Okopy Hill in Ojców National Park

The trail across Okopy Hill runs right along the edge of limestone cliffs secured with rope railings, and one of the crags opens a view over the Prądnik Valley. The wooded summit hides the ramparts of a stronghold that medieval sources link with Duke Konrad of Masovia, and the rocks below hold a cave with 12 prehistoric hearths. It is one of the most rewarding short routes in Ojców National Park, passing the famous Dark Cave (Jaskinia Ciemna).

History: the Wisegrod stronghold and a king's hiding place

The hillfort was identified and described by the archaeologist Stanisław Jan Czarnowski in 1898, and Andrzej Żaki excavated it again in 1970. To the north, west and south, sheer natural cliffs protected the stronghold; on the side facing the flat upland of Smardzowice, two parallel earth ramparts were built. Sources name it castrum Wisegrod, built in 1231 by Konrad of Masovia. No remains of buildings were found, but archaeologists recovered about 1,800 pottery fragments, showing the site was occupied three or four times – mostly in the early Middle Ages, partly in the 14th century.

It is known that the future king Władysław the Elbow-High (Łokietek) hid near Ojców from the army of the Bohemian king Wenceslas II. Legend points to Łokietek's Cave, but Andrzej Żaki suggested his refuge may have been the stronghold on Okopy and the cave below it.

What to see

• The hillfort ramparts – overgrown with forest, with an information board by the remains.
• The viewpoint on the crag above the Okopy Wielka Dolna Cave, looking over the Prądnik Valley.
• Okopy Wielka Dolna Cave – its 14 m high entrance is easy to see from the opposite side of the valley, and its passages total 138 m. Jan Zawisza first dug here in 1874, and Czarnowski found 12 hearths with pottery and flint tools. The cave is not open to visitors.
• The Okopy crags – vertical walls of Late Jurassic limestone on the western slope, opposite the mouth of the Korytania gorge.

Did you know?

Nobody knows where the name Okopy comes from, although it fits a hill with ramparts remarkably well – in Polish it means "trenches". The neighbouring Dark Cave is one of Poland's key Palaeolithic sites: in 2018 finger bones of a Neanderthal child about 115,000 years old were found there – the oldest known human remains from Polish territory. The educational trail over Koronna Hill and Okopy was set up in 1992.

Tripto tip

The green trail from Ojców leads up to Okopy (the Castle Park – Dark Cave section is about 5.3 km), through the Wawrzonowy Dół gorge, past the Dark Cave, the Rękawica rock and the viewpoints on Koronna Hill, then down to the mouth of the Smardzowice gorge. The trail itself is free; the Dark Cave is not: according to the park website, in the April–September season a standard ticket costs PLN 20 and a reduced one PLN 14, and visits are guided. A loop with the Dark Cave and Okopy takes 2–3 hours. The path is rocky and steep and not suitable for pushchairs; stay behind the railings above the cliffs and never enter caves that are closed to the public. Leave your car in a designated car park in Ojców.