A coastal lagoon of the Baltic on the Polish-German border, with harbours in Trzebież, Stepnica and Nowe Warpno and bathing sites on the Polish shore.
Szczecin Lagoon is a coastal lagoon in the southern part of the Baltic Sea, crossed by the Polish-German border. It covers between 666.5 and 687 km² (the Polish part: 410 km²), and is up to 55 km long and 22 km wide. For visitors it is above all a watery landscape with harbours, bathing sites and walking routes along the shore.
The islands of Uznam (Usedom) and Wolin separate the lagoon from the sea, and three straits connect it to the Baltic: the Peene in the west, the Świna between the islands, and Głęboki Nurt and the Dziwna in the east. The Oder flows in through the Oder Bay (Roztoka Odrzańska) and supplies almost all of the water, which is why the lagoon is brackish: salinity in the central part ranges from 0.5 to 2 per mille. The Polish part is called the Great Lagoon (Wielki Zalew), and the German part is the Little Lagoon (Mały Zalew).
Although the name comes from Szczecin, the city does not lie on the lagoon: the southern part of the water is about 10 km from the northern city boundary and about 20 km from the centre. The current name was officially fixed in 1949.
The average depth is 3.8 m, and the greatest natural depth is 8.5 m. The figure of 10.5 m refers to the artificial Szczecin-Świnoujście shipping channel, not to the bed of the lagoon itself. The section of the channel crossing the lagoon is 19.5 km long; it was marked out in the late 19th century and deepened and straightened in the 20th century. Ships sail along it from Świnoujście to Szczecin, and in winter icebreakers patrol it.
Three sea ports lie on the Polish shore: Trzebież, Stepnica and Nowe Warpno. Bathing sites, open in the summer season, include Popielewo, Nowe Warpno, Trzebież and Stepnica.
In Trzebież, Marina Trzebież stands on the lagoon. A walking route starting by the harbour is about 10.8 km long (around 3 hours 15 minutes), passing fishing cutters and sailing boats, sandy beaches, and then leading into the Wkrzańska Forest.
Stepnica has a marina, a pier and a viewing tower, and a short walk (about 3.1 km) runs along the Młyński Canal, where waterbirds are easy to see. Details of the moorings: Port Stepnica.
Nowe Warpno is a small town with a market square and a 16th-century town hall; the walking route around it is about 10.5 km and includes the Podgrodzie Peninsula. The loop from Kopice (about 6.8 km) leads through fields and forest, and after about 3 km the water and reed beds come into view. Marina Kopice operates in Kopice.
The lagoon and its shores include Natura 2000 areas and Wolin National Park. Its nature reserves are Czarnocin and Białodrzew Kopicki. The community bird reserves of the OTOP association are Karsiborska Kępa and the Bielawka Islands, and the Association for the Coast (Stowarzyszenie na rzecz Wybrzeża) runs the Szczecin Lagoon Nature Park (Park Natury Zalewu Szczecińskiego).
There are several islands on the lagoon. Two of them, Chełminek and Wyspa Refulacyjna, are artificial and were created from spoil dredged from the bed when the channel was deepened; both lie near Trzebież. The natural Łysa Wyspa closes off Lake Nowowarpieńskie.
On 10 September 1759, during the Seven Years' War, a naval battle took place near the Rzepczyńska Shoal in which the Prussian fleet lost to the Swedes. In the late 19th century, work was carried out here on the Świnoujście-Szczecin shipping channel and the Piast Canal.
Be the first! Add a comment.
You need to log in to add a comment.
Log in