Bolkow, Poland
Crossed into Poland at Gorlitz, some impressive nineteenth century villas, to immediate chaos at Polish road junctions (many seriously need lights or a roundabout) as soon as I got into Poland. Got of Zlotys from an ATM so already to go! Avoided the toll motorway; but, the pavements on the ordinary main roads are generally good (often better than the pot-holed style we are continuing to develop in the UK). Minor roads are more hit and sometimes miss (avoid the the pothole, broken up verge etc). Ended up at a pleasant campsite (about 6 euro/night) within comfortable walking distance of the small town of Bolkow, impressive castle dating back to the fourteenth century of thereabouts. Stayed here a couple of nights meeting a very friendly Dutch family who were renting a couple of caravans on the site.
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| Bolkow - Castle |
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| Bolkow - from the castle |
24th to 26th July 2019
Karpacz, Poland
Large full campsite at the edge of the as I happened to be at the most popular mountain resort in Poland. The home of Bohemian skiing at the end of the nineteenth century when it was part of Germany. The hills go up to about 1700m but are quite Scottsh looking, rounded with forestry on the lower slopes. Walking into town the popularity of the place quickly became obvious - like Windermere on a Bank Holiday! At least the main streets were pedestrianized during the day and evening, which is probably more than we could achieve in the UK.
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| Karpacz - Church on Main Street |
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| Ditto - Crowds - but pedestrianized |
27th and 28th July 2019
Mala Skala, Czech Republic
Decided to drop into the Czech Republic for a few days because heading east through Poland there seemed to be few places to stay until the area of Krakow or more (probably mountain resorts). So through forests and hills into the Czech Republic. Managed to change my Zloty into Czech crowns. It's like travelling around Europe before the Euro was invented. Getting tired driving in the heat of the afternoon (around 34C) pulled in and found the closest place to park up Mala Skala a large campsite adjacent to a wide cool river. Well the hordes from Prague appeared to have arrived there previously and through to Saturday morning to also enjoy the river and local walks! Stayed a couple of nights, reasonable value at around 7 euro/night. Pleasant walking through the forestry, which was full of 'tor-like' red sandstone outcrops and up stream through similar the next day.
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| Mala Skala - Riverside Camping |
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| Mala Skala - Chapel in the rocks - steep climb up |
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| Mala Skala - Large Sandstone Formations in the Forest |
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| Mala Skala - More sandstone formations |
28th and 29th July 2019
Rovensko Pod Traskami, Czech Republic
Well this was more like a Communist period Workers Holiday Camp that really needed some TLC. Lovely Czech girl running the place who had a miserable English Partner who wouldn't even say 'hello'. Fairly expensive too at around 15 euros/night. Hot walk on the second day, fortunately the up hill portion through shaded forestry, to the hill top castle of Hrad Trosky, Hrad meaning castle. From the ruined towers extensive views back towards the area of Mala Skala which is known as the Bohemian Paradise. Loads of small railway branch lines and associated level crossings. The railway is usually un-fenced and often no barriers at the crossings just a 'STOP' sign.
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| Hrad Trosky |
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| Hrad Trosky - the second tower |
30th July 2019
Litovel, Czech Republic
Eastwards to stop off at a small town. Litovel, some 70km north of Brno in the east of the Czech Republic. River, kyaking and a busy campsite again at an interesting small town with some large parks and impressive Gymanazium, adjacent to the park lake, which is a secondary school specializing in preparing students for university courses, probably similar to our Grammar Schools (the few that remain).
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| Litovel - Main Square |
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| Litovel - Gymazium in the Park |
31st July 2019
Landek, Czech Republic
Heading north to head towards Poland found a great camping spot in a landscaped park just outside the steel town of Ostrava a few kilometres south of the Polish border. It had been the estate of the local mine owners, the adjacent mine is now a museum (the present mine dates from around 1915 although the adjacent hills appear to be littered with hundreds of shafts and adits dating from the seventeenth century (if my interpretation of a Czech information board was correct - anyway stuck to the footpaths!).
