Blachówka Quarry

Blachówka is a former open-cast dolomite mine on the boundary between Bytom-Sucha Góra and Tarnowskie Góry-Bobrowniki, worked from 1856 until the 1990s. The pits form a ravine up to 60 m deep, about 200 bats hibernate in the old adits, and since 2023 most of the quarry has been part of the Segiet nature reserve.

History: Silesia's first open-cast dolomite mine

The name comes from a small mining settlement, now part of Stroszek. The mine opened in 1856 as the first open-cast dolomite mine in Silesia, starting with the iron ore that lay closer to the surface. When the ore ran out, dolomite took over: in 1889 some 35,000 tonnes were extracted, supplying among others the Julia ironworks in Bytom and the Hermina ironworks in Gliwice. Between the wars women sorted the output here, which was hauled away on a narrow-gauge railway. After 1945 the works were nationalised, and in the 1970s output was cut back so as not to harm the water system of the neighbouring Segiet reserve. The conflict with the reserve led to the start of closure in 1993, and in 2002 the lifts of the Sport Dolina ski centre opened on part of the restored land.

Nature in the pit

The former mining area covers about 24 ha. In 1995 the Blachówka geological documentation site (about 6 ha) was established here, and in January 2023 most of the quarry was incorporated into the Segiet reserve. In the old shafts and adits left by earlier ore mining, where galena was extracted, live 8–10 bat species, including the greater mouse-eared bat, brown long-eared bat and serotine. The underground workings are protected as the Natura 2000 site Tarnowskie Góry-Bytom Undergrounds, and the entrance to the Blachówka West adit is barred. Ponds form on the quarry floor and attract amphibians, while sand lizards, grass snakes and adders as well as martagon lilies can be found on the slopes.

Tripto tips

• The quarry is not open to visitors. Its slopes are crumbly and dangerous, and in the reserve you may only use the designated trails.
• Under an order of the Regional Directorate for Environmental Protection (RDOŚ) of 5 February 2026, the trails open in the Segiet reserve include the blue Silesian Insurgents' Trail and paths from the forest road known as Banki to Staszica Street in Tarnowskie Góry and to the pond called Kazik. Plan your walk on these rather than heading down into the pit.
• From outside you can see, among other things, the concrete remains of the dolomite crushing mill. In winter the Sport Dolina slope livens up the area.
• Check the current rules on the RDOŚ Katowice website before you go.