The Friends of Słońsk Society “Unitis Viribus” invites you to hike the Bird Republic’s trails.

The sign-posted bird-walking trails lead through picturesque and secluded areas of the Warta Mouth Landscape Park and the Forest Division of Ośno. The trails take you to forests, and open meadows and pastures that are dissected by drainage canals and oxbows, filled with herds of grazing cows and horses, and peppered by small clumps of trees and the remnants of old settlements; landscapes which typify the lower Warta valley. Nearby there are picturesque forests.

Our walking trails, also available to cyclists, have been selected so as to make them easily passable for both younger and older nature lovers. The trails mainly follow dirt roads, overgrown at times, which should generate some interesting and enjoyable sights. So remember to take your binoculars with you!

In addition to the sign-posted “trail birds”, you will also see or hear storks, swans, white-tailed eagles, lapwings, cranes, nightingales and many others. After all, you are in the Warta Mouth Bird Republic: the best conservation area in Europe, as recognised by the European Commission in the EDEN 2009 competition.

We also encourage geocachers to search for caches placed by us.

So, off onto the trail! After all, you are an expert tourist and you will certainly manage!

Take only pictures! Leave only footprints!

Adventure with Corncrakes

When walking along The Corncrake Trail you will encounter meadows, floodplains and beaver lodges. You may also hear a great deal of frog croaking and, quite frequently, you may get whipped by a bracing wind. If you are fortunate enough to hear the characteristic call of corncrake – sounding like a stick and comb being rubbed against each other – you may feel like a real ornithologist. Unless you are prepared to take a break in your walk or bike ride and sneak behind a bush for a lengthy wait, you are unlikely to spot a corncrake, as they are usually well hidden in the grass. Following the Corncrake Trail, you will reach Nowa Ameryka (New America) and see what remains of the wetlands that were drained in the 18th century.

The length of the trail is about 21 km.

In the Forest of Woodpeckers

This educational and nature path runs through the reserve forests along the Warta valley along the course of the Postomia river. Along the Woodpecker Trail you will encounter old and impressive oaks, tree hollows formed by woodpeckers, beaver lodges, fallen trees, a beautiful spring and the historic “Moritz's Stone”. Six information boards put up by Nadleśnictwo Ośno (The Forest Division of Ośno) will familiarise you with what is protected in this area, and should also help you to recognise trees and differentiate between different species of woodpeckers. At the end of the trail you have the choice of retracing your steps, returning down the embankment on the northern/right side of the Postomia, or heading back along the river in a kayak.

The length of the trail is about 5 km.

Meeting the Greylag Goose 

This trail is a short stroll across the meadows. You will almost certainly encounter the trail bird, since these resident grey geese, with their pink and orange beaks, are usually very common. You might also hear the familiar gaggling sound of geese taking off. Do not hike off the trail so as not to scare off the birds in the reeds and adjacent fields. In May, even in the meadows, you will see adult geese leading their parties of young. In the autumn, as well as the greylag geese, you will see its migratory relatives from the north – the bean geese and the white-fronted geese.

The length of the trail is about 7 km

Looking for Hoopoes

You are likely to see hoopoes while hiking The Hoopoe Trail in spring and summer. This beautiful and colourful bird favours the Czarnów area. Listen out and look around the sunlit meadows where the hoopoes like to hunt, or in the hollow trees where they build their nests. If you walk slightly off the main trail, you may reach a beaver refuge or reach the boundary of the Warta-Mouth National Park. This trail also enables people cycling from Słońsk to Kostrzyn to skip the R1 cycle path, which runs through the busy road No 22.

The length of the trail is 13 km

Kites Overhead

Stroll down The Kite Trail and you will not get lost in the forest. The kites will lead you to the nearby lakes: Radachowskie and Głęboczek. Besides the trail's patron bird –red kite– a large light-brown bird of prey with the characteristic and deeply indented tail – you may see its relative, the black kite, and other birds of prey. En route, you will come across charming mid-forest marshlands where cranes build their nests and moor frogs mate. The trail also leads you through beautiful avenues of sycamore and maple. You may also be able to combine autumn wandering with mushrooming. You might find a different kind of “kite” here – the parasol mushroom.

The length of the trail is about 14 km.

Key:

Green – The Kite Trail

Blue – The Hoopoe Trail

Yellow – The Corncrake Trail

Red – The Greylag Goose Trail

Black – The Woodpecker Trail

The trails routed in cooperation with the parishes of Słońsk and Górzyca and the Forest Division of Ośno

The Friends of Słońsk Society  “Unitis Viribus” +logo

ul. Puszkina 44

66-436 Słońsk

Passport Office of the Bird Republic in Słońsk + logo

You can hire binoculars, a bike, nordic walking sticks or a kayak here

Stacja Pomp 2, tel. +48 95 757 22 12, +48 607 08 13 17 (languages: Polish, English)

ul. Puszkina 44, tel. +48 95 757 24 45, +48 516 134 289 (languages: Polish)