image author: Frank Preuß

image author: Frank Preuß

The national park lower Oder valley, Germany's youngest national park was founded in 1995. Its situated at the lower course of the Oder in Brandenburg's north-east in the district Uckermark and encompasses an area of 10.500 hectare. The cross-border protection zone encompasses an area of altogether 1.172 km² and stretches on the German side as well as on the Polish side along the Oder well over 60km.

image author: Frank Preuß

The lower Oder valley is a plain track that originated during the Ice Age. But its present form received the lower Oder valley only 15.000 years ago when the ice receded again. Glaciers advanced during the last Ice Age from north  to the south of Brandenburg. Winds, dead ice and snowmelt formed the countryside and left lakes, hills, channels, lowlands and sandy surfaces. Through many stagnancy phases the retreat of the ice was disrupted and in many places bed load material of the glaciers settled. The so-called end moraines are still to be recognised as ridges on both sides of the lower Oder valley today.

image author: Stadt Schwedt

The lower Oder valley is one of the last floodplain landscapes in middle Europe. Expansive unspoiled and often of wild and harsh beauty with bordering slopes, deciduous-mix-forests and dry grasslands full of blossoms.  The regularly flooded meadow areas the wet polder form together with Polish floodplains a giant flood control reservoir where the flood can spread. These offer protected habitat for many rare plants, animals and bird species.

image author: Frank Preuß

On one of the dykes a part of the 465km long Oder-Neiße-cycle path runs along.

Popular destination is the national park house in Criewen where one gets a picture about Brandenburg's only national park. Cyclists and canoeist, hiker and nature watcher will find recreation and diversity in the national park. In Schwedt as economical and cultural centre are points of interests, museums (e.g. Tobacco Museum Vierraden), cinema and theatre.