Blog Ani i Radka
Although I was pregnant, we managed to squeeze in a couple of outings and a long weekend trip in spring, so this time I may share with you a bit more photos from this period. We did a couple of excursions around Szczecin and one longer trip to Rugen island. Spring is such a perfect time to take photos. Plants grow, flowers bloom, the sun shines, people are happy and willing to go out. I love spring.
Poland:
Germany:
Another week, another walk in a forest. We started from Three Brothers Pass and went down to Ponikwa Waterhole. A short but nice walk that reminded us why Bukowa Forest is also known as Bukowe Hills. Extra attraction: two hares goofing around on our sight.
As you could read in my previous post, I’m hungry for nature and decided to have a nature trip every week. It’s good for my mental and physical health, Wojtek loves it and it’s educational, it brings our family together – only advantages! Today we went to see Świdwie Lake. It’s pretty close from us and it’s a birds and wildlife reserve with no access for tourists. But you can get a glimpse at its beauty from an observation tower. Although one can get with a car as far as the tower, we stopped a bit earlier and did a 3 km loop through forests and fields.
I really don’t want to flood you with pictures but I just find them all so pretty! It’s difficult for me to narrow the collection down. It’s a different landscape than what we were used to in France and maybe that is why I like it so much. It’s not bad at all!
The observation tower was real fun. We didn’t spend much time there because our 2-year-old decided he wanted to throw pebbles in the water instead but even this while we were there was a real relaxation. And the views were fantastic.
Our way back to the car was faster as we cut through the field. The day was getting to an end it was real pleasure to walk amid the trees, grass, birds, waterholes and other nature wonders.
It was not our first time at Świdwie Lake. In 2012 we went for a bike ride there. It was even better that day as we came in just right at the sun dawn and the landscape was simply a-ma-zing! Have a look at our 2012 shot:
I guess it’s time for me to come out to the world and to announce we’re expecting baby #2. A baby girl this time. This is why it has been relatively little traffic on my blog lately. I had some problems with the pregnancy and for 6 weeks I had to stay at home and couldn’t do any activity. Well, whoever knows me can imagine what it meant for me. At some point I just couldn’t bear it anymore and when I got better I took the first occasion to associate with the wildlife.
There are a couple of wild forests and lakes around Szczecin – we still have lots to explore. Today we went to a place we both knew – Binowo lake. I have to say, it was the perfect choice. It was secluded (you can’t believe the crowds in parks in Szczecin on that day!) and beautiful. It was the first real spring day and the walk was simply adorable. Wojtek also had lots of fun digging in the earth with sticks and throwing stones in the water. And for me.. I really don’t know if I changed or what but I simply don’t feel well in civilization any more. I promise myself to do such getaway into wildlife excursions every week if the weather and my condition permit. I feel like my cup has filled again.
For the last few years we’ve been wanting to join our friends in Włóczykij Extreme Trip – a night orienteering run for 50 km that takes place between February and March. Unfortunately for the last 3 years we were far away from Gryfino where this event is placed. But the waiting is over (at least for Radek, because I couldn’t join this year either) and Radek had a chance to test his stamina and orienteering skills against this epic track.
The run starts at 17:00 and Radek went on track with a group of friends. For the next 12 hours they walked almost 60 km on hills and in the river valley around Gryfino. It got dark quickly (so not to much photos) but with help of other competitors they were able to find all(!) check points and when the sun rose they reached the finish line within the given time.
This was the first time when our friends managed this race so well and Radek was really happy to be part of it. And you can imagine me being sooo proud of my husband! I followed his route on Endomendo. It’s such a pity I couldn’t join 🙁 They scored above average and finished the race on 133 out of 286 places.
