The top of the hillfort is about 100 m long and 13–30 m wide. Its western end rests on the Minija valley, while the eastern end is reinforced with ramparts and ditches. At the south-western and north-eastern foot of the hillfort, over an area of about 3 ha, lies a settlement. This is where most of the hillfort's inhabitants lived at all times, taking refuge on the hillfort only in times of danger. Only the nobility and the retinue could have lived on the hillfort's top, which is at least ten times smaller than the settlement at its foot, while all everyday life went on beside the castle. The main scientific discoveries that could reveal the hillfort's secrets were made only in the late 20th and 21st centuries. Legends say that the hillfort dates from the time of the Swedes or the Teutonic Knights, or was even heaped up by the latter, and that it hides iron doors buried in earth, a sunken manor, secret caves and buried treasure. Still, the most popular legends are about bogeys and ghosts appearing on the hillfort. Changing and growing more beautiful, the Kalniškė hillfort is revealing itself to the public in new colours.