Augustów Canal

Why visit?

The Augustów Canal is one of the most ambitious feats of water engineering of 19th-century Europe: more than 100 kilometres of waterway dug largely by hand between 1824 and 1839 to link the Vistula basin with the Neman and bypass the Prussian customs blockade on the Vistula. Six to seven thousand labourers worked on the construction, and the design was drawn up by General Ignacy Prądzyński, later a commander of the November Uprising. Today the canal is a Monument of History (since 2007) and one of the best-preserved 19th-century waterways on the continent, listed in the heritage register as early as the 1960s. Of its 101 km — 82 of them in Poland — the route works thanks to 18 locks, from single-chamber ones to the two-chamber Paniewo and the four-chamber Niemnowo on the Belarusian stretch. Passing through these old, still-functioning structures is an attraction in itself: the wooden gates and mechanisms look almost as they did two centuries ago. In summer the Augustów Shipping Company carries around 100,000 passengers a year, including the „papal route” sailed by John Paul II in June 1999. The history of the construction is told by the Museum of the Augustów Canal in Augustów. The canal is best enjoyed from May to September. The classic option is a boat cruise from Augustów; the more active choose a multi-day kayak trip through the Augustów Primeval Forest with lock passages and nights in harbours, while cycling and walking trails run alongside the water. Remember that cruises, rentals and lock passages are paid services, and in high season it is worth booking ahead.

What you’ll see

• 18 zachowanych XIX-wiecznych śluz, w tym dwukomorowa Paniewo
• 101 km szlaku wodnego przez Puszczę Augustowską
• Pomnik historii od 2007 roku
• Rejsy Żeglugi Augustowskiej, w tym „trasa papieska”
• Kilkudniowe spływy kajakowe ze śluzowaniem

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