Ojcowski National Park

What is interesting in the vicinity of Krakow?.. We have already written about the Salt Mines in Wieliczka and the Tyniec Abbey. This time we were brought to the Ojcowski National Park. Established in 1956, Ojcowski National Park is one of the smallest in Poland. It includes parts of the valley of the Prondnik River and the valley of the Sanspovskoy.

The most famous sights of the park :

• Ruins of a medieval castle in Oitsov
• Renaissance Sand Rock Castle
• The Mace of Hercules
• Loketka and Dark Caves
• The Museum named after Prof. The best man
• Krakow Gate

There are a large number of caves in the limestone cliffs. The territory of the park also has numerous ravines. The symbol of the Ojcowski National Park is a bat. Here you can see 17 species of mice out of 21 species found in Poland.

But this information is more for reference...   

What to see in Ojcowski Park

Ojcowski Park is more about taking a walk in nature, and not about visiting the sights. And yet... In the very center of the park are the ruins of the castle - in fact, one tower and some more walls have been preserved, you can get inside in the season for a small fee.

The second castle, which is much better preserved and attracts many visitors, is the castle in the Sand Cliff. It's really better to drive up to it, as it is located somewhat away from the main park, but there are hiking trails to it too, so if you're not in a hurry, then you can take a walk. A ticket with a visit to the castle and the museum exposition in 2020 costs 16 zlotys.

Very close to the Peskowa Rock castle is another attraction, the Mace of Hercules in Polish, Maczuga Herkulesa. This is an interesting karst formation with a narrower base and a massive upper part.

There are also several equipped caves in the Ojcowski Park that can be visited. One of them is called the Dark One, in the same Locket.

There is also a museum of Prof. Best man, but who goes to museums when there is such beautiful nature around. Therefore, the next place that you definitely need to visit will be the Krakow Gate, or Krakowska Brama. This huge stone formation really resembles an open gate that leads somewhere deep into the gorge.

How to get to Ojcowski Park from Krakow

If you own a car and are ready to drive a little, then you will need only 20-30 minutes from the north of Krakow and you are there, but do not forget that there are many people who want to, and the parking is not rubber. Very often, by 10 a.m., especially on weekends, it is already full. The cost of parking is 20 zlotys per car and 10 zlotys per motorcycle.

We decided to get to the park by public transport and went to the park on Sunday. It is quite easy to get to the park from Krakow, but you need to decide do you want to go to Ojcow (which is located in the middle of the park) or will the surroundings also suit? Up-to-date information on how to get to the park is available on the official website.

But the easiest way is by bus to Olkusz. On weekends, it runs every half hour, you can choose from several stops that take you to different routes.

We got off at the Murovnya bus stop and followed the yellow route along the border of the park towards the central valley, along which most of the attractions are located. (More about the routes passing through the park here) It was possible to walk along the red road, but the first section is asphalt and a bike path, and we wanted nature. We found nature in the form of a rather broken and dirty road :) Well, in principle, what can you expect in early March with not very sunny weather...

After a while, we came to the main route through the entire park. Without thinking twice, we went ahead. And here is the first fork, you can follow the green route and visit the Black Cave. Naturally, we decided that we would follow the green route. The path climbs up quite steeply, but everywhere there are wooden steps or what is left of them. In principle, this is quite enough to go up or down. And so, after several small ascents and descents, as well as an observation deck, we came to the Dark Cave. Everything is closed... It's not the season yet. (And see the time and dates, when and what works here) And they also write that tickets should be purchased at the box office. We didn't see a cash register anywhere nearby. And only a little later we found a cash register at the very bottom in the valley... So if you enter the park from the south (downstream of the Glacier), then do not rush to turn onto the green route, go further along the red one, buy tickets and only then go upstairs.

The cost of visiting the Dark Cave in 2020 is 10 zlotys per person, the price includes guide services.

Above the Dark cave there is another observation deck on the Crown Mountain, but it reminded us more of a human hand with five fingers...

We went down into the valley of the Glacier. A little more on the way and we are near a bunch of cafes and places where you can stay overnight. The main thing that can and should be tried in the cafe is a wendzona (smoked) pstrang (pstrang is river trout in Polish). Since they are grown here and cooked right in front of you, the taste here is much better in any restaurant in Krakow.

Then you can go back, for example, along a black highway, or you can go forward - along the asphalt next to cars or along a path that sometimes comes close to the road, then goes away.

  

We went up to the castle - it was closed. We arrived early after all...

We walked further forward, met some kind of farm with guinea fowls, and then again went out onto the asphalt, approached the closed gate leading to the mill. And once again we made sure that everything is still closed.

It's time to have lunch and go towards the highway and the bus. We had a snack taken from home, and finally went to a cafe to try smoked river trout - delicious!

We went upstairs from the cafe, and from the observation deck there is a good view of Ojcow. And then the path leads towards the Loketka cave, of course, it is also closed now. That's why we went to the Krakow Brahma and went to the highway.

We were lucky with the bus - we waited only about 10 minutes. By the way, be careful, you can take a city bus, but it only goes to Bronowice, and if you need to go to the center, it's better to wait for the route going to the bus station.

20-30 minutes and we are in Krakow. It turned out to be a good Sunday, and we will return to Ojcowski Park when everything is working ;) And finally, a little spring from the park