Wałcz County
Wałcz is a county town in Wałcz County of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in northwestern Poland. Between 1975 and 1998, cheap the city was administratively part of the Piła Voivodeship, while from 1772 to 1945, it was part of Prussia, or Germany. Granted city rights in 1303, Wałcz has become the administrative, industrial and cultural centre of the Wałcz Lake District, with the city itself situated on the banks of the Raduń and Zamkowe lakes. Wałcz is located in the southwestern portion of West Pomeranian Voivodeship.
In the Late Middle Ages, the region of modern Wałcz lied in a boundary territory of Pomerania and Great Poland. It was eventually annexed by Poland in the early XII century and, except for a brief Brandenburg rule, it remained as part of Poland until the first partition in 1772. After World War I, Deutsch Krone remained part of Weimar Germany and for the most part of the interbellum it was part of the Grenzmark Posen?Westpreussen. From 1919 to 1939 it stood just inside the German border with Poland. After the end of World War II, the town was put under Polish administration according to the Potsdam Conference and renamed Wałcz. Its German inhabitants were expelled.
Numerous pre-war ruins of German fortifications and bunkers are found in the woods surrounding Wałcz, especially in proximity to the lakes. Most of them however are inaccessible – blown up or filled with soil, to prevent accidents with careless tourists.
The lack of heavy industry in Wałcz and the surrounding areas has helped the city to maintain relative ecological cleanliness, making it an excellent location for rest and relaxation.
Another interesting building is the post office built during the reign of Napoleon in Europe.
Sports and Tourism
The tourist, recreational and environmental amenities of the town of Wałcz make it a perfect place for nature lovers and active people. Wałcz and its surroundings provide ideal conditions for any form of tourist activity; walking, cycling, horse riding, sailing or canoeing. Wałcz houses the Central Sports Centre ? the Olympic Games Preparation Centre. Athletes from all over the country come here for sports gatherings. PWSZ students also practice at the Central Sports Centre.There are two large lakes within city limits: Raduń and Zamkowe. Lake Raduń is spanned by a suspension bridge. Next to the bridge in a beechwood forest is an Olympic Training Facility, the 'Bukowina’. Immediately after World War II, Winand Osiński and Olympic coach Jan Mulak founded the training centre and began training with the Polish track and field teams who represented Poland during the 1950s and 1960s. Poland’s Olympic kayak team trains here to this day.
By this lake also resides the City Centre for Sport and Recreation (MOSiR – Miejski Ośrodek Sportu i Rekreacji), which makes a wide range of sporting equipment available, including motor boats, kayaks, water bikes and the leisure boat Delfin. The centre also serves as a starting point for numerous walking and biking trails as well as kayak excursions. The so-called Pętla Wałecka, a kayaking route that traverses six lakes begins here and ends at Lake Bytyń Wielki. Situated on the shores of these lakes are numerous beaches, swimming areas, camping spots and sporting equipment rentals. Within a short distance of the city are several equally attractive lakes, including Chmiel Duży, Chmiel Mały, Raduń Mały, Ostrowiec Wielki, Łubianka, Łabędzie.