Term: 4 days, 3 nights.
Day 1: Departing from
Utena going south on the Utena Vilnius road about 20 km, on the left side of the road
beside the lake Virintų, is a directional marker to the Ethno-cosmological Museum of
Lithuania. We begin our visit to the Ethno-cosmological museum in the underground gallery
and finish under the open sky in an open picturesque place and a night sky. Also we visit
the observatory. From here we go to Molėtai. There we visit the Country Museum, which
shows the history of the Moletai area, every day life and places of interest. Continuing
the trip we stop in the small town of Alanta.
In Alanta, we first visit the neo-gothic
church built from stone in 1912. In front of the church is a big white inn where you can
have lunch. Then to the east of town between the rivers Virinta and Alanta we will visit a
beautifully restored old Estate with a wonderful park. A Museum of Ethnography is located
in the manor house of the estate.
From Alanta we go to Anykščiai.
After arriving in the Anykščiai area, we
will climb to the crest of a hill where the panorama of Anykščiai opens in front of you.
Next we visit the grave of Jonas Biliūnas and the gravestone on Liudiškiai hill called
Light of Happiness".
The church of St. Matthew is the jewel of
Anykščiai. It was built from 1899-1909. The altars and pulpit are heavily decorated with
woodcarvings. After visiting the church we stop by the workshop of poet and bishop Antanas
Baranauskas and the house and the grave of writer A. Žukauskas-Vienuolis.
Then we go to the legendary Puntukas, the
most famous stone in Lithuania. The legend tells that the devil wanted to throw this stone
on the church of Anykščiai, but the early crowing of a rooster destroyed his intentions.
We return to Anykščiai and go to the
village of Niūronys. There, in 1978, a Horse Museum was founded. We see displays of horse
implements, blacksmith's tools and a postage stamp exhibition. Later, we visit the
homestead of Jonas Biliunas and return again to Anykščiai.
Arrange for a bed in Anykščiai, tourism
information center tel. 370 381 59177
Utena Molėtai Alanta
Anykščiai: 96 km.
Day 2: We start with
breakfast. Then we travel to Svėdasai, where we visit Svėdasai church. From Svėdasai,
we go to Vyžuonos (the center of circuit). Just before we enter Vyžuonos we will stop at
Kartuvių hill where there is a monument to Vytautas the Great.
The little town of Vyžuonos is very old;
it already had a church in 1406. It is thought that a great General of Lithuania,
Mikalojus Radvila (Perkūnas), is entombed in this church. The name of the town comes from
the grass snake Vyžas worshiped by pagans. A grass snake's head made of stone is bricked
into the wall of Vyžuonos church.
The tour continues on to Užpaliai, the
largest church-town of Utena region. In 1792 King Stanislavas Augustas awarded Uzpaliai
its crest. First we will see the St. Trinity church and belfry and the monument to St.
Florion. Then we will visit the little museum "Dausuva", the magic St. Krokulė
spring, the Museum of Carriages and Harnesses of Viktorija Jovarienė and the former
palace of an old estate. Leaving the little town to north we will visit the largest
conglomerate rock in Lithuania and the site where the castle of Užpaliai once stood,
Šeimyniškiai hill.
Next, we go to Dusetos. It was the land of
Radvilai. As early as the XV century, free merchants and tradesmen populated Dusetos. Now
Dusetos is a quiet little town where we will visit the art gallery of K.Būga. We will
spend the evening fishing or swimming in lake Sartai.
Arrange for a bed in Zarasai, tourism
information center tel. 370 385 51230
Anykščiai Svėdasai Vyžuonos
Užpaliai Dusetos: 72 km.
Day 3: We start with
breakfast and then depart to Antazavė. This church-town was named after lake Zalvia and
is located in an area famous for its lakes and forests. Here we visit the Antazavės
estate. The famous architect L.Stuoka-Gucevičius built the palace on the estate for the
Ropai family. This place is also famous for having the deepest well in Zarasai region (130
m deep).
From Antazavė, we will go to the town of
Imbradas located on the north side of the lake Imbradas, 2 km north of lake, Avilio. We
will visit the manor of Imbradas that formerly belonged to the Moliai family who also
built the church here in 1787. We will visit lake Avilio where there are many statues of
St. Mary. It is said that St. Mary appeared in this place, so now worshipers frequently
visit it.
From Imbradas, we will go toward Zarasai to
Stelmužė. This place is famous for its lakes, forests and old buildings. It is thought
that in old times there was a castle at Stelmužė because there are some ruins of stone
that may have been a castle and a stone canal, which joins the lakes of Stelmužė and
Padvarinė.
We visit the church of St. Cross built in
1650 by the owners of the Stelmužė estate. It is the work of talented village masters
using only an axe. There are no iron nails. The owners of the Stelmužė estate are buried
under the church.
Also we will visit the pride of Stelmužė,
the famous oak. It is so large that if you want to put your arms around it, you need 8
people. The Oak is over 1,500 years old.
From Stelmužė we will go to Zarasai,
which in ancient times was called Ežeriūnas and Jarasai. The town is situated among
seven lakes. We will pass by the church of St. Marys and visit the great island of the
Lake Zarasas.
From Zarasai we will go to Ignalina.
The name Ignalina comes from an old
Lithuanian legend. Ignalina was settled around 1866 after a railway was built through this
area of lakes and forests.
Next we will go to Palūše. There we will
visit the old wooden church of Palūšė, which was built without iron nails. A picture of
the church is on the one litas banknote.
Arrange for a bed in Palūšės, tourism
information center tel. 370 386 52891
Dusetos Antazavė Imbradas
Stelmužė Zarasai Ignalina Palūšė: 136 km.
Day 4: From Palūšė we
will go to the village of Stripeikiai. There we visit the Apiarian Museum near lake
Šaminis. A collection of sculptures is displayed which describe the evolution of
apiculture from hunting times to now. The display includes many different types of hives.
The sculpture of the God of bees, Bubilas, is unique (the sculpture has a hive inside).
The museum buildings contain an interesting collection information and artifacts. We then
will return to Utena passing through the villages of Šakarva and Linkmenys on the way.
Palūšė Stripeikiai Utena: 83 km.
Total length of itinerary: 387 km. |
