Camping … What could be better for a city dweller tired of the busy city life? Only outdoor recreation on the shores of a picturesque lake. This will bring you peace, help you find harmony in yourself, or it will turn out to be a cognitive ecological expedition, during which you can explore the animal and plant world of the surroundings of the reservoir, visit various natural monuments, unique objects.
One of these is Osveiskoye Lake, which is located in Belarus. Read about him in this article.
General geographic information
Osveiskoe Lake is the second largest, but not beautiful, lake in Belarus. It is located near the border with the Russian Pskov region, in the Vitebsk region, and is included in the basin of the Western Dvina. Osveyskoe lake is rather shallow, its greatest depth is seven and a half meters, the average is only about two meters. The smooth coastline of the reservoir is a little over thirty-three kilometers, and the total area is 206 square kilometers.
How did it come about?
The type of hollow of Lake Osveyskoye is dammed or, as it is called otherwise, dammed. This means that the lake was formed as a result of the closure of the river bed. Osveiskoe feeds on the waters of the Vydrinka River flowing into it and several other streams, which for the most part dry up in the summer. The Degtyarevka River flows out of the reservoir, which in turn flows into Lake Ormeya.
Unique lake
“There are many scenic spots, ” some of you will say. But you still don’t know why Lake Osveyskoye is unique. The fact is that this wonderful reservoir has a Master. That's what the locals call a small island drifting on the surface of the lake. Moving around the territory of the reservoir, it sometimes interferes with the fishermen in their fishing, deprives the birds of their homes … In general, he hosts as he wants.
Another island located on the lake is a large, with an area of about five square kilometers, Du. It used to be a small village, but now only wild animals inhabit this patch of land, the rest of which is sometimes disturbed by vacationing locals and tourists.
Fishing….
A pond is not only a picturesque place with beautiful landscapes. Osveyskoe became a favorite place for fishermen from neighboring areas. They come here for pike, roach, and rudd. There is ide and perch and tench here. Some lucky ones come across a hook and weighty zander.
And hunting
The origin of the basin of Osveisky Lake led to the fact that most of the bottom of the reservoir consists of nutritious clay rich silt, which is a favorable environment for the abundant growth and rapid development of aquatic plants, which in turn attract waterfowl very much. They are comfortable nesting and raising their offspring in lush thickets near the water. Therefore, not only fishermen, but also hunters chose the Osveisky Lake of Belarus. Their prey may be mallard, white-fronted goose, crested blacken, and a dozen more species of various waterfowl.
It is worth remembering that Osveiskoye Lake and the nearby territory are part of the Osveisky landscape reserve, and therefore fishing and hunting in these places are strictly controlled and organized by the Osveiskoye forest hunting enterprise and Interservice limited liability company.
Human influence
Unfortunately, where there is a person, nature cannot develop fully, live according to its pristine natural laws. Osveiskoye is no exception. Where there is Osveyskoye lake, there are no big cities that would spoil the environment on a large scale, however, even Osveya village and several more villages, which are located mainly on the southern shore, cause considerable damage to the natural environment of the reservoir. Perhaps the most destructive anthropogenic factor for the lake’s ecosystem was a change in the channel of the Vydranka River, the construction of the Degtyarevka Canal, as well as peat mining in the vicinity. All this negatively affected the purity of Osveisky, the water level in the lake fell sharply.
In order to somehow rectify the situation, a dam was built with a regulating gateway, but it is currently in a deplorable state, so overgrowing of the unique reservoir continues, despite the efforts of employees of the state Osveisky nature reserve, which the lake has been part of since 2000.
