Ancient Worshippers of Lithuania Following The
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FOLLOWING THE TRACES OF ANCIENT WORSHIPPERS OF LITHUANIA situated in the old mill. However, if you Bicycle route: want to finish the route by the end of the Kernav Neris Regional Park trail day, you should hurry up and continue Kernav the journey. Route length: approx. 55 km Leaving Kernav, follow Vilnius direc- Route starting point: Kerniaus str. tion and in about a kilometre you will exit GPS 54.887148, 24.853655 to the wider, but a more busy road. Al- though traffic is quite intense, the road- Route end point: Kerniaus str. side is wide and well maintained. To be vi- GPS 54.887148, 24.853655 Kernav surroundings are breathtak- ing. Not only because of the mature pine forests, centuries-old oak groves, and high cliffs of the Neris River. You will no- tice that the atmosphere saturated with ancient shrines here is unique you will feel it best while leisurely pedalling nearby. In ancient Lithuania, life around Ker- nav was extremely busy to this day, the place is dotted with mounds, barrow complexes, mythological stones, and ar- sible from a distance, take care to wear chaeologists have discovered many an- high visibility clothes, and even better a cient settlements. So take your time reflective vest. when travelling by bike. Stop and quietly On this road you can pass several walk around these places, listening to villages following one after the other. The whispers of trees. Maybe you'll hear a first is Kliaabal, then Mie~ionys in two ki- secret from the past? lometres and nearby Aliejknai, with a The proposed route length is 55 km. quirky Vingr stream, and a lake in the However, the time will run quickly here: vicinity. there are places to visit, and there are Just in a kilometres from Aliejknai you feasts for one's eyes. Meanwhile, the will reach Geisiaks, with a miniature sto- road is interesting from smooth asphalt ne church built in 1865. Its construc- to forest tracks. tion was incredibly rapid for those times, It is best to bring bicycles to Kernav taking only five months, meanwhile a plot by car. It then can be parked in the centre of land and a few thousand bricks were of the town, near the pedestrian walkway donated by Duke Cezaris Giedraitis. By leading towards the church . the way, Geisiaks village has a place You can easily spend a full day in included in the catalogue of sacred sites Kernav: it has the UNESCO protected of the old Lithuania. In this place they complex of mounds , the modern ar- used to have a stone with an imprint of a chaeological museum , the `ulinys foot, called Jesus Christ's foot. sculpture studio , and Kerniaus bar Driving further, you will pass the twin villages: Airnai I and Airnai II. The first was built in the nineteenth century. Along with the small estate, it belonged to Du- kes Giedrai iai. Airnai II appeared in the beginning of the twentieth century upon settling its residents from Grodno pro- vince. Soon after Airnai, in about 8 km from the starting point of the route, turn right towards Vievis. However, if you want to visit Dkkatos Oak grove or Bradelia- ks or Buivydai mounds near it, just 38 across the road, go straight for about 1 sites, and in the village of Karageliaks km. Then, go back to the route and follow open a metal gate protecting crops from the same road. wild boars. Cycling towards Vievis, on the left you After riding around round the whole will see the arrow pointing towards a 4 km circle, descend down the hill to Paneriai long cognitive trail, presenting natural forest observation deck. From there, you and cultural values, and leading to Kar- only have to turn right and will find your- mazinai Mound . Originally, this small self on the same asphalt road where you mound used to be a hideout, and later pro- came from Kernav. Again drive across bably became a place of worship a saint the bridge over the River Neris, Karma- grove. An ancient settlement was disco- zinai Mound, turn left and cycle for about vered not far from it, near the confluence 8 km to reach Kernave. of the Neris and Dkkata turning into a mountain river. There was an altar on top PLACES TO VISIT: of the mound a legacy of the last cen- Kernav Church of the Blessed tury. It was equipped by the Romuva Virgin Mary of the Scapular members of Vilnius University, ethno- F graphers celebrating All Souls' Day (All Kerniaus g.6, Kernav, `irvints r. Saints Day) in 1969. GPS 54.884835; 24.852024 We leave the mound and travel ) +370 382 47 347 farther. There is a café on the left. Velnia- * [email protected] kampis forests open from the observa- The Kernav Mounds tion deck equipped on a 150 m high cliff of F Kernav, `irvints r. the Neris. Pine forests, pine forests GPS 54.883002; 24.852463 everywhere, as far as the eye can see, ) +370 382 47 371 meanwhile the torrential Neris carries its * [email protected] waters underneath... 8 However, there are still quite a few www.kernave.org kilometres left, and we should keep The Kernav Archaeological Site going. The road joyfully descends into Museum the valley of the Neris so you can stop pe- F Kerniaus g. 4A, Kernav dalling and whizz down with a breeze. GPS 54.885780; 24.853864 Approximately in 3 km on the right you ) +370 382 47 385 will see Molyn village gravel quarry, and * [email protected] still a kilometre away a bridge over the [email protected] River Neris. Cross it, drive for 400 m, and 8 www.kernave.org turn left towards the town of Paneriai. The Sculpture Studio and Gallery This former manor site is the point ` where the 23 km bicycle tourist trail of the ulinys Neris Regional Park starts, running from F Vilniaus g. 8, Kernav, `irvints r. the largest Neris meander called Velnia- GPS 54.886663; 24.856889 kampis. This is a circular route. ) +370 616 36 291 From Paneriai Manor the trail runs * [email protected] along a wide gravel road for 2 km. The Geisiaks St. John the Martyr remaining route stretches along tightly orthodox Church compacted forest roads, although there GPS 54.867865, 24.923844 are a few sandy sections. Dkkatos Oak Wood The route terrain is diverse: there are steep rises and fun landings. From Pa- GPS 54.833163, 24.951164 neriai to Peklyn Hill the trail winds along Bradeliaks Mound the Neris riverside, and then ascends, GPS 54.825334, 24.943346 overlooking the surroundings of the River Buivydai Mound Neris in Ausiutiakiai observation deck GPS 54.822217, 24.940564 . Later, the road goes slightly downhill again. Karmazinai Mound Along the way, you will find numerous GPS 54.817962, 24.929407 camping, natural and cultural sites: the Paneriai manor cursed wedding stones in the Neris, a GPS 54.785614, 24.909809 mysterious conglomerate rock, the witch Ausiutiakiai Viewpoint broom pine and others. You have to walk GPS 54.779443, 24.938482 by foot a few hundred metres to some 40 Bicycle route: KernavNeris Regional Park trailKernav.