The Odra is the second longest river in Poland (854 km), but the third if we count the river’s course within our country (742 km). The section belonging to MDW E70 is approx. 50 km long and is a class III waterway – it starts from the connection with the Odra-Hawela canal (667.6 km) and ends at the mouth of the Warta to the Odra (617.6 km).
It is worth taking a detour to the Odra-Hawela canal if only to see the Niderfins’ elevator, built in 1934, which allows ships to overcome the 36-meter difference in levels in 5 minutes. Next to it, a hoist is being built, with over four times greater payload than the previous one (3,000 instead of 700 tons). Its commissioning, however, is significantly delayed.
About 3 km from the connection with the Odra-Hawela canal, approx. 2 km from the Odra River, there is Mount of Czcibor, with a monument commemorating the Battle of Cedynia in 972, in which the army of Mieszko I, commanded by his brother Czcibor, defeated the knights of Hodon.
There are few stopping places on this section of the Odra. At km 632, on the German side, there is a marina in Kienitz, and at km 623.7, there is a marked stop for sports and tourist boats in Kaleńsk. To the northwest of Kaleńsk, there is the largest concentration of oxbow lakes of the Odra River, called the Kaleń Canals. There is also a Passenger Harbor here.
In Kostrzyn at the Odra, there is the estuary of the Warta to the Odra. This area is part of the Warta Estuary National Park.
Kostrzyn itself is sometimes called the “Polish Hiroshima” because it was the most damaged city in the territory of today’s Poland during World War II. The most valuable monuments are the remains of the Kostrzyn fortress: parts of the walls and bastions Król, Filip and Brandenburg. From Kostrzyn, you can go – for example by bike – on the “Trail of Cistercian Orders”, following in the footsteps of the Knights Templar and Bailiwick of Brandenburg.
