Local attractions - Informacja Turystyczna Andrychów

INTERESTING PIECES OF INFORMATION:
http://www.um.andrychow.pl/index.php?module=subjects&func=viewpage&pageid=136/

The location of the commune makes it an excellent base for the tourists, who can enjoy hiking, biking, horse riding, winter sports, or cultic tourism connected with the mountain sanctuary "to the People of the Mountains”, on Groń Jana Pawla II [The Peak of John Paul II], near Leskowiec Mountain, which is one of the highest summits in Beskid Mały [The Small Beskid Mountains].

This was the reason of growing investments in hotels and tourist facilities. Apart from already existing 18 agrotourism farms, new big investments have began recently:

Conference and Recreation Centre „Kocierz” (located on Przełęcz Kocierska [The Kocierska Mountain Pass]) with a swimming pool, tennis courts, ski runs, ski lift, hotel and restaurant, etc.,
All Year Recreation Centre „Czarny Groń” [Black Mountain] with a ski lift in the Rzyki-Praciaki village, built on road № K52,
„Świat Marzeń” [„The World of Dreams”] Miniature Park: miniature park, green maze, mini funfair, picnic type meals and a parking lot,
AGRO-SPA Leskowiec: a hotel with a swimming pool and balneotherapy equipment, as well as conference facilities, etc.

Łamana Skała [“The Broken Rock”] (929 m above sea level)

The summit in the main ridge of Beskid Mały [The Small Beskid Mountains], to the south of Andrychów, also called „Madohora”. Its slopes are covered with sandstone blocks, on which you can encounter rock climbing novices. Near the summit, there is a forest reserve called „Madohora”, having the area of 78,1 ha and protecting a one-hundred-year-old spruce forest.

„Hrabskie Buty” [The Count’s Shoes”]

Near the Leskowiec summit (919 m above sea level), below PTTK „Leskowiec” Shelter, there are 2 stones with footprints of the first two famous tourists engraved on them. The tourists climbed Leskowiec Mountain and decided to immortalize that fact in such an extraordinary way. Nearer the Leskowiec summit and millennial cross, there is a bigger and much heavier slab. On its left side there is an inscription: „Hr. MERY WIELOPOLSKA” [„Countess Mery Wielopolska”]. On the right, there is another one: „ ROMAN BA. TAUBE”. Beneath the names there are heelprints. At the bottom of the stone a date has been engraved: 4/9 1898. Several dozen metres below the first slab, there is another commemorative stone. It is much smaller. At the top of it, there is a radially engraved inscription with the following content: „Hr. Ad. Potocki” [„Count Ad. Potocki”]. Below the name, there is an engraved imprint of man’s shoes. Further down, there is another inscription: „Roku 1846” [„In 1846”]. For detailed information – see: www.andrychow.pl.

„Przełom potoku Rzyczanka [Gorge of Rzyczanka stream] – [Veřovice black shales]”

Charming place where Rzyczanka stream cuts through a thick stratum of Veřovice black shales. The stream has shaped here a mini-canyon, small waterfalls and a few depths. All this, on the length of over 200 metres, in black shales, resembling hard bituminous coal. Shales, including those of Veřovice black type, predominate in the lower part of the valley. Going upstream, the shales gradually change into very hard sandstone splitting into small cubes. Above it, we can see white marls with thin interlayers of red and green shales, and finally thick shoals of greenish sandstone. All this on the distance not much longer than 2 km.

Komieniecki’s Cave

The largest erosive cave in the Polish Flysch Carpathians, made up of Godulski sandstone, below the summit of Łamana Skała [“The Broken Rock”] (928 m above sea level) there is a waterfall on the nearby Dusica stream.

The Madohora Nature Reserve

Spreading around Łamana Skała [“The Broken Rock”], having the area of 71,8 ha, with hundred-year-old spruces, trefoil cress, marsh orchids, and the characteristic pudding stone formations. It’s worth mentioning, that this is the position of natural stand of Polysticho-Piceetum [upper-mountain spruce trees characteristic of Tatra Mountains].

The Szeroka Nature Reserve

Spreading around Kocierz village (879 m above sea level) with the area of 49 ha, protects a natural Carpathian beech forest.

Linden Tree in Targanice village

Natural monument – the biggest tree having a perimeter of about 7 m.

Yew Tree in Targanice village

Natural monument, 400 years old.

Warownia pod traktem [„The Stronghold over the Road”]

Natural monument, a rock outcrop made up of “istebnianski” sandstone below Przełęcz Kocierksa [The Kocierska Mountain Pass].

Town Park

Located in the centre of Andrychów, between The Bobrowskis’ Palace and a church, with magnificent trees. 200-hundred-year-old London plane trees, oak trees, catalpas, maidenhair trees, a pond and an islet with waterfowl, a place of leisure of town’s inhabitants.

Groń Jana Pawła II [The Peak of John Paul II] (890 m above sea level, formerly called “Jaworzyna”)

The PTTK shelter is located just below the summit. In 1981, thanks to the efforts of Stefan Jakubowski, a leader and a mountain guide, in order to pay tribute to the Polish Pope, a new name of the mountain was introduced. Later, the chapel of the mountain sanctuary "to the People of the Mountains” was built. On Sundays masses are held here from spring to autumn. Christmas midnight masses were also held here in the 1990s. In 2002 Holy Father saw this place from the helicopter.