Pakalniškiai Hillfort with foremost fortification

If you take a walk along Kaunas Reservoir or next to the wharf or Pažaislis Abbey, you can find Pakalniškiai Hillfort. Travellers say that it is worth climbing this 27 m. tall hill because the view from the top opens onto the Kaunas Reservoir, Pažaislis, Kaunas Hydropower Dam and the old industrial area of Petrašiūnai.  

If the legend is true, the Hillfort was built by ancient Lithuanians. It accommodated a wooden castle of Vaišvydas, a ruler of Nemunas Valley, who protected the land from enemies. Vaišvydas subordinates lived in Nemunas Valley.  But the enemies completely destroyed the castle with the help of betrayers, and it wasnever rebuilt.

Researches conducted by historians and archaeologists are not contrary to this legend.  The Hillfort dates from the beginning of the I-II millennium. The evidence of life has been found to the North and West of the Hillfort.

In 2006, when the Hillfort was recognised as a State-protected cultural site, it was also fortified, fixed up, adapted for tourism, and studied by archaeologists. Archaeological studies revealed another settlement that existed to the South-West from the Hillfort's fore-work, and over time a change in the overall appearance of the Hillfort. The trenches dug on the territory of the Hillfort during the First World War greatly affected the Hillfort.  Huge rocks that remain on the riverside of Kaunas Reservoir represent the evidence of former defensive structures.

After you visit the Hillfort, you can take a stroll along the 3 km long Pakalniškiai ecological path. The most convenient way to reach the Hillfort is by car. In Vaišvydava, from Didžioji Street, traffic signs and turn in the direction of the Hillfort. Then continue on the gravel road for about 300m.