Zarasai District Municipality is one of 60 municipalities in

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

. It borders with

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

and

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by R ...

Local government units

The district has the following localities: * 2 cities ('' miestas''):

Zarasai Zarasai () is a city in northeastern Lithuania, surrounded by many lakes and rivers: to the southwest of the city is Lake Zarasas, to the north – Lake Zarasaitis, to the southeast – Lake Baltas, and the east – Lake Griežtas. Lakes Zarasai ...

(capital) and Dusetos * 3 towns ('' miestelis''): Antalieptė,

Salakas Salakas is a town in northeastern Lithuania with a population of 519 inhabitants according to the 2011 census. It is famous for the neo-romantic church of Lady of Sorrows. It was built in 1911. History The settlement of Salakas was first menti ...

, and

Turmantas Turmantas ( pl, Turmont) is a town in the Zarasai district municipality, Lithuania. Located on the border with Latvia, it is a railway station on the Warsaw – Saint Petersburg railway. The village is known since 1798. It began growing after co ...

* about 800 rural settlements (villages and single-family

farmstead A homestead is an isolated dwelling, especially a farmhouse, and adjacent outbuildings, typically on a large agricultural holding such as a ranch or station. In North America the word "homestead" historically referred to land claimed by a set ...

s) Biggest population (2001): *

– 8365 * Dusetos – 2054 *

– 604 * Dimitriškės – 470 * Antazavė – 461 *

– 397 * Aviliai – 373 * Antalieptė – 359 * Degučiai – 324

Geography and attractions

30% of the territory is covered by forests (about 65% of those are pine forests), about 10% by lakes. The district has about 300 lakes. The most famous lake is Lake Sartai for its winter horse races. Part of the biggest lake in Lithuania,

Lake Drūkšiai A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a Depression (geology), basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the World Ocean, oce ...

, is also in the district. Other three lakes are among the ten largest lakes in Lithuania. There are 20 artificial lakes, the biggest one is Antalieptė Lagoon ( lt, Antalieptės marios). It is a unique artificial lake in Lithuania. It was formed when a

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use ...

Šventoji River Šventoji (literally: feminine gender of ''the holy'') can refer to these objects in Lithuania: * Šventoji River, 246-kilometer long tributary of Neris *Šventoji River (Baltic), 73-kilometer long tributary of the Baltic Sea *Šventoji, Lithuania ...

was built and 27 different lakes joined to form one lagoon. It has about 50 islands. There are 8 rivers, the longest is Šventoji River (almost 45 km in the district). The district has two regional parks, Sartai and Gražutė. The district is rich in beautiful nature and could become a tourist destination. However, the geographic location is very inconvenient. Zarasai district municipality is away from major highways. Also, it is quite far away from the capital,

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

. Vilnians would rather choose numerous lakes in

Molėtai district municipality Molėtai () ( pl, Malaty) is a town in north eastern Lithuania surrounded by lakes. One of the oldest settlements in Lithuania, it is a popular resort for the inhabitants of Vilnius. According to the 2013 census, it had 6,302 inhabitants. The tow ...

Aukštaitija National Park __NOTOC__ Aukštaitija National Park is a national park in north-eastern Lithuania, about 100 km north of Vilnius. Established in 1974, it is the oldest of the five national parks in Lithuania. At first it was named Lithuanian SSR National ...

for recreation. The district has many

hill fort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

s built in the 9-12th centuries. They were used for defence against

Livonian Order The Livonian Order was an autonomous branch of the Teutonic Order, formed in 1237. From 1435 to 1561 it was a member of the Livonian Confederation. History The order was formed from the remnants of the Livonian Brothers of the Sword after the ...

attacking from

Daugavpils Daugavpils (; russian: Двинск; ltg, Daugpiļs ; german: Dünaburg, ; pl, Dyneburg; see other names) is a state city in south-eastern Latvia, located on the banks of the Daugava River, from which the city gets its name. The parts of the c ...

. Stelmužė Oak, the oldest tree in Lithuania, grows in the district.

Nature and geography

File:Smalvas lake.jpg, Smalvas File:Stelmužė001.JPG, Stelmužė Oak File:Veselava002.JPG, Landscape near

References

{{Coord, 55, 43, 52, N, 26, 11, 17, E, region:LT_type:adm2nd_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Municipalities of Utena County Municipalities of Lithuania