What makes the Lower Silesian cycling region so special?
DKR is one of the favourite cycling destinations. It is characterised by beautiful routes, diverse landscapes, numerous services and interesting PLACES worth visiting during cycling trips, about which you will not always find out from guide books. But DKR is first and foremost world-class nature - the PONDS of Milicz, home of World Champion Ryszard Szurkowski, and the possibility to combine cycling with, for example, canoeing or carriage rides.
In DKR you can follow marked trails, described in guidebooks and marked on maps. But we also encourage you to use the recommended routes and tour suggestions, which will take you to both well-known and sometimes forgotten corners. DKR is an ideal area for sightseeing tours, for attentive and curious tourists who do a lot of sightseeing and find cycling a pleasant means of transport. It is not the distance or speed that counts, but the time spent on the trip is measured not so much by the number of kilometres travelled as by the number of interesting places visited along the way: restored monuments or only ruins bearing witness to past wealth and splendour, charming former German manor houses, brick or iron ore houses, landscape parks, ecological sites, nature reserves, oak avenues, vineyards and orchards....
The Lower Silesian Cycling Land consists of 3 geographical areas:
the well-known and appreciated BARYCZ VALLEY - lowland (and therefore rather flat), green, peaceful and calming, full of ponds, forests, fields and wetlands, where one really relaxes away from the urban hustle and bustle. The Barycz Valley has already made a name for itself as a tourist destination. It has the largest number of trails and cycle paths, with plenty of accommodation and local gastronomy serving dishes based on local fish or game. There is also the largest number of attractions prepared for the ever-increasing number of tourists. The Barycz Valley includes: Milicz, Cieszków, Krośnice, Twardogóra (partly), Żmigród, Prusice (partly) and Wąsosz. You can easily get here from Wrocław, Kalisz, Ostrów Wielkopolski, we also encourage you to travel by train - the stations are located in Milicz, Krośnice, Żmigród, Cieszków, Grabownie Wielkie (near Twardogóra) or in Skokowa (between Prusice and Żmigród).
White-tailed eagles and cranes at Milicz Ponds | Barycz Valley, photo Agnieszka Florczyk
The less well-known but equally charming THE CENTRAL ODER VALLEY is characterised by extensive forests, meadows, low population, beautiful buildings (including the spectacular post-Cistercian complex in Lubiąż), and equally interesting architectural reminders of the German past, so typical for the whole Lower Silesia. Here, the majestic Odra River reigns supreme, inviting you to go canoeing, and cycling trips require a bit more stamina than in the Barycz Valley, due to more uphill and downhill stretches. Tourism is only just developing in this region, so it is better to bring your own provisions when planning a cycling tour, as you will not encounter too many restaurants along the route. The Central Odra Valley is a municipality of Wołów, which is well connected to Wrocław - easy to reach by car and train.
The Odra floodplain near Gliniany, photo by Dariusz Wojciechowski
The TRZEBNICA HILLS are the closest to Wrocław. There are fewer forests and wastelands, but plenty of cultivated fields, expanding villages, orchards and vineyards, which are well served by the steep slopes of the hills. The hills are beautiful scenically, regardless of the season, but very demanding for cyclists. That is why you will most often meet cyclists here, riding alone and in groups. Recreationally, we recommend routes through the Zawoja forests. The Trzebnica Hills are the communes of: Twardogóra, Zawonia, Dobroszyce, Wisznia Mała, Oborniki Śląskie.
Wiszniak, one of the hills of the Trzebnica Hills, which offers a beautiful view of the surroundings, photo: Paweł Kubacki
We invite you to plan trips and learn more about the proposed routes and local highlights that you must see!
