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Yellow and red leaves sway in the trees, chestnuts and acorns fall straight into the narrow streets, and the iodine-rich sea breeze brings a feeling of refreshment on a lazy afternoon. These little signals remind us that the golden Polish autumn has already arrived at the seaside and is slowly trying to make ourselves at home in our heads and hearts. Let's give her a chance!
For me and many of us, October is a long-awaited month, bringing moments of breath after a warm summer, pampering us with a multitude of warm colors and textures. This is a good time to take care of your own health, build up immunity and recharge your energy before winter comes. It is worth using this time for exploring new places, short trips, and above all for activity in the bosom of nature, which may become our new habit.
Photo: Autumn bike ride in Tri-City
Travel kilometers around Gdańsk and the Tri-City
Gdańsk has been famous for the activity of its inhabitants for many years. Numerous sports competitions take place here, including MTB races by the sea, surprising for many tourists from outside the Tri-City, and in parks and on the streets you can meet amateur running and real racers. The commitment of the residents and pro-health attitude allowed for a great success in the international arena, as Gdańsk was hailed as "The most cycling city in Europe" in the prestigious European Cycyling Challenge. Let us be inspired by the choices of Gdańsk residents and try to feel the sports spirit, even if it is just awakened, in the new circumstances of nature.
What is better to do: rent a bike or bring your own?
Everyone will find the right answer to this question. For those who do not have their own equipment, bicycle rentals, which are really a lot, will play an invaluable role (link below). In many of them we can find both city bikes, allowing for trips on bicycle paths, as well as trekking and mountain bikes, specialized for riding on more difficult terrain. For those in love with two wheels, traveling with their own two-wheelers, there are railways that allow the transport of bicycles, as well as more and more popular bicycle racks mounted on the roofs or backs of cars. If we decide to bring our own bicycles, we can rest assured of storing them, as many hotels have bicycle racks in their guarded parking lots.
Depending on our preferences, riding skills and time and health possibilities, we can choose from numerous bicycle paths, and also go around the Tri-City Landscape Park without a plan. To tourists who ask themselves about the best cycling routes in Gdańsk, I present my subjective selection of bike paths and routes perfect for an autumn weekend - not too long, but allowing you to feel the wind in your hair. Under the helmet, of course. :)
The Seaside Route, which is a part of the EuroVelo 10/13 international bicycle route, is a proposition good for everyone. It will include recreational cyclists who can lengthen or shorten the trip at any time convenient for them, families with children who need frequent stops, but also fans of two wheels, who will be able to take a break from the forest driveways. The distance should not exceed 30 km - you can stop the ride and get on the SKM (Fast City Rail) in many places. For people visiting the Tri-City from the perspective of a saddle, it is worth starting the rally from the Green Gate on the Motława River and with a bicycle at hand, go by the Artus Court and the Neptune Fountain, and then along Długa Street to Tkacka and start pedaling from there. Tourists who know Gdańsk better or are in a hurry can immediately cycle along Ogarna Street, which is marked as road 10/13. In this way, we will be able to feel the atmosphere of historical Gdańsk. We will pass many interesting points along the route. An important and worth a gentle reflection from the route is one of the symbols of the city - the Monument to the Fallen Shipyard Workers 1970, also known as the Monument of the Three Crosses. We will also see the historic Gate No. 2 of the Gdańsk Shipyard, as well as the modern European Solidarity Center museum. It is worth making a stop here, and if time permits, visit the ECS exhibitions, which will certainly be an excellent and accessible history lesson. After returning to EuroVelo 10/13, we head towards the sea and reach Gdańsk Brzeźno and from now on we will start our adventure along the Bay of Gdańsk.
Photo: Stogi Beach - autumn bird's-eye views
Already in Brzeźno we can admire the first pier. Keep in mind that the path is recreational and you should not rush too much. The road is situated in a beautiful scenery, because on the right we will have a beach, and on the left, well-kept parks. Time will pass quickly in this idyllic atmosphere. However, it is worth making a stop for a tasty fish in the iconic Bar Przystań in Sopot Wyścigi, and then going further to go up Bohaterów Monte Cassino Street, called Monciak, in the most touristic part of Sopot, visit the lighthouse, and enter the longest one on the Baltic Sea wooden pier, ending with a marina. After such a well-deserved break, we follow the trail markings until we reach Powstańców Warszawy Street, and then Haffnera and Aleja Niepodległości, to find ourselves in Park Kolibki, ending at the pier in Gdynia Orłowo. Thus, we will see the third building projected out to sea that day, each in a different city.
