The mill in Budry

The magnificent three-storey building of the 19th century grain mill of Bruno Plüguett, with the mill equipment from the 18th century preserved in perfect condition, was extensively renovated and refurbished in 2021 with funds from the Interreg V-A Lithuania-Poland Cooperation Programme 2014-2020 and opened to the public. Four educational studios in the mill: “Granary of Masurian Flavours,” Art Gallery, Old Crafts Workshop, lecture hall equipped with multimedia. The mill offers museum exhibitions, workshops for children and adults, presentations and lectures on folk art. It also participates in the promotion of cultural and culinary heritage in the region and on the Budry – Sakiai route.

Mill in Budry, Aleja Wojska Polskiego 37, 11-606 Budry

Photogallery of the final stage of the mill renovation:

Palace and Park Complex in Więcki

The classicist, 19th century palace and park complex of the Contag family in Więcki dates back to the first half of the 19th century. The palace is a two-storey building with a gabled, almost flat roof. The stable and coach house has been preserved out of the farm yard. The park retains a rich old-growth forest, including monumental examples of ash, oak, maple and beech. Since 1961 the palace has served as a school building. By the road to the village of Dowiaty, there is an old cemetery with family quarters of the Contag family.

Palace and Park Complex, Więcki 8, 11-606 Budry

Historical buildings of the village Zabrost Wielki

Zabrost Wielki is an unusual historical village, which in 2003 won the competition for the “Best preserved historical village in Warmia and Masuria.” The village was founded in the 16th century as a nobleman’s village with a manor house. It was built according to a complex design by the Berlin architect Karl Kujath, as part of the reconstruction after the First World War. Zabrost Wielki is a group of buildings whose architecture contains elements of the Masurian building tradition: entrance gates, boarding up of gables, stylized pazdur [roof ridge decoration pin] and wind gates. It is worth seeing in the village the cemetery from the period of World War I with beautiful old trees and historic crosses and anti-tank trenches of the so-called Koch’s line, built in 1944.

Zarost Wielki, 11-606 Budry

Hydroelectric power plant on the Węgorapa River

Just before World War II, Walter von Sanden came up with the idea of taming the Węgorapa and using its rushing stream. In 1939 the river in the village was dammed and a small hydroelectric power station was built on it. The waters of the Węgorapa River at the Ołownica dam are dammed up to a height of 5 metres, causing a four-kilometre long so-called backwater, thanks to which a twelve-hectare reservoir has been created – a charming ending to canoeing trips. The longest oak tree alley in Europe (5 km of oaks) on the route from Węgorzewo to Darkiejmy runs near the power plant.

Hydroelectric power plant, Ołownik 13, 11-606 Budry

Neo-Gothic church in Olszewo Węgorzewskie

To mark the bicentenary of the coronation of the first Prussian king, Frederick I, which fell in 1901, 14 “jubilee churches” were built in East Prussia. One of them, a neo-Gothic church, designed by the Berlin architect Albert Fisch and built on a hill, reaching about 140 metres above sea level, can still be admired in Olszewo Węgorzewskie. The church boasts historical sacral equipment: organs and organs gallery from 1946 made in Konigsberg, pulpit and 17th century baroque side altar.

Parafia Rzymskokatolicka pw. Podwyższenia Krzyża Świętego [Roman Catholic Parish Church of the Holy Cross], Olszewo Węgorzewskie 29, 11-606 Budry

18th-century church in Dąbrówka

The historic brick church with a stone foundation dates back to 1732. The interior contains remarkable historic stained glass windows from 1905 and a marble slab on the burial crypt. For some time, the church’s social caretaker was a folk sculptor and painter living in Dąbrówka since 1948 folk sculptor and painter belonging to the movement called primitivism – Aleksander Słoma Słomiński.

Parafia Rzymskokatolicka pw. Najświętszej Maryi Panny [Roman Catholic Parish of the Blessed Virgin Mary], Dąbrówka, 11-606 Budry

Brożajcki Canal in the Skaliskie Forest Complex

The sandy and partly swampy part of the Skaliska Basin, formed as a result of the last Baltic glaciation, is occupied by a dense forest complex – the Skaliskie Forest (8,700 ha). The forested areas are dominated by spruce and pine forests. In the Węgorapa and Gołdap river valleys, 21 protected bird species are nesting, including 4 endangered species listed in the Polish Red Data Book of Animals: lesser spotted eagle, corncrake, crane, white-backed woodpecker. The rich forest undergrowth of unspoilt areas makes the Skaliskie Forest rich in the taste of forest specialities – berries, wild strawberries or mushrooms, while unforgettable views are provided by the rare plants found there, such as marsh Labrador tea, wild spikenard martagon lily and daphne mezereum. An extremely valuable natural area is the Minta Marsh. This former lake from the post-glacial period, located inside the Skaliskie Forest, is a major refuge for wild animals. The area, which is completely excluded from hunting, is an excellent home for them. The area of this unique site in Europe is over 100 ha. Among the most valuable species found in the Skaliskie Forest are lynx, deer, elk, otters, beavers, badgers and raccoons (Nyctereutes). Among them, a pack of wolves wields power. A unique place in the whole complex is the oldest of Masuria’s canals – the Brożajcki Canal, designed in 1726 by Jan Władysław Suchodolec. Completed in 1733, the canal connects the Węgorapa River with the Gołdap River and is about 8 km long.

Museum of Folk Culture in Węgorzewo

The Museum is adjacent to the Ethnographic Park on the Węgorapa River, where examples of traditional Masurian architecture are exhibited – wooden cottages, a fire station from Ołownik and a wattle and daub smithy from Zabrost Wielki. You can meet mysterious Prussian stone women there. The museums include objects of everyday use, household equipment, ritual accessories and folk art from the area of Warmia and Masuria. You can also admire sculptures by Aleksander Słomiński from Dąbrówka. In addition to ethnographic monuments, the collection includes historical and archaeological items. The museum offers handicraft activities and products, museum lessons, workshops and demonstrations of traditional crafts. Folk events are held there throughout the year, including the Spring Festival and the International Folklore Fair.

Muzeum Kultury Ludowej w Węgorzewie [The Museum of Folk Culture in Węgorzewo], ul. Portowa 1, 11-600 Węgorzewo