Piasek and Studzienice

On a fine spring day, we decided to explore two Polish villages located within ten miles away from Tychy: Piasek and Studzienice. Our hiking route looked like this: Tychy-Kobiór-Piasek-Studzienice-Kobiór-Tychy. We passed the village of Kobiór on our way. To save the time, we took a bus to Kobiór centre, and then walked along our familiar forest road to Piasek (the good old Red Cycling Trail). The trail is well marked, therefore, you can’t get lost, even if you have no map or GPS. Overall, we walked along three cycling trails: the red one, the blue one and the green one. They turned out to be the most reliable (and the most pleasant) ways of reaching those villages.

There were very many bikers on the red cycling trail. The entire families with children were out cycling, which was great to observe. We even saw three young ladies on horsebacks, and, of course, I asked the ladies’ permission to take a couple of pictures of them, and they did not object to it.

A happy encounter on the way to Piasek.

Wonderful ferns on the way to Piasek

Good trail marks on the Red Cycling Route, Kobiór-Piasek

We passed a forest cafe known as the bikers’ relaxation place in Forest Street in Piasek.

The cafe is known for its beer Tucher served there. They say it is only served there, but I am not sure. Of course, bikers only drink zero alcohol beer and simply have some snacks with an ice cream. The cafe is full of people, both locals and bikers.

The village name Piasek [ˈpjasɛk] literally means “sand”. In German the village is know as Sandau. Its population (2,900) is a bit more than that of the village of Studzienice (2,200), and so is the area.

Before visiting these places, I studied the maps and found several sights to see on our way, among them the Successful Hunting monument that stands by the forest road in Czarków forest and can easily remain unnoticed. Therefore, we turned off the red trail to the green cycling trail until we reached the monument. It was unveiled in 1878 by the order of Hans Heinrich XI, the Duke of Pless, to celebrate the abundant forests that used to be attractive for aristocratic hunters in the 19th century.
You just have to see the numerous hunting tropheys on the walls of the Promnice Hunting Lodge on the shore of Lake Paprocany to be astonished of how many forest animals those aristocrats managed to gaily hunt down.
The historians say the Successful Hunting monument used to be a huge obelisk crowned with a bronze eagle. However, the times (and the looters) have altered its appearance, and what we see now is just a reminder of the mighty and prosperous duke whose name is inscribed on the monument as H.H.XI.

According to the map and the feedback of many visitors, there was a Polish missile base in the forest of Czarków, where we can only see neglected ruins now. This cold war times missile base functioned from 1962 until the nineties. The 18th Air Defense Missile Squadron was stationed there. However, the exact military name of an army unit has always been confidential both in Poland and in the Soviet Union. JW2389 was an official name for tat Polish unit for mailing and for people’s reference. Today, it is known on the Internet under that name. PZR SA-75 Daugava missile system stationed there was to shoot down “the imperialist invaders from the west”. Some explorers take a risk and visit the premises of the former base, but we were not interested. On our way to the Successful Hunting monument, we only saw a concrete ground that must have been an observation post or something else. We have no interest in going deeply into the matter.

Last time, when we passed Piasek on the way to Pszczyna, we had no time for exploring this village. This time we decided to see the village church, walk along its central streets - Slowacki Street and Railway Street and take many more pictures.

Walking along Slowacki Street in Piasek

The village stadium in Slowacki Street, Piasek

We saw the village park called the Heart of Piasek. It is in Slowacki Street, which we had not passed during our first visit. There is a large field, a winter hill (for sledging in winter) and a round pavilion.

The Heart of Piasek Pavilion

Central Circle in Piasek

Limping Angels Park near the disabled persons' facility, Piasek

Piasek fields

I could not help taking a picture of these wonderful horse on their pasture.

A fine rooster in Piasek

Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Piasek

Church of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, Piasek

Studzienice is a village located in the municipality of Pszczyna. It belongs to Pszczyna County of the Silesian Voivodeship. The population of the village of Studzienice is over 2,200 residents.
The village lies on the Dokawa River in a forest area called Pszczyna Forests.
The name Studzienice means a place rich in springs. Studzienice is known in German as Studzienitz.
The municipality of Studzienice belongs to the city of Pszczyna.
The village was mentioned as Studenicze in the document signed by Casimir II of Cieszyn in 1517. However, there are many indications that the settlement was founded around 1300.

The village church was dedicated on September 25, 1949. The temple received the name of St. John the Baptist, whose image was placed in the main altar.

Only several streets belong to the village: Świętego Jana Pawła II (St.John Paul II Street), ulica Drozdów (Thrush Street), ulica Skowronków (Lark Street), ulica Jastrzębia (Hawk Street), ulica Słowików (Nightingale Street), ulica Bażantów (Pheasant Street), ulica Lisia (Fox Street), ulica Wilcza (Wolf Street), ulica Sikorek, ulica Jaskółek (Falcon Street), ulica Czyżyków (Finch Street), ulica Szpaków (Starling Street), ulica Kosów (Scythe Street), Cuckoo Street, Deer Street (partially), Coppice Street (partially).

OSP - Firefighters HQ, Studzienice

Fatherland Defenders memorial at the Firefighters' HQ in Studzienice

OSP headquarters is the cultural hub of the village. It is a nice festival ground located next to the Firefighters HQ. According to the inscription above the entrance gate to the park, the Firefighters HQ in Studzienice was founded in 1857.

Firefighters Pavilion, Studzienice

The park has an open air theater with a stage, a sportsground with benches and a round pavilion with tables, where people gather to celebrate this or that event.
We saw a lot of wonderful houses and farms on our way.

The cattle farm in St.John Paul II Street was great.

A cattle farm in Studzienice

A cattle farm in Studzienice

As we were walking along St.John Paul II Street, we saw a roadside chapel built in 1882 and reconstructed in 2001. It stands in a private yard at 140 St.John Paul II Street. The chapel has a rectangular shape. There are wooden arched doors on the side of the pavement. You can see a wooden stylized cross with the date of 1882 installed above the entrance. There is a bell tower in the gable roof and there are arched side walls.

Inside, you can see a niche in the back wall with an image of Our Lady of Czestochowa and small figures of St. John Nepomucene, Holy Heart of Jesus, St. Joseph with the Child and an angel and two photoes: Holy Heart of Jesus and the Holy Heart of Virgin Mary. There is a wooden cross to the left of the picture. The paintings hang in the recess on the side walls. The floor is laid out with ceramic tiles. The shrine is surrounded by coniferous trees with the entrance from the sidewalk.

We saw this bus stop in St.John Paul II Street. / You can get to this village from Pszcyna bus terminal by bus B.

It was easy to follow the Blue Cycling Trail on way back to Kobiór and from there - to Tychy.

Our hike in Studzienice

An unusual black house with a grass roof, Katowice Street, Studzienice.

Charming field flowers said goodbye to us when we were leaving Studzienice

I couln't help taking a picture of these field poppies when leaving Studzienice