Channels & lakes
The three arms that create a labyrinth
Every drop of the great Danube must choose a path before it meets the Black Sea:
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Chilia Arm – the wild north
- Carries ≈ 60 % of the river’s flow, carving fresh side‑channels each spring.
- Home to Chilia Veche, my childhood village and the best launch‑point for crowd‑free dawn cruises. -
Sulina Arm – history & lighthouses
Straightened for 19‑century shipping, it leads past Europe’s eastern‑most town to an endless beach. -
Sfântu Gheorghe Arm – sand‑bar paradise
The southern branch keeps its natural curves and meets the sea beside wild dunes.
Countless tiny canals braid these three giants together, so the map is never the same two seasons in a row.
Lakes without shores. Floating worlds of water‑lilies
Imagine a lake whose “shore” moves daily: floating reeds, lily pads and willow roots form living borders that drift with every breeze. The Delta’s open waters work exactly like that.
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Lake Merhei – pelicans herd fish here in sweeping arcs.
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Lake Matița – turn crimson at sunset as clouds mirror the water.
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Lake Babina – summer nursery for hundreds of pelican chicks on remote islets.
No jetties, no concrete—just mirror‑still water stretched to the horizon and the rhythmic slap of wings as pelicans rise to fish, then circle back to floating reed nests.
Forests that float. The Delta’s shape‑shifting flora
Water doesn’t stop plants here; it lifts them.
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Willow galleries grow ankle‑deep in channels, turning boat rides into green cathedrals.
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Plauri—floating reed islands—can migrate hundreds of metres a year, carrying entire ecosystems of insects and nesting grebes.
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In June, yellow flag‑iris stripe the banks like brush‑strokes, followed by carpets of white lilies in July.
These shape‑shifting gardens filter the river, hide otters, and perfume the air with wild mint. Glide quietly and you’ll hear nothing but reeds whispering in the breeze.
