Kalwa Lake is located in the Olsztyn Lakeland in the Pasym commune. It is located halfway between Olsztyn and Szczytno. Access is provided by the national road No. 3, which connects these two cities. The main tourist destination is Pasym. This is the address most of the lakeside accommodation has. Others can be found in Michałki, Miłuki, Tylków or Otol.
The lake is in the shape of a horseshoe with unequal arms, between which the Gaj peninsula is located, it also has an additional branch to the west. The coastline is very diversified. there are many small bays and peninsulas. There are 8 islands on the lake with a total area of 6.4 hectares. The largest of them is the Hospital Island. The lake covers 562 hectares. The maximum depth is 32 meters and the average depth is 7.
Pasym itself is quite an interesting town. It provides the necessary infrastructure for tourists and residents. There are shops, bars, restaurants, a pharmacy, health center, post office and the like. It is worth visiting the market square and the older part of the town in general. You can see many interesting sights here:
- Late Gothic Evangelical-Augsburg church from the end of the 15th century,
- Neo-Gothic Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (Catholic) from 1876,
- Town Hall from the 19th century,
- Remains of city walls from the 14th century,
- Old buildings from the end of the 18th and the beginning of the 19th century,
- Mill complex: miller house from 1903,
- A water tower from 1911 (in the city park),
- Former city bath, next to the water tower, now a water treatment point.
Accommodation for tourists is provided by a huge number of agritourist accommodation. There are also three holiday resorts located on the southern side of the lake. However, historically it was different. Before the war, Rudziska Pasymskie, then Waldheim, was a center of water and winter sports, as well as a place of Sunday rest for Pasym residents, who could get there by a few kilometers road or use a small ship that sailed on Lake Kalwa. The pride of Rudzisk was the guest house built in 1927 (after 1945 it housed the Masurian Folk University founded by Karol Małłek), and the guests could also use the ski jump with a chairlift, a small toboggan run, a water marina and several cafes. No wonder then that Poles who settled in Pasym after the war also fell in love with Rudziska. Newer centers were established here after the war. They also provided all possible amenities and a plethora of beds. However, from the beginning of the nineties, without modernization, the number of guests decreased and finally bankruptcy in 2000. Next to it, there is another unfinished hotel of the Provincial Management Board of Communal Cooperatives. It has been standing empty for many years. It is up for sale, but already badly damaged. Another abandoned resort is located in Pasym, at a recreational street.
Currently, the only public beach is located in Pasym at Ostrów Street. However, the city and its surroundings are developing strongly. There are several facilities in the area with potential under construction. The lake is very popular because of its varied coastline, full of charming bays.
There are a lot of pikes in Lake Kalwa, most of which are caught in the bays. Due to the progressive water pollution, the quality of which in some bays, especially at Pasym, has fallen to class III, zander has been introduced for several years. Sewage treatment plants have been opened in Pasym and the water condition is improving, but it will take many more years. Zander caught on well and have already become a fishing attraction. Other fish that can be caught here are bream, roach, silver bream, tench, bleak, common crucian and silver crucian and sporadically large carp. The lake is hosted by Kompania Mazurska Pasym Sp. z o.o., which sells permits and fish in its office in Pasym. For several years, discussions have been held between the commune and Kompania Mazurska, aimed at limiting fishing with nets and making the lake available only to anglers. You can already see that there are much more fish in this lake than in other surrounding areas.
Kalwa Lake is charming and inviting for tourists and anglers. The commune cares for the lake and its condition is constantly improving. It has been liked for a long time, and with time it may become a pearl of the Olsztyn Lake District.
