Hiking – Off the beaten path with Doug

Zakopane Poland – My favorite destination in Poland (part 1)!

Doug — Wed, 05 Jul 2023 19:48:12 +0000

We have been planning to get down to Zakopane for two years. I have heard only good things about this area from my colleagues, who have visited this area. The pictures of this area are phenomenal, and it just made it even more of a priority to visit before we move again. Therefore, my wife and I made two separate weekend trips to this area and thoroughly loved it. The first trip was using a train to Krakow and then a bus to Zakopane. Well – it is a bus! Not the best mode of transportation, but I was tired from the day’s work and travel. Therefore, driving was out of the question. Then again, a couple of weeks later, we decided to drive from Warsaw to Zakopane. We broke up the trip on the way down to Zakopane by stopping overnight in Tarnov. That did help. The road from Krakow to Zakopane is primarily a two-lane road. Hopefully, in the next year or so they will have the four-lane highways completed.

As I mentioned in previous posts, I am a Marriott snob. We did find properties located in Zakopane that were available. Both properties had their pluses and minuses. I did enjoy the one that was close to the downtown area. This gave us more access to the local restaurants and was still close enough for us to walk into Tatra National Park, which was about a 30-minute walk from the villa we had rented.

We had a very good breakfast at a place called “Bar Mleczny,” which translates into “milk bar.” I thought that was very appropriate for a breakfast place. It was conveniently located directly across the street from where we were staying. It was super convenient. Although it was a bit difficult to communicate due to the language barrier, they were super nice and helpful. They really showed their customer service abilities when our order was not correct. I ordered two ham & cheese toasties and my wife ordered one, plus scrambled eggs and bacon. I love bacon! When we got our order, we only received one toastie. However, I could tell that they really felt bad about this mistake or misunderstanding and that they wanted to just give it to me free. Well, that made me feel bad, so insisted on paying for it. We did get extra coffee and I thought that was a fair trade. The breakfast was good and filling. That made us ready for the long hike that we were about to undertake. I highly recommend this restaurant.

The mountains were an amazing view from downtown. It was so clear that you could make out the cross structure that is on top of Giewont Peak, which has been there for about 120 years. It did make me contemplate summiting that mountain, but not for long. I quickly talked myself out of that. Instead, we opted for a hike that was about 16 Km (10 miles) round trip from the villa to Siklawica Waterfall in the Strazyska Valley. The hike was easy, but there were areas that may take it to a moderate level. However, the trail (small road) was quite easy to follow. It was nice hearing the rushing water of the stream that the trail followed up to the area of the Siklawica waterfall. All along the way were blooming spring flowers. I found myself taking pictures of these flowers. I am not sure why it intrigued me, but I really could not stop myself from enjoying the flowers.

Just outside the park, there was a small shed where we were able to purchase smoked cheese. It is a customary practice for cheeses in this region to be unpasteurized, but they rely on the smoke from a small fire inside the shed. When I first saw this, I thought that someone was not paying any attention to the fire, because the fire was just smoldering, and the smoke was heaving in the shed. It was uncomfortable. However, there was a lady working there and it really did not seem to bother her. Found out later that day that they use that smoldering fire to smoke the cheeses in the rafters of the shed. We, therefore, returned on the way back to town to take a better look. Sure enough, in the rafters, there was cheese that was only visible if I looked up. My wife started to engage in conversation with the lady there using her best-broken Polish. Both had a wonderful time conversing back and forth. The lady showed us how she made the cheese in various molds that she had. We bought about five hundred grams (just over 1 lb.) of smoked cheese from her. It was good and cheap (shockingly cheap). Even later we found out that this area had to petition the European Union (EU)to allow them to sell unpasteurized cheese to people. The EU has banned the sales of unpasteurized dairy products throughout Europe, but an exception was granted for this region to continue this custom that goes back centuries.

Along the way we stopped by and checked out the ski jumps that have been one of the reasons that Zakopane has been so successful in the winter months. Both national and international competitions are common sights at these jumps. The 2023 Ski Jump World Cup was held there, along with several other major skiing competitions since the 1920s. The trail we were on went alongside the westernmost jump before it turned west towards the entrance into the Tatra National Park.

The lakes of Masuria area in Eastern Poland

Doug — Tue, 09 May 2023 19:54:22 +0000

My wife and I spent our 4^th of July long weekend touring the northern part of Poland. We went to “Masuria.” It sounds just like the state of Missouri. A couple of months ago I was having a conversation with my barber about Masuria. She mentioned the area had lakes galore and people really love this area. I was still thinking we were talking about the state of Missouri. Until she said something about visiting Masuria over the weekend. Well, that is a long way to go for such a short visit. I asked her about her flight and now she was confused. She mentioned that it was only about 3 hours north of Warsaw. We laughed about the misunderstanding. I told my wife about that later in the day, and she said that she wanted to make a trip there. Well, Masuria – here we come.

The drive from Warsaw to Stare Sady, near Mikolajki, Poland was about 3.5 hours north of Warsaw. Google Maps made the journey possible without getting lost. Stopping at two locations along the way to get something to eat or drink and to take a break. We arrived at our destination of Stare Sady near Pod Jabloniami Port. It was a nice small hotel. This establishment also catered to up to twenty-five sailing boats in the area. After an extremely hot week in Warsaw, the cool area of Stare Sady was a very welcome feeling.