Going further along the bicycle trail, we will reach the center of Gdynia, known as the City of Sea and Dreams. Be sure to take a ride along Kościuszko Square and Aleja Jana Pawła II, because at its end there is a marvelous ORP Błyskawica Museum Ship and a Dar Pomorza Ship Museum Ship - worth our tourist attention. If you are nature lovers or your children are with you, be sure to spend some time at the Gdynia Aquarium. In this case, the best option to return will be a SKM trip from Gdynia Główna to Gdańsk.
Photo: The seaside route Gdańsk - Gdynia - Sopot
To sum up, I always recommend this route because it is easy to travel and at the same time very interesting in terms of tourism. I regularly ride selected parts of it myself when I need a relaxing activity or want to end a more demanding trip like the one described below.
The trail of the Tri-City Landscape Park, marked in blue, leads from Gdańsk, through Sopot and Gdynia to the charming Kalwaria Wejherowska. The route is over 70 km long and is quite demanding due to the numerous climbs. Its additional difficulty, but also an advantage, may be dirt roads, forest paths, sometimes connected by asphalt sections. The TPK route is in a sense an alternative to the relatively parallel Coastal Route. However, it is dedicated to people who are already well friends with a bicycle, especially with a mountain bike.
Photo: Bicycle route through the Tricity Landscape Park
We will focus on its 20 km long section starting in Gdańsk, the Golden Tavern (Harfowa Street, next to the Tri-City bypass, it can be reached both by car and by ZTM bus), and ending in Gdynia's Karwiny district. The route goes up and down many times. We have the opportunity to enter the Bóbr Valley, turn along the Oliwa Stream. Right behind them, by the hardened Coal Road, we should look for a signpost on the right side of the path pointing to the Devil's Stone. It is a granite boulder split into two parts, a reminder of the Scandinavian ice sheet, which carved this land for good, and helped cyclists temper their spirits on numerous climbs. The trail continues along the Clay Road and the Way of Poor Bridges. Along them, we can observe characteristic stone signposts - once very popular road markings. Following the blue markings, we reach Bytowska Street. At Kuźnia Wodna, we turn along Kwietna Street, which is a part of the Gdańsk St. James, where we will pass the interesting Mormon Castle. After reaching Stary Rynek Oliwski Street, we follow the green walking trail towards over 100 meters above sea level Pachołek Heights. It is a place worth a stop, because after climbing the vantage point, we can see the Bay of Gdańsk and the forests surrounding Gdańsk from a completely different perspective. After leaving the summit, we return to the blue bicycle trail and head towards the Forest District Road, which will soon lead us to the Reja Loop, popular among road cycling enthusiasts. This is a good opportunity to test your speed, as this 5 km section for sprinters requires quite a good form for climbing uphill, but in return allows you to develop speed when going downhill. Who knows, maybe those willing will twist more than one loop.
When the sports emotions cool down a bit, we head to the former forester's lodge in Gołębiewo, behind which the trail loses itself again in forest paths, and so on to Wielki Kack in Gdynia and Gdynia Karwina, where we end the trip. From this place, skilled cyclists can go further towards Kalwaria Wejherowska, others, using asphalt roads or well-marked roads, bicycle and walking routes, go down to the beach in Sopot Kamienny Potok, and those who already have enough bicycle attractions, get to PKM - ki (Pomeranian Metropolitan Railway) and head towards Gdynia Główna, Gdańsk Wrzeszcz or the airport.
Photo: Cyclists during an autumn ride in the Tricity Landscape Park
I heartily recommend the route of the Tri-City Landscape Park. It is the perfect way to actively relax in the bosom of nature, enjoy the colorful trees, meet other lovers of two wheels, and maybe also pick a few mushrooms somewhere on the route. For me, parts of this route, extended or replaced with other variants, are a great way to relax after a whole week in autumn, and in the summer the best way to relax actively after work.
And in the next post, a few commands for running fans.
Places described in the post:
Perfect offers for an autumn weekend:
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