Wigry National Park — 42 lakes, a monastery and beavers

What sort of place it is

Wigry National Park covers 150 km² of lakeland, with 42 lakes and extensive peat bogs. The central lake — Wigry — is the fifth deepest in Poland (73 m) and the sixth largest (about 21 km²). The park was created in 1989 to protect unique water ecosystems and animals — above all beavers, otters, elk and more than 200 species of bird.

The park lies only 15 kilometres north of Augustów, but many visitors skip it — which is good news for you. Wigry is less crowded than Masuria or the Bieszczady, even though the landscape is every bit as spectacular.

The former Camaldolese monastery at Wigry

The park's most recognisable feature — a Baroque monastery complex on a peninsula reaching into Lake Wigry. Built in the 17th century by the Camaldolese (a contemplative order), preserved almost in its original form and today partly a creative retreat.

What to see:

• The monastery church with its Baroque interior, open to visitors
• The Camaldolese hermitages — small cottages where the monks lived in seclusion
• The viewpoint from the courtyard — one of the finest in the region
• The Papal Apartment — the room where John Paul II stayed in 1999, today a museum (charged, about 10 zł)

Kayaking the Czarna Hańcza

A classic of Polish kayaking. The Czarna Hańcza flows out of Lake Wigry and meanders through the park, winding lazily among marshes, backwaters and forest. The most popular route is Wigry → Frącki → Rygol (2–3 days, about 50 km, ideal for a weekend). There is also a one-day stretch, Wigry → Studziany Las (about 25 km, 6–8 hours). Kayaks can be hired on the spot at Wigry (from 60 zł a day) or in Augustów with transport.

Along the way you often meet beavers — especially early in the morning and at dusk. They need to be given space (they are wild), but they are calm and easy to watch from a kayak.

Cycling and walking routes

• The Around Wigry route — circular, about 50 km, waymarked in blue, rideable in a day. Better by bicycle than on foot
• The Las Wigry path — a short 4 km education loop by the monastery, ideal with children
• The route up Cimochowa Góra — on foot, to the park's highest point (175 m a.s.l.), with a panorama of the lakes
• The Suchar Wielki route — across raised bogs on boardwalks, with a mystical atmosphere

How to get there and practical info

From Augustów

About 25 min by car (15 km, the road to Wigry)

The park centre

Wigry — the monastery and the information point

Public transport

In summer, minibuses from Augustów to Wigry (several a day)

Admission

The park is free. The monastery about 10 zł; the Papal Apartment extra

Parking

Charged at the monastery (about 5 zł), with several smaller car parks in the park

When to go