We were in luck and found a brewery just across the street called Browar Mikolajki. I love beer! I often jokingly say that my favorite beer is an “open one.” Well, we had a sample of their lager, and it was impressive. we had dinner – Cheeseburger and a Lager. Both were good.

After returning to the hotel, we enjoyed the remainder of the evening around the dock area where there was a campfire going next to the lake. It was nice to sit around and enjoy the ambiance. It did not get dark until 2300, due to the high northern latitude that we were at. However, once it got dark there was extraordinarily little light pollution, which made the stars in the sky impressive. Sunrise is early – 0400. That did make it difficult to sleep, but my wife did get impressive pictures of the sunrise.

The next day looked for attractions in our area to visit. I was surprised to see that “Wolf’s Lair” was so close. I thought it was farther east if not in Ukraine. It was about an hour’s drive north (fifty-two KM or thirty-two miles) from our location. Two-lane roads all the way and there was even a portion that was unpaved for about 10 KM (6 miles). We drove through wooded areas, farmlands, and small villages. It was really a pretty drive. Entry fees were very reasonable for the two of us. There was an audio guide that I was happy that we got these. There were only about 5 or 6 languages and English was one of them. These audio guides had GPS adaptations so that they would play the audio for the location we were viewing. We slowly walked around the area and the audio guide did the rest. I was amazed at the size of the bunkers which are now in ruins after the German forces attempted to destroy these as they were fleeing from the oncoming Russian forces in late 1944 and early 1945. The history of this area was extremely interesting. The box office hit “Valkyrie,” starring Tom Cruise was a recreation of the actual assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler in 1944. We were able to walk through the events of that day thanks to the setup of the park and the use of the audio guide. It was a site well worth the time and effort.

I am not a bird watcher by any means, but I was genuinely surprised to see the enormous number of nests that the storks had built in this area. Every town had a plan to support this population of birds. There were easily 70+ nests along the main road. Many of the nests were being actively used. Oftentimes we could see 3-5 heads sticking out from the nest. The only other place that I have seen this many storks was in the Algarve area of Portugal. They liked walking behind a tractor cultivating the ground or cutting the grass. Evidently, this disturbed the area enough that food was plentiful for the storks. Otherwise, they did not interact with people.

Warsaw, Poland

Doug — Sun, 16 Apr 2023 20:51:05 +0000

During the summer of 2021, I moved from Kabul, Afghanistan to Warsaw, Poland. My family and I had already visited Poland one time prior in 2008 when we were taking a road trip from The Netherlands (Holland). We drove through Germany, Poland, and then into the Czech Republic. While in Poland we visited the Krakow area. The drive was quite memorable. I distinctly remember the condition of the highway. It was concrete and in horrible condition. I will write more about Krakow later.

Warsaw is a genuinely wonderful place to visit and live. The people are extremely friendly. It has an older Eastern European charm. You can see the old Soviet architecture in the area. Because of the devastation that Warsaw sustained during the Second World War, I would estimate that at least 95% of the buildings here are new. Unlike other popular destinations throughout Poland.

I really enjoy the river walk along the “Wistula” River (BTW – the “W” in Polish has a sound of a “V” in English). If you Google Wistula, “Vistula” will show up. Anyway, Spring is here, and I think everyone in the city was out walking along the river. I was surprised to see so many people out welcoming spring, but it was still enjoyable. Sunshine and a slight breeze – the weather was awesome! This area also has great bike paths, but I just enjoy walking. Got to get 10,000 steps daily. It is my exercise regimen. The first picture on the link is about 15 minutes from my house and has changed recently. There is a significant construction project taking place. The city is building a walking bridge across the Wistula to connect the area of Praga to connect the eastern and western sides of the river. I think they will finish this bridge in the next few months. The eastern shore has beaches and primitive trails in contrast to the western side which is concrete and developed.

A couple of weeks ago I visited “Kampinos” National Park which is situated on the western outskirts of Warsaw. The trail system in the park is well-maintained and accessible to all ages. The trails are very wide and flat. I have not encountered any difficult areas, yet. It was more like a walk than a hike. However, it was quiet. Birds are starting to make their presence known and this was nice to hear after a long winter. This park does host a variety of wildlife. However, thus far I have only seen squirrels, birds, and a snake. Still a bit early. I did notice areas that had been disturbed by something. Feral pigs that area in the area. The park is a truly short drive from downtown, 15-20 minutes. Well worth the trip.

Since growing up through the ’70s and ’80s visiting an arcade was a highlight. Well, I found a place in Warsaw to bring these memories back to life. The interactive museum of pinball or “pinball station” was the place to go. It has pinball machines that date back to the 50’s along with a lot of other arcade games. Many of which were the very ones that I spent my allowance on. These machines are all in working order. They even sold beer on-site. That was new, but I did enjoy playing these relics. It really brought me back to my childhood. It was even cheaper than I remember. It cost about $11-12 (49 PLN) and I was able to play for hours. They had one rule – “If you start a game, you must finish it.” My wife and I had a great time.