swimming or diving.^[11]

Divers treat the lake as a destination in its own right. If you have completed a diving course and have a diving certificate, Rummu Diving & WaterSports organizes weekly dives for certified divers, open water dives for those whose courses are incomplete, and full OWD courses.^[12] Visibility shifts with the season and with how much the water has been stirred up, and the ruins reward a slow, careful pass rather than a fast one.

There is more than one way onto the water. A Rummu Quarry SUP and snorkel tour with a transfer from Tallinn pairs the lake with time on the surface.^[13] The basin is sheltered, so conditions are usually calmer than on the open coast nearby, but this is still unguarded water. Check your own gear, go with someone else, and keep well away from loose concrete and submerged metal.

Keila Waterfall and the coastal cliffs

Rummu rarely gets a whole day to itself, and it should not. Keila waterfall is 6 metres high.^[14] It is a wide curtain of water rather than a single tall drop, framed by parkland and a wooden walkway that lets you stand close enough to feel the spray. Come after rain and the fall is at its most dramatic, and in a dry spell you see more of the pale ledge underneath.

The coast west of Tallinn is the other half of the story. The small group tour from Tallinn runs from a van pick-up through Suurupi, Keila Waterfall, Paldiski, Pakri Lighthouse and Rummu Quarry, with short van legs in between.^[5] It covers a lot of ground in one loop, and it takes the driving out of your hands.

Pakri and the Paldiski coast are limestone cliffs that drop straight into the Baltic, with a lighthouse on the headland and old structures scattered along the top. The geology is the same story as the quarry: layered sedimentary rock that people cut, quarried and built with for generations. On a clear day the horizon line is enormous, and the wind off the sea is usually the thing you remember.

Tours from Tallinn that include Rummu

The Tallinn: Rummu Quarry, Coastal Cliffs & Keila Waterfall tour is the main day trip from the capital, and it is the simplest route to the lake if you have no car. It costs from US$144.^[5] The group is limited to 7 participants, it runs for 6 hours, and a live guide leads it in English.^[5] It is rated 4.76 from 133 reviews.^[5]

Booking terms are flexible. You can reserve now and pay later, and free cancellation applies up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund.^[5] Check availability to see starting times, since departures shift through the year.^[5] Pick-up is by van, and the day is built as a chain of short drives rather than one long haul.

Other options cover the same ground in different shapes. A Paldiski Soviet era sights and Rummu Quarry tour runs for 7 hours with a group of up to 8 people.^[7] A Pakri landscape conservation park and coast tour takes in the cliffs and Keila Waterfall over 5 hours.^[15] A Jägala Waterfall and Harju County tour heads east instead, over 4 hours.^[6]

Staying over, and what to bring

Rummu is close enough to Tallinn for a day trip, but staying the night changes the experience: you get the lake in evening light and again in the morning. Rummu Caravan Park, located in Rummu Quarry, offers overnight accommodation for motorhomes, caravans and tents.^[16] It is a simple, outdoorsy base right at the water.

Nearby, sauna rituals are offered at Paekalda Holiday Center.^[17] An Estonian sauna after a day of cold water and limestone dust is a fine way to end things, and it is a good reason to leave an evening free rather than rushing back to the city.

Build your packing around the ground rather than the weather app: sturdy shoes for gravel and rough concrete, a waterproof layer, sun protection for the open cliff tops, and a towel if you plan to swim. Vasalemma marble is a local name for Vasalemma limestone, a detritic limestone with a marble-like structure and texture.^[18] You will see that pale stone in walls, steps and buildings along this coast, a quiet reminder of how long people have been cutting rock here.

Planning your Rummu trip

1. Decide how you will get there

   Driving gives you the most freedom, while FlixBus runs 2 rides each day between Tallinn and Rummu if you prefer the bus.^[10]

2. Pick your season

   Summer water sits at 15.0-20.0 °C.^[9] In winter a skating rink ticket also covers the quarry, the prison and an audio guide.^[8]

3. Book a tour if you want it done for you

   The small group tour from Tallinn is limited to 7 participants and runs for 6 hours.^[5]

4. Plan the day around the light

   Start with the cliffs and the lighthouse, then work west to Keila Waterfall and finish at Rummu Quarry as the light drops.

5. Pack for dust, wind and water

   Sturdy shoes, a windproof layer, sun cream for the cliff tops and a towel if you plan to swim.

6. Leave time to stay over

   Rummu Caravan Park in the quarry takes motorhomes, caravans and tents if you want a night by the water.^[16]

Common questions