Lake Mucharz (Świnna Poręba Reservoir)

On the Skawa river, a few kilometres from Wadowice, stands a dam that took longer to build than many people's entire careers. The first plans were drawn up in the 1950s, construction began in 1986, and the basin was only properly filled around 2020. The result is Lake Mucharz (Jezioro Mucharskie) – known until 2018 by its working name, the Świnna Poręba Reservoir.

History: a project spanning three generations

The reservoir's construction dragged on through the fall of communism, financial crises and a series of missed deadlines. Between 1988 and 1992, a stretch of railway line no. 103 from Wadowice to Skawce that ran along the future lake bed was dismantled, and according to Radio Kraków around 400 households had to be relocated. The dam was officially opened on 10 October 2015, even though the basin could not yet be flooded – landslides had to be stabilised, new roads built and an old bridge taken down. The last family living on the future lake bed signed an agreement to move out in September 2016. The hydroelectric plant started up on 2 March 2019, and filling of the main basin began in spring 2020.

The dam in numbers

• flood storage capacity: 161 million m³ of water,
• maximum surface area: 1,035 ha (around 820 ha at normal level),
• dam: roughly 50–54 m high (sources differ) with a crest more than 600 m long,
• a 4 MW power plant producing about 14.8 GWh a year,
• the lake stretches for around 11 km – from Świnna Poręba to Zembrzyce.

Its main job, though, is flood protection. The reservoir is designed to lower flood peaks on the Skawa and on the Vistula – all the way to Dębnicki Bridge in Kraków. It proved its worth before it was even finished: during the floods of May 2010, the incomplete basin held back as much as 61 million m³ of water.

Interesting facts

The lake's name was the subject of a dispute. "Lake Wadowice" was proposed, but the municipalities whose land the water covers objected. From 2013 the municipality of Mucharz promoted the name Jezioro Mucharskie, and that was officially adopted in December 2018. Another curiosity lies below the dam: the state water authority Wody Polskie built a fish hatchery here – the largest of its kind in southern Poland – which since 2018 has been raising young barbel, among other species, to make up for the natural spawning grounds lost to the dam.

Tripto tip

The best view of the whole lake with the wooded slopes of the Little Beskids is from national road 28 near Jaszczurowa, while the dam itself is best seen from the Świnna Poręba side. Local authorities have announced promenades and cycle paths around the water, making this a good spot for a short walk or bike ride; there is a beach by the village of Mucharz. Bear in mind that this is first and foremost a flood-control reservoir, so water levels can change noticeably. Allow 30 minutes for the viewpoint alone, or 1–2 hours for a walk along the shore. The trip combines easily with a visit to Wadowice.