Almost everyone pondering a visit to attractions in Poland, choose the most famous and touristy regions. They sight-see Tatra Mountains, Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, Bieszczady Mountains, Sudetes and relax over the Baltic Sea or Masuria. While in central Poland, near the capital, there is a place wher,e in a very scenic way, you can spend a few days. All you need to do is to go a little more than 100 kilometres from Warsaw in order to be in the Gostynin Lake District.
I am lucky to have lived here for several years, and almost every day I can have the adventures mentioned below. I would like to invite you to trip, at first virtual and if you like it, I am waiting for you in my agro-touristic farm – Pod Lipą.
The Gostynin Lake District is a place rarely visited by tourists, although it is situated close to large urban areas. The journey from Warsaw or Lodz don’t take too much time, since you can get here by car in less than two hours. Apart from a few holiday resorts, it’s still virgin territory. For the nature lovers, there are countless possibilities to spend your time in an interesting and beautiful way. If you have a bit of imagination, without much difficulty, you can plan many fascinating hiking routes, and during your trips you will have direct contact with the unsurveyed nature. You can go on an all-day trip on foot, by bike or canoe, but most importantly, you can do so without having to meet other tourists.
One of the most interesting and extremely scenic canoe routes, I find the lower stretch of the river Left Skrwa. This is a small river, which has its sources south of the village Lanięta, at the height of 128 metres above mean sea level. After covering a distance of 43 km, the water of this river flows into Vistula river, directly into Włocławek Reservoir which has been established as the queen of Polish rivers. The mouth is located near the village Soczewka, at the height of about 60 metres above mean sea level. The average drop on a river is quite large and in total it’s 1.12%. On some stretches, Skrwa has a character of the mountain river so that in other parts it can be quiet and lazy. In fact, it’s a border river which separates the two significant historical lands of Mazovia and Kajawy. The land relief in the basin of Left Skrwa is very varied, and was formed by a massive continental glacier during the Wolstonian Stage in Poland. Hence, the large height differences and varied relief of this land. During exploration of this area, we can come across numerous hills, knolls, dunes, kames and eskers. Here you can find the biggest esker in Poland, which is a long narrow undulating steep and sandy embankment formed by water flowing from the continental glacier. The esker in Gostynin, commonly known as “Dybanka” is a torturous, winding embankment measuring over 14 km. At its highest point, it’s 121.3 metres above mean sea level, and it stretches from the area of Gostynin to the north east, along Left Skrwa. At its foot in the subglacial channel, the lakes of Czarne, Kocioł and Bratoszewo have emerged.
The dunes have created series of hills, for instance, Krucze Mountains or single knolls like Kobyla and Patrolowa Mountain. Although we are on the flat in Mazovia, in many places you can feel as if we’re in not very high mountains.
The glacier activity contribute to the origins of numerous lakes. In this small area of the not so popular lake region, there are over 60 lakes. One of the biggest is Lucieńskie Lake, which is located north from Gostynin, in a deep subglacial channel. Its surface measures 514 acres, and extending between the south east and north west, it is an unusual layout of the gully lakes in Poland. Usually they extend from north to south, in accordance with movement of the continental glacier. This water area has a reach of 4 km. Thanks to renting some canoes in one of the agro-touristic farms, located over Lucieńskie Lake, you can start your canoeing trip to the estuary of Skrwa, Vistula. Sailing in Lucieńskie Lake, without doubt, has its advantages. It’s a zone of silence, and any internal-combustion engine are prohibited. Apart from canoeists, also sailors and windsurfers take the advantages of the attractions of this lake from time to time. Often, the area has western winds, which are favourable to them.
Very few, more courageous canoeists decide on a beautiful but really exhausting all-day canoeing trip through Skrawa. The route is not long, but extremely difficult. However, the canoeing trip provides memorable experiences and emotions. Undoubtedly, it always remains in the memory of those who have managed to overcome the river’s challenges, giving the participants a lot of satisfaction and joy.
As long as the river is irregular and disordered, the participants of canoeing trips will encounter many obstacles. I canoed several times in Skrawa, last time being in May 2011 where the route is only 20 km. Our canoeing trip in the river stretch, starting from Lucieńskie Lake, we had to displace canoes 82 times(!). The physical exertion and fatigue was huge, but the beauty of the river compensates all the difficulties. Each participant of the canoe trip agreed that it was worth overcoming these difficulties to see all the beautiful and unsurveyed areas from the river’s level.
