The Szczecinek Commune is situated in the south-eastern part of the former Koszaliśnkie Voivodeship, in the Drawskie Lake District (Pojezierze Drawskie).

The commune covers an area of 510 km², with a population of 10,350 inhabitants.

The Szczecinek land is located in a magnificent post-glacial area formed by the last Scandinavian glacier from 10 thousand years ago. The glacier created deep depressions filled with gorgeous strings of lakes connected with rivers. Forests and lakes are the dominant element of the landscape. In the commune, there are about 40 lakes with a total area of 44 km, among which Wielimie and Wierzchowo, particularly attractive for sailors and windsurfing enthusiasts, rank as the largest. Most of the lakes situated within the area of the commune are connected with rivers and outflows, thereby they are suitable for canoe tourism. Bountiful species of fish live in the waters: pike perch, pike, vendace, eel, and river trout.

You must see this:

1. “Lake Kiełpino” water and flora reserve (3 km away from Grąbczyn).

2. “Wilczkowo Oaks” forest and flora reserve (1 km away from Świątki).

3. “Szczecinek Lakes” protected landscape area (the region of Lakes Wierzchowo (3a), Drężno (3b), Białe (3c), Smolęsko (3d), Dębno (3e), Spore (3f), Wielimie (3g), and Dołgie (3h)).

4. “Drawskie Lake District” protected landscape area (the region of Lakes Trzesiecko (4a) and Wilczkowo (4b)).

5. “Enchanted Sceneries” bike trail - 51.7 km long (trail marked yellow).

6. “Nizica” bike trail - 42.2 km long (trail marked black).

7. Eclectic mansion and park from the second half of the 19th century in Bugno.

8. Half-timbered Church of the Rosary Virgin Mary from 1695 and the park from the second half of the 19th century in Drawień.

9. Brick neo-Gothic church built in 1887 in Jelenino.

10. Neo-Classical brick mansion from the second half of the 19th century with a small landscape park through which the Parsęta River flows, the brick church from the beginning of the 20th century with a wooden belfry in Parsęcko.

11. Neo-Gothic palace, church and landscape park from the second half of the 19th century in Trzebiechowo.

12. Brick church in Stare Wierzchowo with a timber-framed tower erected in the 17th century, redesigned in 1928.

13. Neo-Gothic stone church erected in 1859-1865 in the village of Spore.

Did you know that ...

Parsęcko – is the oldest Slavonic settlement in the Szczecinek land; its name is probably derived from the old Slavonic word PARS - which means PIGLET. The first references to the settlement date from the middle of the 8th century, and they relate to the endowment of land to the Cistercian Monastery in Buków Morski. In the past, the Parsęcko settlement spread along a small lake. In 1863 the owner of this lake ordered a deep canal dug to connect the lake with the Parsęta River in order to provide the mill built on this river with sufficient quantities of water. The level of the lake then was lowered by about 3 meters and, all of a sudden, rows of blackened oak piles, together with the remnants of old buildings, household utensils and fragments of ceramics came into sight from beneath the surface of water. Archaeological investigations conducted over a dozen years later by Emil Kasiske proved that a Slavonic lacustrine settlement of a defensive nature had existed on this lake already in prehistoric times. This thesis was confirmed by later studies carried out by Prof. Józef Kostrzewski.

Szczecinek Commune on the Internet:

www.szczecinekgmina.pl

www.powiat.szczecinek.pl