Oak "Big Andrew"

At the top of Sprūdu Hill in Skrīveri, there is the impressive ‘Lielais Andrejs’ oak tree - a monument of nature and cultural history with a wide view of the Dīvaja valley, Jaunjelgava and the Daugava valley. The oak tree was discovered in the summer of 1976 by the poet Imants Ziedonis together with his son Rimantas. A month later, he returned with a group of ‘beech tree liberators’ - artists, students and local residents - to clear the tree of brush and restore it to glory. In 1977, it was named ‘Big Andrejs’ in honour of the centenary of the writer Andrejs Upītis. The tree has a circumference of 6.15 m at a height of 1.3 m, and on 27 May 2021 it was officially entered into the Latvian Register of Trees of National Importance. An informative sign ‘Ozollapas’ has been erected at the oak tree to inform about its importance. A trail leads to the oak along the hillside, with a panoramic view from the top. ‘Lielais Andrejs’ is not just a symbol of greatness - it is a story of people's respect for nature, literature and Latvia's cultural heritage, which continues to inspire today.