365 days in Vilnius: May 2016

Series of #WalksinVilnius

Series of #HikesinVilnius

Previously on 365 days in Vilnius

On a sunny May Saturday (May 7) I've decided to have a lonely hike in Pavilniai Regional Park. (official website only in Lithuanian).

Nature in Pavilniai Regional Park is so green beautiful at this time of the year.
(50 shadows of green) :)

First spot I've visited was the Kučkuriškės Mound (in LT) (it is also called Naujosios Vilnios Mound or Barsukynės Hill).

How to get there? I took bus No 37 and go went the final bus stop called Rokantiškės where one of the biggest cemeteries in Vilnius - Rokantiskes cemetery begins.

Then you should cross the street and go into the forest. The forst road begins.

Common wood sorrel (Oxalis acetosella)

(paprastasis kiškiakopūstis) in full bloom

Last blooms of

Wood anemone or windflower (Anemone nemorosa) (Baltažiedė plukė)

When you come to the first green ( not too big) meadow on your right, turn right, follow the path down and go to the forest. Then the path turns left and it goes up and up untill in reaches the top of the mound.

Views from the mound

Some kind of flower on the mound

Finally on May 23, 2020 I've discovered that it's

Lathyrus Vernus

You can go down by following diffrent path untill you reach the forest road again.

Follow that road

Oak

untill you reach a Kojelavičiaus street. You can take bus No 27 and go back to the city.

Let's cross the street. We find a pile of branches and a some shed painted by fans of Colombia:

A house on the slope of Kojelavičiaus street

Beautiful Vilnelė

I can see Kučkuriškės Dam already

The second spot of my hike was Naujosiosios Vilnios Pilkapynas (Naujosios Vilnios Tumuli) (in LT)

its on the Lithuanian Cultural Heritage list.

Naujosios Vilnios Tumuli (in LT)

Purple dead-nettle (Lamium purpureum)

(Raudonžiedė notrelė) in bloom on the slope of the mound

Information board

View from the burrial mound

View on the Kučkuriškės Dam

Information Board

Down the mound..... cross the street and:

The third spot of my hike - Kučkuriškes Dam (in LT) (constructed in 1823!!!)

The dam from the other side

and.... the first building of Kučkuriškės Paper Factory

Fourth hike spot - Kuckuriskes Paper Factory

Some scary but deeply realistic photos of the factory as usually on pamirsta.lt

View on Kučkuriškės Pond

My hike countinues by following Uztvankos street till I reach the main street leading to Naujoji Vilnia - S. Batoro street.

And here, my idea was to take bus No 74 and reach Naujoji Vilnia.

Since bus 74 was coming not soon I've decided to take a walk till the next bus stop.

Railway bridge over S. Batoro street

Green roadside

Naujoji Vilnia Railway bridge over Vilnele

Suprise! After 15 minutes of walk I see some hill on my right!

I turned out to be Rokantiskiu Piliaviete (in LT) (Rokantiskes castle place)

I knew that it exist but I totally forgot about it.

Fifth spot of my hike.

Information Board

Rokantiskiu piliaviete ( opened for visitors in September 2011):

Good but useless idea

There is a Strielčiuku path (LT) along which you have a walk

but maybe next time

View on the bridge over Vilnelė

Naujoji Vilnia and St. Casimir Church in Naujoji Vilnia in the distance

Leaving the Mound territory

More about Rokantiškes Castle Place here (in LT).

Then I took Express bus 6G and went to the final stop and it was wrong. I got lost again. I had to study map for a while.

My destination was the sixth spot - Rokantiskes Mound (located somewhere on Pergales str.)

In order to reach it I had to go back with dear bus 6G to the point where Pergales str. reaches Parko str.

I started to look for Rokantiskes Mound. I got lost again.

I passed the Church on my left.

Church of Saint Virgin Mary Queen of Peace in Vilnius (Naujoji Vilnia)

Saint Pope John Paul II Statue

And to my suprise I reached the edge of the Vilnius City. No! Something is definitely wrong.

I got back just before the church and studied a map again.

Only then I saw that behind that road sign there is a side street down Pergales street and you should go down there. Do not pass the church! Just before the church on your left side look on the right side and look for the side street!

Few hundreds meters away I found a gate to the forest:

Later on I found ruins of something:

Near these ruins there a bridge over Murle Stream but on that Saturday I saw there a group teenagers (probably drinking). Since I do not trust teenagers on Saturday afternoon in the forest (especially those from Naujoji Vilnia) I turned back.

I found another "homemade" bridge over Murle Stream:

I crossed the stream and I found a path to the top of the mound, but I was hearing the voices of these teenagers and actually I got scared. I changed the path and I took direction to the meadow and through that meadow I reached Dziagsmo str. I made a huge loop again till I reached a bus station.
So I wasn't able to visit the mound.
I was so tired and dissapointed after this strange adventure on the bridge that I planned to finish my hike.

I took bus 6G and I was going back to the city, but suddently I got off on Naujoji Vilnia railway station.

Unexpectly, Naujoji Vilnia railway station was the seventh spot of my hike.

Memorial of deportations to Siberia near railway station

For me - one of the most expressive and emotional memorials I've ever seen in Lithuania

Exposition

God, I can even look at these train carriages ( see Mourning and Hope Day in Lithuania).

I used very last remains of my strenght and will and I went up the hill to see

St. Casimir Church in Naujoji Vilnia: