The Neris is the river that winds out of the hills of eastern Lithuania and runs through Vilnius, and just upstream of the capital it flows through a landscape of pine forest, sandy terraces and soft green valleys. This is the country of Kernave, a village of a few hundred people that was, in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, one of the main centres of the Lithuanian state. Five hillforts rise above the river valley here, together with the traces of an old town on the flat ground below, and the whole archaeological site was listed by UNESCO in 2004. The label of Beresnaki and Paliepiukai sits along the same valley, and its villages belong to the same countryside.
Kernave was a pagan capital, the seat of grand dukes before Vilnius took over, and it was burned by the Teutonic Order in 1390 during the long wars between the Order and Lithuania. The hillforts, topped now with grass and looking like huge green loaves, were the defences, and the town below was a trading place. Excavations have found hundreds of thousands of objects, from jewellery to weapons and tools, and there is a museum where you can see them. In summer, a festival of living archaeology fills the area with people in medieval dress, who demonstrate crafts and combat, and the atmosphere is lively. The other ride title, Modernist Kaunas, is a different kind of heritage altogether, a city of interwar architecture.
For a rider, this is gentle, green and quiet. The roads in the Neris valley wind among fields and forest, with moderate bends, smooth tarmac and very little traffic outside Vilnius. In midsummer, the light lasts until late in the evening, and the white nights are a joy. Wind, rain and sudden cold snaps are possible at any time, and winters are cold and snowy. The best months are May to September.
Skaidiskes and Rasos, the nearest places, have shops and petrol stations, and Vilnius is only a short ride away, with all the services. Try cepelinai, the potato dumplings stuffed with meat, and a cold beetroot soup in summer, and the dark rye bread of the region. Bring insect repellent, because the mosquitoes in the forests can be fierce.