Episode 10 of our European Overland trip 2020
For those who prefer the vlog, it’s at the bottom 😉
After the rains in Pińczów, the four of us decide to move north to the Masurian Lake Area.
This lake district in northeast Poland contains more than 2,000 lakes. The district had been elected as one of the 28 finalists of the new 7 world wonders, and not for nothing. The only thing… it’s quite flat. So we take our time to explore the watery side of Poland, and we discover the weirdest things on and around these Polish waters.
Together with Christine we take a bike tour to Galindia, the Masurian Eden. A beautiful park/museum/campsite/hotel/conference center on the banks of lake Beldany, near Iznota. The themepark tells stories about the history of the Galindians through unusual structures such as: caves, demon dungeons, forest areas, ritual stone circle, the Galindian labyrinth and the open-air museum.
But the best is when you meet the creator and king of Galindia who gives us an exclusive interview… (see the vlog to find out what’s happening here…).
The lakes are well connected by rivers and canals forming an extensive system of waterways. As we are camping next to the river Krutynia we decide to rent some canoes and spend a day on the river. Only… we’re not alone. In a long canoe jam we paddle back the to the campsite. Just imagine what it would be like in non-corona circumstances…
Our next stop is an amazing technical structure: the ElblÄ…g Canal of 48 km between ElblÄ…g and Ostroda.The canal allows for big vesels to overcome a total height difference in water levels of 100 m using locks and a remarkable system: the boat takes the train! A must see!
After exploring the canal we move on to the Baltic Sea where we hope to swim at the Polish-Russion border, but loads of jellyfish scare us off. We spend a couple of nice days in the dunes before we go to our last destination together with Hans and Christine.
Unexpectedly Gdansk appears to be a very pretty and intessesting city. We camp just 5 minutes walking from the historic center in a small harbour. The city is quite crowded and just few people wear masks or keep their distance. So we wake up before sunrise to photograph the city in all its splendour (and without people…).
After 4 weeks of travelling together our ways part and Hans and Christine move on to Berlin and we go back to the Czech Republic for some more flying.