Lithuania. Gražutė Regional Park

 This time, we explored the natural expanses of the Gražutė Regional Park, located near the town of Zarasai... The main gem of the park is the enormous Lake Antalieptės marios, along with the many islands scattered across its breadth... We spent two days by the lake, kayaking along various routes, enjoying a night in nature with constant bird songs, witnessing a beautiful sunset, and sitting by the campfire... I also tested my wetsuit and other neoprene accessories for swimming in cold water, swimming almost 2 kilometers in the 13-degree lake...

 Map of the route:

  Crossing the bridge, we stopped to launch the drone and see where we had arrived... 

  Although the weather wasn’t ideal for kayaking and there was a light drizzle, we still inflated the kayak and paddled... Kayaking on the lake's surface past the green islands is very cool... The trees seem to rise from the water, filling the islands densely... The birds live their singing lives in their natural habitat, and we slightly disturb their peace... Launching the drone to over 200 meters, and seeing where we are, the perception is even more fulfilling... The scale is always impressive, our small kayak like a seed on the vast expanse of the large lake...

  Returning to the campsite and resting a bit, I changed into my wetsuit and swam to the nearest lake without the boat...  

  The lake's temperature barely reached 13 degrees, but thanks to the wetsuit, hat, gloves, and neoprene socks, I comfortably swam almost 2 kilometers to the nearest island and back... It is very convenient to swim with a buoy for open water swimming, besides being very visible from afar, you can always lean on the buoy to rest if something goes wrong...    

   In the evening, the weather improved, and the evening sun's rays illuminated our "camping" spot...   

  Here, in such a dense pine forest, is the "stovyklavietė," a free place equipped for recreation...  

   

  Dinner by the lake...

  Sunset...

  Sitting by the campfire...

 The next morning, the weather was sunny, and we paddled the kayak through slightly different branches of the lake...

   A place with lilies, which are expected to bloom by the end of June...

  Although it was sunny that day, strong gusts of wind prevented us from safely launching the drone above 100 meters... Still, we managed to take a few photos from a slightly different angle of the lake...