Twardowski's Gate near Złoty Potok

A few dozen metres from a forest road near Złoty Potok stands a limestone outcrop pierced by an oval opening about 5 m wide and 4 m high. Twardowski's Gate (Brama Twardowskiego) is a natural rock arch in the Parkowe nature reserve, named by the poet Zygmunt Krasiński. Legend links it to Poland's most famous sorcerer, and the short walk makes it a good stop on a family outing.

The rock and the legend

The limestone formed on the floor of a Jurassic sea from the remains of marine organisms. The opening is probably what is left of a karst cave system that has since collapsed. Krasiński often walked in these woods and named many of the local rocks and springs; even in his day wooden steps were built to help visitors, as engravings from 1857 and 1874 show.

According to legend, the marks on the rock were left by the claws of the devil's rooster on which Pan Twardowski – the Polish counterpart of Faust – took off for the Moon. Another tale says that a girl who walks through the gate will soon be married.

Good to know

Since 2002 Twardowski's Gate has been a protected natural monument. It lies within the Parkowe reserve, created in 1957 to protect the hills, parts of the Wiercica valley and old-growth forest. In September 1939 Polish soldiers fought German troops in the surrounding woods – the green Trail of the 7th Infantry Division, 7.3 km long, runs right past the rock.

Tripto tip

Strictly speaking the rock stands on land belonging to the village of Siedlec (Janów municipality), on the road linking Siedlec with provincial road 793, about 600 m from the junction. The State Forests recommend a small roadside parking spot at the start of the path (GPS 50.688940, 19.404225); the walk to the gate and back is about 300 m and takes half an hour. Access is free all year. After rain the limestone and roots can be slippery, and climbing on the fragile parts of the rock is not allowed. Combine the walk with the Zygmunt and Elżbieta springs, which Krasiński named after his children in 1857, and with Ostrężnicka Cave.