“First Steps” is intended for “advanced beginners,” i.e., riders who are comfortable with walking and trotting and are at the stage of their first gallops. This edition is also a good choice for those who used to ride horses, had long breaks from riding, and have recently resumed learning/training.
Dates:
09-11.05.2025 (Friday – Sunday)
04-06.07.2025 (Friday – Sunday)
Program:
The routes of the 3 or 4-day weekend rally lead through the most interesting natural and cultural areas of the Knyszyn Forest. Each day we set out on a horse expedition from the picturesque Załuki, located in the middle of the Knyszyn Forest on the Supraśl River. The goals of our hikes include the Bison Farm in Kopna Góra, the Wyżary Reservoir with the Sculpture Gallery, Jeleni Mostek and Wierszalin, or the Świętojańskie Hills. All routes also pass through places related to the 19th-century Polish struggle for independence: the November Uprising, and especially the January Uprising.
In addition to great horse trails, delicious Podlasie cuisine, and the indispensable “Spirit of the Forest” in Podlasie, on each of the weekend rallies we would like to offer you participation in a local event. The villages and settlements of the Knyszyn Forest are known for the fact that each of them has its own festival at least once a year, where both residents and visiting guests have a great time. Such events as “Sabantuy” in Kruszyniany, “Siebrauskaja Biesieda” in Gródek, “Kupalnoczka” in Zasady, or “Dance Party at Anna’s” in Królowy Most, and many others have already established their reputation. We hope you will have a great time and party until dawn. And then? Then, of course, back on the horse and conquering the Świętojańskie Hills, which are always the last day of our rally.
Day 1: Arrival at Załuki and accommodation from 2 PM to 3 PM.
Horse riding with an instructor at the Załuki training ground.
Horseback riding tour of the Knyszyn Forest.
Day 2:
Route: Załuki – Turowo – Wyżary Reservoir – Radunin – Załuki. Route length approx. 21 km.
The Knyszyn Forest is, of course, mainly forests, but… near the village of Radunin, deep in the forest, there is a “lake,” or rather the Wyżary Reservoir. Despite its beauty, the reservoir is not a gift of nature but was created by humans and has served a fire protection and recreational function since 1970. An educational path runs around the reservoir.
Following the path deeper into the forest, we reach footbridges over the Radulinka River’s wetlands. This place is simply magical… Directly behind the footbridge, in 2017, a forest sculpture gallery was created. The authors are students from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw and members of the Nowolipie Group, i.e., people with multiple sclerosis who, as part of therapy, created these unique sculptures under the artistic supervision of Paweł Althamer.
The “January Uprising Trail” passes through here and leads through the forest to the place where one of the largest battles in the Białystok region took place on April 29, 1863, in the Komotowszczyzna wilderness, at the Piereciosy site: the Battle of Waliły.
Day 3:
Route: Załuki – Nowosiółki – St. Anne’s Hill – Królowy Most – Jakubin – Załuki. Route length approx. 20 km.
The Świętojańskie Hills are the highest moraine hills in the Knyszyn Forest. Relative heights reach up to 80 m, with slopes up to 30 degrees (steep slopes of the hills). Ahead of us: St. Anne’s Hill (202 m above sea level) with a place commemorating the January Uprising insurgents of 1863, Mount Kopna (211 m above sea level) with an observation tower, and Mount John (214 m above sea level).
On that day, an unforgettable gallop awaits us, a very long but fairly gentle climb up the hill. The climax of our effort is a short stop at the observation tower located on Góra Kopna with a breathtaking view of the endless forest “sea.” And if there are still mists… Then a descent down a very steep slope, which we overcome on foot with the horse in hand, to reach Królowy Most, famous among other things from the series of films “At the Lord’s in…” There is an opportunity to go to the cinema for the fourth part of the cult Polish comedy entitled, of course, “At the Lord’s in Królowy Most.”
We return to Załuki through Jakubin, a place that today is just a spot on the map and where we can only see the ruins of the Jakub Sakowicz estate.
Price:
1980,00 PLN
Reservation link: https://lisowczycy.pl/produkt/podlasie-weekend-wariant-pierwsze-szlify/