Magura National Park

Magura National Park, operating since 1995 in the Low Beskids (Beskid Niski), is one of the largest mountain parks in Poland — 194 km2 of gentle, forested ridges in the upper Wisłoka basin, divided between Podkarpacie (almost 90 percent of the area) and Lesser Poland. Forests cover more than 90 percent of its surface, and the highest summit is Wątkowa (846 m) in the Magura Wątkowska range — the most popular hiking destination in the area.

This is a park for those seeking silence: only about 40 thousand people visit each year. In return you get one of Europe's most precious raptor strongholds — the densities of lesser spotted eagle and Ural owl are among the highest recorded in Poland. Brown bears, wolves, lynx and moose also live here.

The Lemko heritage is a theme of its own: scattered across the ridges and valleys are old church sites and traces of vanished villages such as Świerzowa Ruska, abandoned after the Second World War. Picturesque tserkvas survive in Bartne, Kwiałoń and Świątkowa, while First World War cemeteries, the Diabli Kamień rock monument and the Kornuty reserve dot the surroundings.

Practical tips: the park headquarters are in Krempna, the most convenient trailhead — the Main Beskid Trail passes through here. Climbing Wątkowa takes about 3 hours there and back, so allow at least half a day. The season runs from late spring to autumn; in winter the trails demand experience and proper gear.