A 15th-century fortified church and a 16th-century castle reveal two different sides of the cultural heritage of Przemyśl County. Poland’s oldest masonry fortified church stands in Posada Rybotycka; fragments of 17th-century polychrome decoration have been preserved inside. Krasiczyn Castle, meanwhile, is considered one of Poland’s most valuable architectural monuments. Visitors interested in history and architecture will find not simply a repetition of one theme, but different periods and forms.
Castles, a fortified church and a fortress
Krasiczyn Castle also has a 9-hectare park surrounding the building. The combination of castle and park offers a different perspective from the fortified church in Posada Rybotycka: there, the masonry defensive features and surviving fragments of wall paintings draw attention to the building itself. Together, the two places offer different ways to explore the cultural heritage of Przemyśl County, whose history cannot be reduced to a single period.
Przemyśl Fortress offers yet another dimension. It is one of the largest modern-era fortresses in Europe and a historical and tourist attraction for visitors to the Przemyśl region as well as the local population. The right-bank fortress trail follows rural and wooded paths to the forts and is 28 kilometres long in total. The fortress and trail are linked by theme: the route leads to the forts while also passing through different types of landscape.
Trails with different focuses
The other trails also differ in more than just length. The John Paul II Pilgrimage Trail was established in 1991, is 22 kilometres long and leads to Kalwaria Pacławska. There stands the Sanctuary of the Passion of Christ and Our Lady, a site of religious worship. Religious celebrations are held there several times a year, attracting residents as well as pilgrims and tourists from Poland and Ukraine. The Passion Play is also performed in Kalwaria Pacławska every year in two parts: “Wieczernik” and “Na krzyż z Nim”.
The red hiking trail starts in Przemyśl and crosses the uplands of the Przemyśl Foothills; it is 39 kilometres long within the landscape park. The blue hiking trail covers 74 kilometres, running mostly through forested areas and following the San River for a short stretch. These descriptions outline different trail profiles: a pilgrimage destination, a route over uplands, through forests and along a stretch of river, and a route to forts.
Protected areas and landscapes
The Przemyśl Foothills Landscape Park covers 61,862 hectares and extends across several municipalities in Przemyśl County. The Reberce and Krępak nature reserves each have a distinct conservation focus. Reberce Nature Reserve covers 190.96 hectares and protects remnants of a primeval Carpathian forest near Wola Korzeniecka, Kraja and Łomna. Krępak is located near Korzeniec in the municipality of Bircza. The 134.46-hectare nature reserve preserves the scenic qualities of Krępak Hill and its well-preserved stands of old fir and beech forest.
Other protected areas focus on specific plants or habitats. In Krówniki, the 16.67-hectare Szachownica Nature Reserve protects the very rare fritillary flower. Skarpa Jaksmanicka Fauna Reserve covers 1.93 hectares and protects a large nesting colony of European bee-eaters at a loess escarpment near the road in Siedliska. The comparison reveals the range of protected areas: alongside extensive forest and landscape reserves are smaller areas whose protection focuses on a particular population or habitat.
The wider geographical context
In the wider destination of Podkarpackie, the geographical context extends beyond Przemyśl County. Podkarpackie Voivodeship lies within three physiographic provinces: the Western Carpathians, including the Podkarpacie, the Eastern Carpathians and the Polish Uplands. This classification provides a broad perspective on the region’s landscapes, while the trails, buildings and protected areas in Przemyśl County offer specific themes for your own journey of discovery.
Discover more destinations: Przemyśl, Tarnawka, Brylińce, Wapowce, Przeworsk County, Strzyżów, Lubaczów, Przemyśl County.
Return to the wider travel overview: Podkarpackie.