For me, Left Skrwa is one of the most beautiful meandering rivers in Poland. There were places, where we solidly paddled and sailed quite quickly for over half an hour, and it seemed that we were again in the recently passed position. It turned out that we were not wrong. The river’s currents turned sharply and changed direction, resulting in almost a 180° turn, and we again found ourselves returning to already familiar places.
Before we enjoyed all those adventures, we had to come out of the Lucieńskie Lake to Skrwa, where we had relocated our canoe for the first time. This water area belongs to the Left Skrwa watershed, as well as the lakes Białe, Sumino and Drzesno located nearby, but there is no direct connection with the river. This combination is only possible with an extremely high water level, which occurs once every couple of years. I was really pleased with the fist replacing. I realised that if the waters of Skrwa fall directly into Lucieńskie Lake, it would be much more polluted. Unfortunately, large amounts of industrial and communal pollutions flow from through the river from Gostynin and Lucien. This water reservoir remains quite clean and from its attraction, it benefits fishermen, tourists and holidaymakers.
The water level in the river is very variable, and in many places Skrwa is too shallow to flow adequately, and the only way is to haul the canoes on the shore, or burdensome replacing. I usually canoe Skrwa in May or June, when the rainfall is greater and therefore the level of the water is relatively high. However, it does not always save you from carrying it around, it happens that canoes have to be carried for hundreds of metres, often across meadows. It can be nice and pleasant, but when the meadow is overgrown by nettles, there is a little fun to be had. Very few canoeists decide to overcome those obstacles, so if you are going to canoe there, you cannot expect to meet other lovers of canoeing.
During the trip, we have the unceasing twitter of birds, constantly hearing the bird trills. Birds are accompanied by annoying mosquitoes and flies. In those wild harbours and remote places, you can meet wild boards, roe deers, deers and sometimes with some luck, you cab see the mighty elk. Over our heads fly storks, cranes, herons, swans and in the exposed sky overlooking mid-forest meadows, you can see profiles of alerted, circling birds of prey, like sea eagles, hawks and buzzards.
In the waters of Skrwa, you can also find many species of fish. However, you very rarely come across fishermen. Unfortunately, close to human settlement, there are also places where the local farmers spread nets across the riverbed. Not so long ago you can easily meet crawfish in the waters of Skrwa, but it’s been a few years since I’ve seen them. With a little luck while maintaining silent, you can come across sea otters and beavers. If during the canoeing trip, you will not see these animals, you will definitely see the effects of their work, in beaver habitats with huge tree stems cut down, and dams placed across the river, with trees characteristically chewed by beavers. After passing the last buildings in Klusk, you flow on the most picturesque stretch of the river, surrounded by wild landscapes. You will hear no voices of civilisation, you can hear only the nature. You have a feeling that you flow into completely unknown areas, where man cannot interfere. We still are at the heart of the Gostynin-Włocławek Landscape Park. We admire the wonderful post-glacial scenery, and the high sand dunes overgrown with old forest. The valley Skrwa heavily steeps in the surrounding hills, and we are delighted by the slopes which reach up to 16 metres. One lapse in concentration and you’re taken by the rapid currents, with the canoe getting stuck on underwater stem, and a tipper become’s inevitable. You then need to dry up in the rays sunshine after an unexpected bath.
From time to time, we sail to mid-forest clearing and meadows. The riversides are overgrown with lush vegetation, as we can see broadleaf cattail, reed canarygrass and arrowheads. Along the valley Skrwa, runs one of the most interesting tourist trails, from Gostynin through Helenów, Lucień, Klusek Biały, and Krzywy Kołek to Soczewka. It is rarely visited as part of the canoe route. During the autumn mushrooms appear in its forests, and you can pick large amounts. Hardly anyone does venture into those areas, placed far from human settlements. You can ride a bike on the trails designed for pedestrians, which provides a great deal of emotion and adrenaline, because the paths are extremely narrow, and often blocked by fallen trees and slopes of dunes shelved to the bottom of the valley. All throughout, you need to keep extremely intrusive and blood-thirsty mosquitoes away.