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| Landek Park - Mining Equipment |
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| Landek - Old Mine Museum |
1st August to 3rd August 2019
Suloszowa, Poland
Crossed into Poland west of Krakow into the busy old industrial area of Silesia. Toyed with visiting the extermination camp at Austwitz; but, there were no tickets left on the online booking system for days and to be honest I don't think it's the type of place to be visited in peak holiday season with hordes of people potentially taking selfies of the crematoria etc. It's interesting to note that it was built in a very developed area (I had always assumed out of the way in the forests of eastern Poland) and is huge around a square kilometre.
Headed towards Krakow, but the campsites there were overflowing and ended up about 30km north at a beautiful campsite, just opened this summer, in a limestone valley (the Polish Jura) with an important castle which houses part of the main art collection from the Castle Museum in Krakow just a couple of kilometres walk away.
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| Zamek Pieskowa |
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| One of Many Limestone Features in the Valley |
4th and 6th August 2019
Tyrawa Solana, Poland
Into the extreme SE of Poland (near where Ukraine, Poland and Slovakia come together, in the meandering San Valley at the edge of the Carpathian Mountains. Some older wooden buildings in some of villages, more than I have seen else where, some wooden churches and the memory of the local Jewish population, which was around 30% of the total population before they we annihilated by the Germans in 1942 - mostly just herded into the local forests and fields and shoot. The memory mainly being the abandoned Jewish cemeteries often completely lost in the forest or the overturned and heaped up headstones in what just looks like a rough field. No living relatives remained to look after them.
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| San River |
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| Old farming equipment and carts were all over the campsite - sadly just rotting away |
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| Russian T-34 - makes a change from the American Shermans in France and Belgium! |
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| Two churches on one side - the gatehouse church is medieval and supposedly a unique surviving example (it said that in English!) |
7th and 8th August 2019
Lancut, Poland
Travelling through northwards to Lancut to stay at beautiful campsite, more like an ornamental garden, for a couple of nights and visiting the important aristocratic residence and park there. As the Red Army approached in late 1944 the last owner packed all his belongings into six freight trains and headed for Liechtenstein - the rest of the locals were not so lucky! One rule...blah blah.
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| Zamek Lancut |
9th August 2019
Sandomierz, Poland
Few choices on route towards the next country 'to tick off the list' -Lithuania. So a noisy campsite adjacent to the ring road at Sandomierz; placated, by the fact that it was only a 500m walk into the old town with castle, cathedral etc on a bluff above the Vistula. Huge outdoor market was still open in the evening on the other side of the main road. Selling everything including literally hundreds of bikes. You see a lot being used locally for transport and for recreation at the weekend (great when the country is pretty flat). There are very few motorbikes or scooters but loads of well cared for cars often Audi or BMW. The houses look great too and I have not seen anything as bad as the less desirable parts of Edinburgh or Manchester - and every where is spotlessly clean. One wonders why Poles come to the UK - I think its a matter of potential income the average Polish salary is about 35-40% of that in the UK.
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| Sandomierz - Looking back at the Cathedral |
10th and 11th August
Warsaw
Next to the main road again! But cheap and just a 5km cycle ride into the centre of Warsaw. Which proved to be a very green city large parks and gardens together with a long 'promenade' along the Vistula. Deck chairs and beaches included - packed at the weekend. As was the rebuilt old town with tourists. Hard to believe that it was virtually totally destroyed by the Germans in 1944 after the abortive Warsaw rising. A free Chopin recital by a Japanese pianist in one of the parks on Sunday lunchtime. Also came across the first British van at a stopover since I first went into Germany on the 8th July, with a pleasant couple from Christchurch.
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| Warsaw - Lanzienc Park - Chopin Memorial and Piano Recital |
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| Warsaw Old Town - rebuilt Royal Castle |
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| Warsaw Old Town - Re-built Main Square in the Old Town |
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| Warsaw Old Town - re-built Barbican Gate |
12th August 2109
Kurowo, Poland
North east towards Lithuania (dual carriageway most of the way as well - normal roads are unbelievably slow and congested - if you're lucky you average about 30mph). After Warsaw a totally peaceful green campsite at the Park Offices on the edge of the Narew National Park - based on a shallow braided river valley covered in reed beds (about a kilometre wide along a 30km length of the River Narew). Not much bird life going on in the heat of August but must be alive in the breeding and migration seasons.
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| Narew NP - endless reed beds |
