Atlas Trail
Eight Northern and Baltic Capitals from Copenhagen to Minsk
This path runs through eight capitals of northern and eastern Europe, from the Danish islands up the Scandinavian coast, across the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic shore, and inland to Belarus. Each stop gives the founding year and the water or river that the atlas records for the city, so the capitals can be compared as places.
Stop 1 of 8.
Cities
Settled as a Viking fishing village, Copenhagen traces its founding year to 1167, the date of Bishop Absalon's fortress on Slotsholmen. It has a city-proper population of 671,714 across 90.01 square kilometres.
Stop 2 of 8.
Cities
Oslo sits at the head of the Oslofjord. The atlas records a founding year of 1048, a municipal population of 724,290 and an area of 480 square kilometres, with an urban area of about 1.1 million people.
Stop 3 of 8.
Cities
Stockholm stretches across fourteen islands where Lake Malaren flows into the Baltic Sea. Its recorded founding year is 1252, and its population is 996,264 as of 2025 on 188 square kilometres.
Stop 4 of 8.
Cities
Helsinki lies on the Gulf of Finland. It was chartered on 12 June 1550 and designated the capital of Finland on 8 April 1812, and about 694,000 people live in the municipality.
Stop 5 of 8.
Cities
Tallinn faces Helsinki across the Gulf of Finland. Its medieval Old Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the founding year recorded is 1219, and the population is 452,563 as of 2026.
Stop 6 of 8.
Cities
Riga stands where the Daugava River meets the Baltic Sea. Founded in 1201 and a former Hanseatic League member, it holds 588,911 inhabitants, about a third of Latvia, and is known for Art Nouveau architecture.
Stop 7 of 8.
Cities
Vilnius has a founding year of 1323 in the atlas and an Old Town on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1994. It covers 401 square kilometres, of which one fifth is developed, with 619,405 people in 2026.
Stop 8 of 8.
Cities
Minsk is the inland end of the path, on the Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha rivers. Its recorded founding year is 1067, and its 2026 population of 1,995,091 is the largest of the eight.
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