Once again we flow in the huge green tunnels where the enormous treetops obscure the sky. From every side, we are surrounded only by the greenery of lush nature like trees, shrubs, grasses and lichens. We are fascinated by this unreal, unique and film-like scenery. You don’t want to leave this place, but time is running out. We still have a few hours of solid rowing. The only traces of humans we can find here, as old feeding trays for wild animals, which are empty during this time of the year. In the river’s water swims the zigzag grass snake. It has a raised head over the water, and on it two characteristic yellow blotches. There are again picturesque meanders and banks of the river bed heavily undercut. The massive tree roots are visible in the water, and you have to careful of them in order not to keel over the canoe once again. Now it is time for a heavy dose of gymnastics. The fallen branches of tree hang low over the river, if we do not want to carry them again we need to keep our heads and backs down so that not to be hit by protruding trees. In this way we overcome further obstacles of this kind. It happens sometimes that such a passage can be painful, when your head or back is hit by the branches. Not always you can overcome it in this way, sometimes you have to bestride on the fallen tree and push under it an empty canoe. With some other obstacles you need to jump into the water fully clothed and drag your canoe.
We sail to another characteristic point of the canoeing trip, still next to small backwaters. Years ago there used to be a water mill in this place, located near Krzywy Kołek. Today, there are no signs of the mill. Here, we have one of few moments for a deserved rest. For a brief spell, we go to the famous ranch “Krzywy Kołek” about 100 metres away. The cult student centre used to be here, which belonged to the Academic Student Riding Club in Lodz which operated at BPiT “Almatur”. The glory days of this centre are long gone. Today, all you can see are closed and secured old residential buildings and stables. By the end of the 80’s during student holidays from July to September, the students riding camps were organised here. What’s left today are only the memories.
The time was running out, it was getting late in the afternoon, and it’s high time to move on the last part of our canoeing trip. Right after the start, the next obstacles are waiting for us and we again descend into the water to drag the canoes under fallen stem, and we have to keep our necks down to squeeze ourselves under those fallen trees. The frequency of those obstacles is increasing and you do not still have so much strength. There is no way back, so we have to sail bravely on. The sun begins to set, and we sail into another large meadow. The bank of Skrwa is overgrown with high reed beds, where swans and grebes hide. On the horizon you can see the deer blinds; the perfect hunting grounds. Finally, we see a small, new bridge which has been long awaited. This is a sign that in a moment we will sail into the waters of Soczewka lake. Above our heads, gulls and terns herald a larger water reservoir. This lake reach over 2 km. It is one of the oldest man-made lakes in Poland, and was built over 150 years ago, between 1848 and 1853. Previously four water mills were up and running here in Moździerz, Sapa, Soczewka and Sosze.
In 1842, the Warsaw banker Jan Epstein bought the area, and built the lake hundreds of years before mills, and after establishing the water reservoir with the area of 82.8 acres created a large paper plant. At that time it was the biggest paper plant in the Polish kingdom. The raw material used for the production of paper were old rags, which were delivered here by barges flowing through Vistula. All working machines in the factory were moved by water-driven turbines. At first, the hydro-electric power-station worked 3 turbines, and in 1872 their total power was 116 hp. Later a fourth turbine was activated and the power of the power-station has increased to 235 hp.
Soczewka Lake is narrow and its maximal width does not exceed 328 metres. The western bank is higher and resorts are located on it, while you can see many anglers on both banks. After a few hours of peacefulness and associating with nature, we had returned to civilisation. We sailed 1.5 km to the northern end of the lake, to overcome another one obstacle in the accumulating water dam in Left Skrwa to sail into Vistula, the Wloclawek Reservoir. The waters in Skrwa leads to two, separate riverbeds and escape into two separate branches; east and west. On the west one, small 90s water-power plant can be seen.
The branching of two arms, where Left Skrwa escapes to Vistula, have been seriously changed after building the Włocławek Reservoir in Vistula. This is the largest, in terms of surface (18 acres), and second largest man-made lake in Poland in terms of volume, and was built between 1963-1970. It is about 45 km long, and stretches from Wloclawek, where the dam and hydro-electric plant was built, to Plock. The width of the reservoir varies from 547 to 1323 metres. This reservoir has many different functions like retentive, energetic and recreating.
Physical exhaustion increase strongly. Only now we look at the arisen injures. We have broken toe nails, our feet and tibias are injured, our back are heavily stripped, we have cuts in our heads, numerous bruises, and blisters on our hands and feet after bites from mosquitoes and flies. During the capsize of the canoe, we soaked and damaged mobile phones and camera. For most participants of the canoeing trip, the forthcoming night was sleepless and we spent it on the proverbial “licking our wounds”. However, none of the participants of this trip had the slightest of doubts whether it was worth to experience this adventure. We were all very happy, satisfied and pleased with the lived adventure. In our heads we’d already made plans of our next canoeing cycling trips, and other escapades, which allow us to see next beautiful, and to a large extent, still unsurveyed Gostynin lake district.