The Augustow Canal – a precious masterpiece of water construction, unique on the European scale, dating from the first half of the 19th century. Running through the beautiful Augustow Forest, the canal links all larger Augustow lakes, creating an attractive waterway for kayakers and pleasure boat cruises. It is a navigable watershed canal, linking the Vistula River through the Biebrza River – a tributary of the Narew River, with the Neman River through its tributary – the Czarna Hancza River. The canal is expected to be placed on UNESCO’s World Heritage list soon.

General information

• Total length 101.20 km.
• 80 km are situated in Poland and the rest in Belarus.
• Level of water and shipping are regulated by 18 canal locks.

The names of locks:
Dębowo
Sosnowo
Borki
Białobrzegi
Augustów
Przewięź
Swoboda
Gorczyca
Paniewo
Perkuć
Mikaszówka
Sosnówek
Tartak
Kudrynki
Kurzyniec
Wołkuszek
Dąbrówka
Niemnowo

History
The canal was constructed for political and economic reasons. In 1821 Prussia unilaterally introduced repressively high customs duties for transit of Polish and Lithuanian goods through its territory, which practically blocked the access of Polish traders to the Baltic Sea through the Vistula River. In the years 1823-1839 a waterway was constructed, bypassing the Prussian territory, linking the centre of the “Congress” Kingdom of Poland with Latvian ports on the Baltic Sea.