This shallow, stony and vibrant stretch of the Neris river has long been known by timber rafters. It was considered as one of the most dangerous throughout the course of the river, so only after getting over it, rafters could relax and breathe freely again. The nobleman K. Tyszkiewicz, who floated down the river Neris on an exploratory journey in 1857, noted: "Nowhere else throughout the whole journey have I found such a stack of dangerous stones in one place, as in this stretch of our "mother of streams".