Reeds, tall thick grass, waterlogged alder trees, and a glistening water surface. The colours of Biebrza change with the seasons. In the spring, the river overflows its banks and the entire valley glistens like silver. In the summer, the lush green dominates the landscape. In the autumn, yellowed reeds and meadows reign supreme. In the winter, the snow covers the Biebrza Valley, transforming it into a boundless, immaculately white plain.

I haven’t seen it white for a long while.

The Biebrza Wetlands are an important place on my personal map. Less than 60 kilometres separate me from this gem of nature, whose value cannot be overrated. This is where Poland’s largest national park is located, covering an area about the size of Warsaw. The Biebrza Valley is the biggest marsh and peat bog complex in Poland (and one of the biggest in the continent), the largest and most significant refuge for wild birds in this part of Europe, with a high capacity for water retention and carbon sequestration: the list of categories in which this unique region on Earth is number one is really long.

The Biebrza Wetlands are a grand monument to nature: one of the very few in Europe and comparable to the Pripet Marshes