Poland - Files

67
Chodowiecki
Equestrian
Augustów
Trail
Forest
On horseback
Sudeten
On horseback
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Polish people love horses ... horse-riding mountain trails
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Horses have a particular place in Polish culture
and tradition: they are treated as ‘friends and partners’
and are very popular animals. Stables are located
from the Sudetes to the Baltic Sea also in the vicinity
of Gdańsk, Krakow, Poznan, Warsaw and Wroclaw.
Equestrian centers all have different breeds: from tiny
ponies and graceful Huculs to pure blood Arab and
English horses. They organize horse-back riding courses,
gymkhanas or western cow boy film style meetings.
Periodic equestrian events enjoy great popularity:
rodeos in Western City near Kozia Skała (Karpacz
area) in August, the Indian Summer in Puszczykowo
(near Poznań), bathing with horses in lakes
and night treks in the Masuria National Park. Each
year on November 3, on St. Hubertus Day – the
patron of hunters – horse riding events called ‘fox
hunt’ are organized.
• http://holidays.staypoland.com/poland-horseback-riding.htm •
• www.equinetourism.co.uk/worldwidehorseholidays/poland.asp •
horse-riding mountain trails
Bieszczady Mountains [67]
(south-eastern Poland)
Stay in the saddle enthusiasts appreciate the Bieszczady
Mountains for the wonderful landscapes, mountain trails and
those extraordinary ponies called Huculs. The Bieszcaady National
Park is the only strictly protected nature reserve where
mountain equestrian tourism is allowed on marked trails.
In the summer season (May through September) equestrian
meetings are organized regularly – 2 to 6 days long. The Bieszczady
trails are over 150 km long.
• www.bieszczady.net.pl/konie.php •
• www.wrota.podkarpackie.pl/pl/turystyka/aktywna/konna •
Huculs – a strong and gentle pony [68]
This is a mountain pony, bred in the austere climate of
the eastern Carpathians. They have an iron constitution and
a tough but gentle character. They are often used in therapy.
The surmount obstacles higher than themselves (140 cm) and
are champions of mountain expeditions. They are known for
their intelligence and caution: they can find their way home
in the biggest blizzard and before they step onto a footbridge
over a mountain creek they tap the logs with their hoofs to
check if the bridge is solid.
Sudeten Equestrian Trail [69]
(Sudetes Mountains, south-west Poland)
This route is over 360 kilometers long from Lądek Zdrój to
Karpacz through picturesque valleys and passes in the Sudetes
Mountains. There are 13 mountain horse tourism hostels en
route where excellent food and comfortable accommodation
are waiting for travelers. One, or a few days excursions are
often organized on the trail.
• www.western.one.pl/nowa/drukuj.php?nid=19 •
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Equestrian
Trail
Bieszczady
Mountains
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The Equestrian Trail in Augustów Forest [70]
(north-east Poland)
This trail joins two national parks: Biebrza National Park
and Wigry National Park. It starts in a forester’s lodge in
Grzędy and runs through meadows and forests and the most
beautiful winter and summer landscapes of the Suwałki
region, Augustów and Wigry National Park. Length: 246 km.
• www.suwalszczyzna.net/suwalszczyzna.html&lang=en •
• www.stajniazascianek.pl/rajdykonne.html •
Daniel Chodowiecki Equestrian Trail [71]
(northern Poland)
In 1773 Daniel Chodowiecki (Gdańsk, 1726 - 1801), prominent
graphic and artist, chancellor of the Berlin Fine Arts
Academy, traveled for over 60 days on horseback from Berlin to
Gdańsk. During his journey he jotted down drawings, described
the people, events and landscapes. They were published as
an album, ‘Daniel Chodowiecki’s diary from the journey to
Gdańsk in 1773’. The Chodowiecki route was transformed
into a horse trail from Gdańsk to Krag. It is divided into 12
sections on the sea shore between boarding houses where you
can stay overnight and enjoy the delicacies of the local cuisine,
rent horses, carriages and a guide. Length of the trail: 274 km;
daily sections: 11 to 26 kilometers.
• www.konie.biz •
• www.konno.bigm.pl
by lakes and through forests
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