Wdzydze Lake is one of the largest water reservoirs in Poland, located in the central part of the Kashubian Lake District. It is one of the most important elements of the landscape of the Wdzydze Landscape Park, which covers over 13,000 hectares.
The natural values of Wdzydze Lake are extremely rich and diverse. Many species of fish live in its waters, including pike, perch, zander, bream, roach and crucian carp. There are beautiful mixed forests around the lake, including: oaks, beeches, ashes and pines. In the lake area you can also see many species of birds, such as herons, white-tailed eagles and cranes.
Wdzydze Lake is also a popular tourist destination, attracting thousands of tourists from Poland and abroad every year. There are many tourist towns along the shores of the lake, where you can find many attractions for tourists, including water equipment rentals, rope parks and bicycle trips. There are also many recreation centres, guesthouses and summer houses in the area around the lake.
See also: Wdzydze archipelago, the islands of the Wdzydze Lakes complex
The Wdzydzki Landscape Park is also a place where you can see many interesting and unique natural phenomena. There are numerous natural monuments in the park area, including trees and rocks with unusual shapes. The park is also characterized by a wealth of vegetation, including: northern waterlily, lace lily, orchids and daphne.
See also: Where to go fishing in Pomorskie?
Wyspy Kompleksu Jezior Wdzydzkich, fot. Pomorskie Travel
Wdzydze (pre)history
The lake is formed by two huge, intersecting channels. One of them runs in the latitudinal direction, the other in the meridional direction. Both gutters were created at the intersection of two drainage systems that flowed under the glacier during the glacial period. These waters, flowing under the ice, were under hydrostatic pressure, causing deep erosion and contributing to a significant and varied depth of the reservoir (from an average of 15.2 m to a maximum of 72 m).
Huge lumps of dead ice, originating from the collapse of the ice sheet and separated from the main glacier, were deposited in the depressions of the land and preserved them. When the climate warmed significantly, the masses buried in the moraine material (outwash sands and gravels) melted out, and the preserved gutters were filled with water. In this way, an elongated ribbon lake with an unusual shape and a varied shoreline was created. The well-developed shores of Wdzydze Lake are partially covered with forest and in places they rise to a height of 7 to 10 m above the water surface.
Wdzydze Landscape Park, fot.W. Zdunek
