As soon as you arrive at Narkūnai hill fort, you should feel the special spirit of this place. Its steep slopes adorned with tall, sturdy trees, the hill guards a history spanning many centuries. People have lived here since time immemorial – this hill fort on the bank of the Utenėlė River is dated to as early as the 1st millennium BC – 2nd century AD and to the 14th–15th centuries. The hill fort has been studied more than once. Pranciškus Vilčinskis, who excavated it in 1835, found a thick cultural layer on the plateau with pieces of burnt clay, pottery shards, animal bones and other finds. Later, in 1959, the Utena Museum of Local Lore investigated the settlement at the foot of the hill fort and found a 25 cm thick cultural layer with hand-moulded, striated and wheel-thrown pottery. In 1976–1978 the archaeologists Regina and Pranas Kulikauskas investigated the western side of the plateau, where a 3.3 m thick cultural layer was found. Three stages of settlement of the hill fort can be distinguished in it. The oldest fortifications of the hill fort were two rows of wooden posts 8–18 cm thick. The fence was woven from branches; it suffered from fire more than once and was repaired. This layer is dated to the 1st millennium BC. At the beginning of the 1st millennium AD, the wooden fence fortifications were replaced by a 1 m high rampart of rammed clay along the edges of the plateau. Over all the investigations more than 800 finds have been made: iron crossbow bolts and arrowheads, a broad-bladed axe, pins, awls, sickle-knives, knives, bracelets, a 2nd-century Roman copper coin and a silver coin of Jogaila from the end of the 14th century, a round brooch, bone spearheads, and about 10,000 shards of striated, smooth, burnished and wheel-thrown pottery. It is thought that in the 13th century the castle of Daumantas, Duke of Nalšia, stood on the hill fort, with a settlement growing up beside it. This gave rise to the town of Utena. However, when the Livonian Order ravaged the area, the castle was burnt down in 1433. Having learned about the history of the hill fort, climb the charming steps to the top, where you will see wonderful views of the Narkūnai area. In this setting steeped in antiquity, on top of the hill fort, you can forget your troubles and gather bright thoughts while swinging on the swings placed here. And when you have had your fill of impressions, stop at the foot of the hill fort – benches await you there. Narkūnai hill fort is a state-protected cultural heritage site.