A lake that is counted in different ways

Above Czaplinek lies Lake Drawsko, which according to Wikipedia formed where several deep glacial channels cross. Wikipedia gives an area of 1781.5 ha and a maximum depth of 82.2 m according to a 1991 publication, which is said to be the second-best result in Poland after Hańcza. The municipality of Czaplinek, in its presentation of the lake, lists different figures: 1871 ha, a depth of 83 m and 68.37 km of shoreline. According to the municipality it is the twelfth largest lake in the country and the largest in the Drawsko Lakeland. Measurements and methods vary, so it is best to read both values as approximate.

The municipality also notes that the water body lies within two municipalities, Czaplinek and Złocieniec. The Drawa River flows through it, and according to Wikipedia the town of Czaplinek and the village of Stare Drawsko lie on its shore.

Bielawa, the largest island

There are 12 islands on the lake, and the largest of them is Bielawa. Wikipedia gives its area as about 80 ha, the municipality as 79 ha, and ranks it fifth among lake islands in Poland by size. The former German name was Kalkwerder, that is, Limestone Island. According to the website of the town of Czaplinek, the oldest traces of settlement in the area, from about 2500 years ago, were discovered precisely on Bielawa and in Stare Drawsko.

Wikipedia describes the island as a place that can be reached: a nature trail with information boards and roofed shelters has been laid out there, and piers have been built on the eastern and north-western shores. The western part of the island is private property. Until 2008 a beech about 200 years old, a natural monument, grew here, and it fell after being struck by lightning. The municipality of Czaplinek points to the problem of cormorants, which according to it damage the tree stands on the islands, Bielawa included.

Fishermen on Drawsko

People lived off the lake long before tourism. According to Wikipedia, in a description from 1564-1565 Lake Drawsko in the Drahim starostwo (royal estate) measured 177 by 18 ropes, and there were no carp in it. In summer it was leased by fishermen, who paid the castle in Drahim two quarters of oats each. That is what a fishing lease looked like in the days of the starostwo.

Today fishing on the lake is run by the company Gospodarstwo Rybackie w Czaplinku, as confirmed by both Wikipedia and the municipality. The discrepancy concerns the water authority: Wikipedia names the Regional Water Management Board in Poznań, while the municipality's presentation names the board in Bydgoszcz. A craft linked to water also existed on the other side of the lake. According to the Complex of Landscape Parks of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship, the village of Sikory was from at least the 14th century an important centre of pottery and brick firing, and the bricks were used to build, among other things, Drahim Castle.

The motor boats of the shipowner Zemke

Before the Second World War, motor boats sailed regularly on the lake. According to Wikipedia, Nixe (the Water Nymph), Moewe (the Seagull) and Reiher were then stationed in Czaplinek, and their owner was Gustav Zemke. The source states that as late as 1950 the mayor of Czaplinek still listed them in his reports as vessels carrying 50 and 60 passengers. Whether they still ran regularly after the war, the entry does not say; it is only known that they appeared in the town's documents.

This tradition of water transport continues today in a different form. According to the municipality, people sail on Drawsko in sailing boats, kayaks, pedal boats and windsurfing boards, there is also diving and angling, and six bathing areas operate in the municipality of Czaplinek. From the marina in Czaplinek one can also set off on a trip down the Drawa River.

Resorts on the shore

The leisure infrastructure around the lake is considerable. The municipality's presentation lists, within its area, six holiday centres, two campsites, a dozen or so hotels, inns and guesthouses, four agritourism farms, a hostel and a water sports centre. Wikipedia writes about a marina and a large sailing harbour in Czaplinek, and a summer bathing area has been designated on Drahimska Street. For visitors the lake is therefore at once a place for swimming, for sailing and for quiet walks around the island.