Green Velo

The excursion runs mainly in the vicinity of lakes, giving visitors the opportunity to rest and admire the sights. On the route there are famous Masurian attractions: the palace in Sztynort along with the park, the best-preserved Masurian World War II bunker complex in Mamerki, and the large hydraulic engineering construction of the Masurian Canal and its impressive water locks.

The excursion begins in Węgorzewo at the PTTK resort centre, follows the promenade towards the castle, before which it crosses Węgorapa River at the weir damming the river. Next the trail leads along the promenade to the Green Velo cycling trail, from which a comfortable bike path branches off along the old rail track towards Ogonki. Here, the bike path moves to the old rail track of the Węgorzewo–Giżycko line and then connects with the bike trail Blue Ribbon of Lakes and follows the shore of the forest Lemięt Lake to Okowizna. Next on the trail you can admire the picturesque views of Harsz Lake and Dargin Lake, along with the road to Sztynort. The next attraction is Mamerki. Next the excursion reaches the Masurian Canal and runs alongside it – in some areas, it is difficult and requires getting off your bike. The effort is repaid by the surrounding nature, including many signs of beaver feeding grounds. The path leads to the water lock Leśniewo Górne, and then to the water lock Leśniewo Dolne – from there the Green Velo trail leads back to Węgorzewo. In Węgorzewo, the excursion follows the promenade beside the ethnographic park to the PTTK resort centre.

Route:

• Węgorzewo (PTTK resort centre) -  0 km
• Ogonki - 11 km
• Okowizna - 19.3 km
• Harsz - 21 km
• Sztynort - 29 km
• Kamionek Wielki -33.8 km
• Mamerki -38 km
• water lock Leśniewo Górne - 43.2 km
• water lock Leśniewo Dolne - 43.8 km
• Trygort - 49.9 km
• Węgorzewo (PTTK resort centre) - 55.3 km

Route options:

You can shorten the route by several kilometres in Ogonki, by leaving the bike path and riding through the town on the main road, and then turning right towards Harsz (black hiking trail). Another shortcut variant is riding through the town of Przystań to Green Velo (excludes the ride along the Masurian Canal and the water locks) from the excursion.

Surface:

•     asphalt low-traffic roads: around 80%
•     past Ogonki (approx. 2 km): loose gravel
•     along the Masurian Canal: path, bumpy in places, designed for MTB

Marked route:

• Węgorzewo: Green Velo
• past Ogonki – past Sztynort: the route connects with the blue trail Blue Ribbon of Lakes (approx. 1.5 km)
• past Sztynort – Masurian Canal: the trail partly overlaps with the red hiking trail
• from the Masurian Canal: green hiking trail
• Leśniewo–Węgorzewo: Green Velo

Tourist attractions on the route:

• Węgorzewo - ethnographic park, 14th century Teutonic Knights’ castle. In 1945, along with much of the town, it was burned, and later reconstructed in its present form, railway museum, weir damming the waters of Węgorapa River – the damming of the Węgorapa dates back to Teutonic times.
• Ogonki – a World War II bunker by the bridge, an example of fortification on the strategic passage between the lakes. Before the war, Ogonki and Święcajty Lake were famous for iceboating. Here, in the iceboat Firebird (Ognisty ptak), speed records of the time were broken.
• Okowizna – an early 20th-century palace.
• Sztynort – an alley of monumental oaks leads into the town; there is a stately palace from the 17th century and a park with a several hundred years old tree growth.
• Mamerki – a well-preserved bunker complex, the former command headquarters of Nazi land forces. The complex can be toured; there is also a small World War II museum.
• Masurian Canal – water locks at Leśniewo Górne (construction almost finished) and Leśniewo Dolne.