Louise Wood Park, Człuchów

This wooded park on a former peninsula by the ruins of the Teutonic castle is named after a Prussian queen. Louise stopped in Człuchów in 1807 and was taken with the spot, and four years later the townspeople named it Louise's Hill. Today it is a place for walks, with gazebos, a sundial and a wooden boardwalk across the marshes by the lake.

History

The park began around 1800, when the first small gardens were laid out on the Kujawy peninsula next to the castle. Earlier, in 1792, a drainage channel had been dug from the Town Lake, lowering the water and making the peninsula easier to reach. In 1807 Queen Louise of Prussia stopped in Człuchów on her way to Tilsit, and in 1811 the townspeople named the peninsula Louise's Hill.

Several societies looked after the park: a Friends of Nature society in the 1820s and, from 1854, a Town Beautification Society. In 1826 the town took over its management; in 1952 it passed to the State Forests and in 1991 back to the municipality. It regained park status in 2006 and was listed as a historic monument in 2008.

What to see

• English-style avenues under old beeches and oaks, on gentle ground suitable for walks with children.
• A sundial and gazebos, part of the park's small architecture.
• The path below the walls of the outer bailey, with stone fragments of the fortifications.
• The marsh boardwalk crossing the wetland towards the lake.
• The dead trunk of a huge tree, left standing in a clearing as a reminder of the old woodland.

Tripto tip

The park adjoins the castle ruins, so combine a walk with the Regional Museum and the climb up the castle tower. Allow 45–60 minutes for a loop including the boardwalk. Spring and autumn are prettiest, when the beech leaves change colour. The paths are well kept and fine for cycling, but the boardwalk can be slippery after rain. St James's Church on the market square is about 800 metres away.