Thru-hiking the Trail of the Eagles’ Nests 11 days

Good morning! You will begin your journey along the Trail of Eagles’ Nests in Kraków (a short city trip to the official starting point of the trail), a vibrant city with impressive architecture and a rich history. The first few kilometers of the trail are a strange combination of urban hustle and bustle ending with a well-organized underpass beneath a highway. This is the sign that you have left the big city behind. At this point, you will enter the Kraków Valleys Landscape Park, and the trail will take you away from the pace of city life to the villages surrounding Kraków. At this stage, the route passes through villages, orchards, agricultural fields, and bunkers, leading travelers to the heart of the Ojców National Park. Inside the Ojców National Park, you will take a 2.5 km walk, which will only be the beginning of a beautiful day you will have tomorrow. You will spend the night in Prądnik area.

Today you will walk up the Prądnik Valley, an area of stunning beauty, full of impressive rock formations, caves, and castles. Your first stop is Ojców Castle, which is considered one of the symbols of the Eagle’s Nest Trail. Some call it the Eagle’s Nest Gate, after the castle’s famous gate. After leaving the castle, continue walking along the trail until you reach the next stop on the route, the Ojców Chapel, also known as the Chapel on the Water.

From here, the trail continues up the valley for another 7 km to the castle of Piseskowa Skała, a stunning Renaissance gem that stands proudly on a cliff overlooking the road. On the way to the castle, you will pass several impressive viewpoints, and just before you reach it, you can leave the trail for a moment and visit the “Hercules” rock and other unique rock formations.

From the castle, continue to the village of Sułoszowa, a linear village (a settlement with a single street).

**This day can be longer (up to 17km in total) with few optional detours which are great to explore Ojców National Park. Option available in the hiking application

Today, you will continue northwest, where the wooded trails and cliffs of Ojców National Park give way to wide fields, forests, villages, chapels, and crosses that remind passersby that people of faith live here. At the beginning of the trail, you will walk along the village of Sułoszowa, a linear village (a settlement with one street) about 9 km long. After walking about 2 km through the village, you will leave it and continue 5.5 km west through agricultural land until you reach the village of Zadole Kosmolowskie. From here, continue for another 3 km between villages until you reach the forest. The next 10 km are mainly forest roads to the area of the town of Olkusz, which was once an important center for silver mining. Towards the end of the day, the trail will lead you to Rabsztyn Castle, located at the entrance to the Eagle’s Nest Park.

Today you will set out from Rabsztyn Castle in the Olkusz region, an area that was once renowned for its silver mining. At the start of the day, the trail climbs to the castle, which stands atop a rocky hill. The impressive structure has been restored to its former glory. We recommend wandering around the castle and enjoying the spectacular views of the Lesser Poland region. Your next stop is Jaroszowiec, a small village near Ostra Hill. In the village, you can visit the local church, which is considered sacred and serves as a stop on the route of Polish pilgrims walking to monastery Jasna Gora. From here, continue along forest paths and between villages. You will pass by the Tarnówka River and end up next to the ruins of Bydlin Castle.

Today you will start your hike from Bydlin. It will be a day full of adventures and impressive sights, including the highest point of the Polish Jura. For the first few kilometers, the trail climbs towards Bydlin Hill, and from there it continues to Bisznik Hill with its three caves and impressive viewpoint.
The next stop on the route is Smolany Castle, where we recommend climbing to the observation tower.
Before continuing to the village of Pilica, in the center of which is a historic well and next to it is Pilica Palace. From Pilica, the trail continues towards Janowski’s Hill, the highest point in the Jura Upland (516 meters above sea level). From here, the trail descends a few hundred meters to the village of Ogrodzieniec, bypassing Ogrodzieniec Castle, the largest and most impressive of the “Eagles’ Nests.” The enormous ruins of the castle spread out across the rocky plateau below Janów Hill.

Good morning! Today you will set off from Ogrodzieniec, leaving behind the impressive ruins of Ogrodzieniec Castle. We recommend starting the day with a short visit to the castle before continuing on the trail. The route first leads to Birów Hill, a steep limestone hill topped by a (restored) medieval wooden fortress. After descending from Birów Hill, you will continue to a 1944 fortification complex, a reminder that this area was fortified even after the Middle Ages. From there, continue to Okiennik Wielki (a huge rock with an open eye/window), considered one of the most famous rock formations in the Jura Mountains. From here, the trail continues to the Bąkowiec Castle, towering above the village of Morsko.

Start the day with a walk from the area of Bąkowiec Castle, which stands proudly atop a hill overlooking the region. From here, the trail leads to Aptrka Hill, a limestone hilltop with impressive views of Zamek and the expanses of the Jura Plateau.

The next stop is Zborów Hill, one of the most impressive sites along the trail. The rock formations here stand tall like watchful guards, creating a maze of cliffs and caves. From Zborów Hill, the trail will lead you to a place that looks like something out of a children’s storybook, Bobolice Castle. The restored castle stands atop a rocky hill and showcases the “Eagles’ Nests” in all their glory. From here, continue walking towards Mirów.

The day begins with a fairytale morning next to Mirów Castle. From here, you will set out on your daily walk. You can first wander through the maze between the rocks of the nearby ridge (an additional walk outside the trail). Legend has it that secret tunnels have been dug beneath the rocky ground, hiding a huge treasure.

From Mirów, the trail winds through dense forests and small villages to the site where Ostrężnik Castle once stood. The hill and cliffs on which the castle stood are covered with dense vegetation, and today there is no trace of the castle, but the cliffs and caves here are worth the climb.

From Ostrężnik, you continue to the Bear Cave and the lakes on the way to Zloty Potok, a small, picturesque village known for its clear springs, the pools scattered around the village, and the heritage of the noble families.

Today, you will pass by Lake Iridion in Zloty Potok, where you can see the Raczyński Palace reflected in the lake. You will then head west through a wild section that passes through Sokole Góry Park, a spectacular area of limestone cliffs, caves, and dense forests. The trail occasionally opens up to the horizon and then returns to the forest. Further on, you will reach the town of Olsztyn, dominated by the ruins of Olsztyn Castle, once a powerful fortress that guarded the road to Częstochowa. Its broken towers and ruined stone walls now stand as a vivid reminder of the castle’s power and the importance of the fortifications you have seen throughout your trip.
In Olsztyn, there is a central square with places to eat or sit for a beer before your last day of walking on the trail.

The last day of the journey begins in Olsztyn, at the foot of the dramatic ruins of the castle towering over the town. It is recommended to take some time to wander among the remains of the fortifications where the knights who guarded the kingdom’s important border once lived. From here, the trail continues to Towarne Hills, an impressive hill complex with huge boulders and caves scattered around its highest point. The next point is the Zielona Góra Nature Reserve (not the one in western Poland). The last section of the trail has a different character, calm and meditative, a kind of peaceful ending to the long journey among all the fortresses and caves. The trail ends in Częstochowa, the final destination of the Eagles’ Nests Trail. Here, on Jasna Góra Hill, stands the famous monastery and the most sacred site for Catholics in Poland, home to the Black Madonna. The moment you reach the gates of the monastery marks not only the end of the physical route but also the completion of a journey through hundreds of years of history. In the evening in Częstochowa, you can walk around the city and take the time to reflect on the journey you have completed and feel the satisfaction of traveling the entire trail, from start to finish.

Welcome to Częstochowa!

After checking out of your hotel in Częstochowa, take the opportunity to explore the city: visit the local market and enjoy lunch at one of Częstochowa’s lively restaurants or bars before continuing on to your next destination.

This is where the adventure ends.