Diving in Russia - Amber Lake

Amber Lake is located in the village of Yantarnyj (German: Palmnicken), which is situated near the city of Svetlogorsk in the Kaliningrad region. After the Second World War the abandoned pit began to fill with groundwater, which mixed with rainfall and turned into a small lake. As a result, today we have a beautiful diving site measuring 1.5km x 700m.

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In 1947, on the site of the old mine in Yantarny, a large gulag was established, in which about 6,000 prisoners worked. In June of the following year the first excavations started under the name Kombinat No. 9 (the number came from the number of the lager). Until the 50s of the 20th century almost 250 tons of amber were mined in Yantary annually.

At its deepest point Amber Lake is about 24 m deep, so all its charms are available already with OWD/P1 qualifications. Diving into the depths, we will find an excellent transparency of about 15m! The thermocline starts at about 8m, just like in most Polish lakes. Above the thermocline you can find shoals of perch, gudgeon and gobies – uncommon in freshwater areas.

Below the thermocline and in the deeper parts of the tank, there is practically no need for artificial light. The bottom formation is wonderfully varied, which makes diving even more attractive! All the mountains, valleys and gorges among the clay slopes make a wonderful impression. The bottom, covered with majestic greenish flora, looks like the turf of a sports field.

A special attraction is the flooded forest. It was probably created by a landslide of the steep slope which surrounds the lake. The rapidly falling ground probably took the trees growing on it with it. As a result, we now have partially buried treetops forming an amazingly beautiful underwater forest. All the branches of the underwater trees are heavily overgrown with crayfish, whose presence indicates very clear water.

The presence of crayfish is another manifestation of the high quality of the lake. This is another unique attraction. The local species is the signal crayfish (Californian), not found in other water bodies. The local predators have quickly adapted to the unusual surroundings and among the tree branches, we often come across large pikes lurking there.

This is complemented by the remains of human activity in the area. During the dives you can come across sunken boats and lifeboat capsules. There is also an old mine guard shack, partly buried in the bottom of the lake.

Amber Lake is situated in the immediate vicinity of the sea. After a walk of no more than 15 minutes you will see a wide beach, surrounded by steep cliffs about 15 m high. The whole creates in the glow of the setting sun an amazing landscape, remaining for a long time in the memory. While diving in this area, it is worth taking the time to visit the local amber museum free of charge.

For those who would like to visit Russia and the Kaliningrad Region with someone familiar with the area and local attractions, we recommend expeditions organised by Jarek Dziadosz.