Braslav Lakes National Park

Braslav Lakes National Park was established on the territory of the Belarusian Lake Area in 1995. The administration of the park is headquartered in the ancient town of Braslav that rises on a hilly neck of land between the lakes of Drivyaty and Novyato.  The Braslav Lake Area is famous for unusual landscapes and terrain left by the ancient glacier. The major asset and pride of the region are its lakes. Here you can find about 300 lakes of various sizes, forms, depth, composition, water transparency, flora and fauna. For their unusual beauty they are called “the blue necklace” of Belarus. The deepest lakes include South Voloso (40.4 meters deep), North Voloso (29.2 meters), Uklya (25 meters) and Strusto (23 meters).

The biggest ones are Drivyaty (36 square kilometers, the 5th largest in Belarus) and Snudy (22 square kilometers, the 8th largest in Belarus). Here you can find relict invertebrates that live only in clean water as well as over 30 species of fish. The Braslav Lakes are home to about 35% of all birds nesting in Belarus. Thanks to the ancient glacier, most of the Braslav Lakes have a very sophisticated form, with bluffy banks, numerous peninsulas, bays and gulfs. Braslav District is a land of islands. There are over 100 of them, including some very unusual ones. For example, the island of Chaichin on the lake of Strusto (Belarus’ second biggest island of 1.6 square kilometers) has its own internal lake.

Defense installations were built on the islands amidst Ikazn and Drisvyaty lakes in the Middle Ages. A monastery stood on the island of Nespish in the 17th-19th centuries. Fishermen and their families lived on the big islands until the 1940s, but now only tourists can be seen here. Another peculiar feature of the Braslav landscape are its hills, including rounded setbacks and winding ridges of post-glacial osar. The glacier left a lot of stones, including huge bowlders. The biggest bowlder in Braslav District weighs over 40 tonnes and can be found on the western bank of Strusto Lake. Many of the ancient rocks were named by local residents. Those are God’s Footprint, Devil’s Footprint and Cow’s Stone.

Braslav Lakes National Park occupies about 70,000 hectares; it spans 55km from north to south and from 9 to 29km from west to east. The national park features 74 lakes with a total area of 12,590 hectares (or 17% of its territory). Its ecosystem consists of over 1,900 species of plants. Forests occupy about 67% of the territory and encompass several forestlands, like

• Boginsky forest
• Widzy forest estate
• Belmont forest
• Druya forest estate
• Boruny forest

Hikers and backpackers are invited to have a walk along eco-paths:

• Belmont Park (an architectural and landscaping monument of the 18th-19th centuries, Belarus’ second biggest park after the park in Nesvizh)
• Slobodkovsky Esker Ridge (breathtaking landscapes and rare forms of the glacier terrain featuring a mound dating back to the 7th century B.C.- 6th century A.D. and 11th-13th centuries A.D., a firing range of Polish border troops of 1920-1939)

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