Lake Ushuru

Lake Ušuru is located in the southeastern part of Gulbene district, 113 meters above sea level. It borders with Jaungulbene and Dauksti parishes. It is one of the deepest lakes in Latvia - the maximum depth is 40 meters. The lake stretches for 3.2 km to the north-south. The only runoff along Ušurupīte, which flows into Liede. Ameliorators lowered the level of the lake by one meter, after lowering the level it starts to overgrow.

Lake Ušuru has gained the most attention with its range of accommodation. In order to find out the location of the lake, archeological excavations were carried out here in the summer of 1964 and 1965 under the direction of J. Apals. The headquarters of the lake range is located in Līņsaliņa (Lāviņas Island) in the southwestern part of the lake, 104 m from the shore. The islet was formed by overlapping the structures of the dwelling with the sediments of the lake. The upper part of the island rises 20 - 40 cm above the water level, but the base is 1.2 m deep. Rectangular shape for the accommodation, dimensions 36 x 37 m. The heavily washed-out northern and eastern parts of the island are exposed. Beam length up to 7 m. Irregularly spaced, driven piles can be seen throughout the accommodation. The constructions mostly contain conifers, less often birch and oak. The thickness of the culture layer varies from 1.5 to 1.7 m. 38 antiques were found on the surface of the island: an iron narrow-bladed ax, a bronze horseshoe, a wrought-iron belt ring, spinning shaft pulleys, stone spikes, wooden stakes, cobs, a gravel and chalk pans. 182 fragments of discless dishes were found both on the surface and underwater. Pots and fragments are also found. Some animal bones have also been found in the mud.

There are many legends and stories about Lake Ushuri. One of them tells:
"Where Lake Ushuru is now, there were once sweeping ravines. When God commanded the lakes to move, it also rose and went to find a new place for itself. People were preparing for the wedding around that time. The tailor was also there. He was sitting in the garden. The pig arrived at the table and started rubbing at the table leg. Now you can see the stones on another island. Old people say that they are the remains of an earlier house that sank in the lake. "

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