Strzelce‬에서 가장 멋진 ‪11‬개의 천연기념물

A few benches in front of the nature reserve.

An asphalt road leads to it, which suddenly turns and we find ourselves in a ravine. There is no room for an oncoming car.

It's a great place for a stroll. A monument to Pope John Paul II was erected between the trees. On a hill is a memorial to the victims of World War II (the Reconciliation Monument). I remember other details (a star? etc. - but I may be mistaken).

The "Grafik" reserve is a picturesque forest area with an area of 36.41 ha, located near the town of Czarnocin, in the Leśnica commune, Opole province. It protects a beech forest of over a hundred years of natural character, with a varied terrain full of valleys, ravines and sinkholes. The name of the reserve comes from the monument commemorating the tragic death of the young Count Hipolit Renard, commonly known as "Grafik". For hikers, a trail leading through the reserve is available, allowing direct contact with the nature and history of this place.

The amphitheater on St. Anne's Mountain was built in 1934–1938 on the site of a former quarry. It was designed by Franz Böhmer and Georg Petrich and could accommodate around 50,000 spectators. The stands were made of local Gogolin limestone. Above the amphitheater was a mausoleum for Germans who died in the Third Silesian Uprising, which was destroyed after the war. In 1955, the Monument to the Uprising by Xawery Dunikowski was unveiled in its place. Today, the amphitheater still attracts tourists with its monumental architecture and historical significance.

Hipolit Renard shot himself so badly during a hunt that he died a few hours later. In 1855, he married Laura Countess Henkel von Donnersmarck, daughter of Count Hugo. The marriage did not last long, however, as it ended on October 7 of the same year. The day before the hunt, the gorges were covered in fog from morning to night. On the second day, the sun finally broke through the clouds. A yellow hunting carriage arrived at the hunting site, with the cream of Upper Silesian society in it. Andreas Renard, Hugo Henckel von Donnersmarck and Count von Saurma-Jeltsch were there. The second carriage included the Count's second son, Hipolit, and his wife Laura. While waiting for the hunt, Hipolit handed his shotgun to one of the shooters standing behind him. And here the discrepancy in the accounts appears, as various witnesses claimed that the count himself had hung her behind his back. Then he joked and kissed his wife sitting on a chair. At one point a shot was fired and Hipolit, wounded in the head, fell to the ground unconscious. The company froze in place, but this state lasted only a moment. Desperately, they rushed to the count's aid, and the fainted Laura was taken away from the scene of the disaster. Hipolit, carried to the hunting lodge, briefly regained consciousness, but lost his sight. His wife was with him until the end. He died a moment later, with no chance of rescue. As witnesses later claimed, the count hung the shotgun around his neck and shot himself. In the place where the tragedy occurred, the distraught father erected a stone monument with the inscription Filio - the diminutive form of the name of his deceased son. The young count was buried in a mausoleum near the Strzelce castle.

The landscape of the reserve is enhanced by deep ravines, sinkholes and dry valleys with wide bottoms. The reserve is a habitat of an upland forest, in which there are numerous beech stands with an estimated age of 130-150 years. The trees reach a height of over 30 meters. Many of them are monumental specimens. In addition to beeches, there are birches, hornbeams, larches, spruces and pines. In the local forests there are 120 species of vascular plants, including the protected greater helleborine and the forest nesting beetle. You can also find 44 species of breeding birds here, including: buzzards, grey-headed, black and middle-grown woodpeckers, ravens and collared flycatchers.

A cool MTB trail above the nearby amphitheater, awesome descent.