The Rock Organs of Wielisławka

On the slope of Wielisławka (375 m above sea level) in Sędziszowa near Świerzawa, a formation unlike any other comes to light: vertical, regular columns of rhyolite that resemble the pipes of a giant organ. It is one of the most interesting monuments of inanimate nature in the Kaczawskie Foothills, located in the Land of Extinct Volcanoes.

Columns from the heart of a volcano

The rocks of the Organs solidified inside a volcanic chimney in the Lower Permian, more than 250 million years ago. Slowly cooling magma cracked into four- and five-sided columns 20–30 cm in diameter — columnar jointing in acidic rocks is a geological rarity. A quarry operated here in the 19th century, exposing the formation; today it is protected as a monument of inanimate nature.

Educational trail and the summit

An educational path runs around the outcrop. It passes the entrance to the Wielisławska Cave, with about 100 m of corridors, and the summit of Wielisławka carries the ruins of a medieval castle. The rock ledges are overgrown with heather, round-leaved bellflowers and stonecrops, and the surrounding fields still attract collectors searching for agates.

Practicalities

Take Złotoryjska Street in Sędziszowa; on site there is a free car park, a shelter and a campfire spot. The visit combines well with the Romanesque church in Świerzawa and, further on, Wleń Castle and the Lenno Palace.