• Address: 78-600 Wałcz

For many years, there has been a bridge connecting the Bukowina in Wałcz with the forest on the other side of Raduń Lake. The name of the bridge - the Kłosowski bridge, was taken from the name of that forest.  Before the bridge was built, You had had to go around Raduń Lake to get to the other side, or use a carrier with a boat. It happened that the carrier did not always hear the call when he was on the opposite shore ... In the winter of 1890-1891, after long preparations a bridge was built at the narrowest point of the lake. Residents and tourists were able to walk comfortably around the Bukowina and the Kłosowski Forest. While building a bridge, they did not foresee, however, that it would be an obstacle for ships - it was a wooden construction hanging rather low. A resident of Wałcz, who moved to Berlin, presented the town with two small steam ships in 1910.  The ships had quite high chimneys, so it was necessary to elevate the bridge in its central part, which gave it scenic beauty. That bridge was a favourite motif on the pre-war postcards and a venue of romantic meetings. There is even a legend about the bridge and unrequited love:
Well, over 100 years ago, on a beautiful spring day on the bridge was Julia, a very young resident of Wałcz, shielding from solar radiation with a lace umbrella. A few of her relatives - father, mother, a little brother were standing next to her. Then a boat with a fiercely rowing young man appeared on the lake. He looked at the group of people standing on the bridge and paddled away. But Julia looked at the boatman and fell in love with him right away with her first youthful love. From that day on, she took the family for frequent walks to Raduń Lake, she sometimes slipped out alone, hoping to see the object of their sighs again. Indeed, she succeeded a few times and these meetings fuelled her feelings. She dreamed of the moment when they finally get to know personally, imagined the next meeting, proposal, and finally marriage.
They exchanged salutations after some time. Although the young man looked interested in Julia, their knowledge never developed as the girl imagined. The athlete was not going to play the role of Romeo. His name was Uwe and he willingly chatted with Julia, was telling jokes, he even asked her and her brother on a boat ride. Julia was waiting for something more, though. One day Uwe said that he was going back home to Berlin for two months, but would return to continue training. Julie got sad, but hope appeared in her heart - maybe Uwe wanted to talk with his family about them? Maybe his parents would accept her and their acquaintance would finally turn into what she had dreamed about?
And Julia began to dream more boldly. She believed in the dreams to such an extent that she told her parents about them as if they were reality. She said Uwe went to talk with their parents about the wedding. She was a good match, her father was a wealthy merchant, so the future son-in-law could count on a good dowry. The family began to plan the wedding. Julia watched the models of wedding dresses, an in the end it was decided to make the purchase in Berlin in the most famous and most expensive company. When Julia was watching the dresses, another young lady - a beautiful slender blonde with green eyes, was buying a wedding dress. Those eyes stuck in Julia's memory, they were like water in Raduń Lake.
A return to Wałcz with a wedding dress was joyful. Julia was happy as a child, imagining herself as a bride and then - a happy wife. She planned a honeymoon - a romantic trip to Venice. Two months passed. The girl eagerly awaited the beloved, being completely sure of his marriage proposal. She stood on the Kłosowski bridge every day, waiting for the familiar boat. Finally, she saw him sailing. Her heart beat with joy, but suddenly she rubbed her eyes with a surprise - there a girl with Uwe in the boat! Uwe waved cheerfully at Julia and, after sailing close to her, exclaimed: - 'Welcome Miss Julia! I would like to introduce my wife Gertruda von Wenzlau!' And Julia saw a beautiful woman with green eyes - green like water in the lake! She nodded at her, but she was unable to stutter a single word from her tightened throat. She turned away and ran back home.  She cried for three days and three nights without telling the family what happened. And when she stopped crying, she pulled out the wedding dress from the wardrobe, put it on, and left the house. As if in a lunatic dream, she headed for the bridge. She stood on it for a while looking at the water, which reminded her about Gertrude's eyes. -'This colour is my death ...' - thought Julia, and jumped into the water.
For many years, a white figure in a wedding dress was allegedly seen on the Kłosowski bridge. Now, when there is a suspension bridge in its place, Julia's spirit appears on the shore of the lake, looking for an old wooden bridge to check from it if the beloved is approaching in his boat...
During the war, the bridge was destroyed, but after some time Polish soldiers built a new wooden bridge as community service, which was converted into a steel suspension bridge in 1978. The suspension bridge on Raduń Lake is now a popular tourist attraction in Wałcz.

 

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