| Msc | Nr | PK | czas łączny | p.karne z czasu | start | meta | czas trasy | czas stopu | stop wejście | stop wyjście | punkty | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 133 | 163 | Małecki | Michał | 170 | 12:29 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:18 | 13:08 | 0:39 | 16-03-05 23:29 | 16-03-06 0:08 | 170 | ||
| 185 | Orecki | Radosław | 170 | 12:29 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:18 | 13:08 | 0:39 | 16-03-05 23:29 | 16-03-06 0:08 | 170 | |||
| 211 | Porzych | Zbigniew | 170 | 12:29 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:18 | 13:08 | 0:39 | 16-03-05 23:29 | 16-03-06 0:08 | 170 | |||
| 263 | Staszewski | Tomasz | 170 | 12:29 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:18 | 13:08 | 0:39 | 16-03-05 23:29 | 16-03-06 0:08 | 170 | |||
| 137 | 40 | Daniłowicz | Dorota | 170 | 12:30 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:18 | 13:08 | 0:38 | 16-03-05 23:31 | 16-03-06 0:09 | 170 | ||
| 292 | Tomaszewski | Mariusz | 170 | 12:30 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:18 | 13:08 | 0:38 | 16-03-05 23:31 | 16-03-06 0:09 | 170 | |||
| 171 | Mielnicki | Tomasz | 170 | 12:30 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:40 | 13:30 | 1:00 | 16-03-05 22:36 | 16-03-06 0:15 | 170 | |||
| 179 | Niczyj | Patryk | 170 | 12:30 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:40 | 13:30 | 1:00 | 16-03-05 22:36 | 16-03-06 0:15 | 170 | |||
| 245 | Sobczyk | Edward | 170 | 12:30 | 0 | 16-03-05 17:10 | 16-03-06 6:40 | 13:30 | 1:00 | 16-03-05 22:36 | 16-03-06 0:15 | 170 |
And here’s what Radek has to say:
„To summarize the last few hours and kilometers was just pure agony but after one day I rested and now I’m looking forward to thenext year.”
And in the end some video from event:
After a very hectic time at work I needed some getaway time so I met with my friend Natalia in Sopot, at the other side of polish seaside. It was bloody cold (below zero all the time) but also lovely. We both had some „me-time”, some „friend-time”, some „charge-your-batteries-time”. And it sure was beautiful!
Another season went past. Time really sped up since we came back to Poland. We didn’t have much time for travelling and exploring, we did start a new hobby though. You guessed it – running! It was more of a reason choice – to be fit enough for Mont Blanc we need to train hard and running seems to do the best job for us in this respect. But what started as a well-considered decision, ended up as an inner drive and almost vocation. I wish I had started running back in France – there are so many possibilities for trail running there. Anyway, Szczecin is not bad too. Some of the photos were taken during our running sessions (sorry for poor quality). Have a look – Poland is beautiful too.
My desire to be in the bosom of nature didn’t stop with us coming back to Poland. Sure, this has been a hectic time for us with the move and me starting working full-time, but these are the days like this one that keep me going. Our friends Magda and Michał are frequent contestants of orienteering events and I always wanted to join them on a trail. So yet another „to-do” thing to be crossed out 🙂 Theoretically it was only a 10 km route, however you needed to double it to get to the starting point and came back to the car. So all in all we closed this soggy but rain-free day with ~22 km.
The start was at the Lion’s Mouth fire place in Bukowa Forest. I really intend to get to know this forest better. It’s close to us, vast and beautiful. And the names of the places are so funny. I have to say, the organizers did a great job. There was a fire place, maps, 10 orienteering points to be found and lovely prizes for everybody who attended. I was very excited to be taking part in this event.
Group photo credit: Arek Arecki
The route was very pleasant and the points were really easy to find. We struggled only once (which actually cost us the place on the podium but I’ll come to this later). I had so much fun on the trail, it was pure pleasure to me. Have a look at the photos from the contest.
Radek and I finished fourth. The first two places were taken by runners and we lost by seconds with a third couple. Radek was pouting a bit because we decided to run the very last part and I slowed him down with my turtle pace. And I didn’t let him leave me 🙂 Well, you decided what’s better – winning a podium place or being a decent husband 🙂
We will sure be back the next year!
I don’t remember having such beautiful autumn in Poland. It’s absolutely outstanding! I guess global warming is getting us faster than we think. Anyway, I can’t complain. I simply love it and it made my return to our home country way easier. We also try to benefit from it as much as we can, so we made our way to the seaside. Many people think Szczecin is at the seaside. It’s not 🙂 But it’s not that far and Baltic sea makes a perfect one-day destination for us.
Międzyzdroje is kind of a celebrities’ resort at our shore line. Of course – polish standards 🙂 Off the season it is reasonably calmer, a bit less tacky but still full of life which is good (especially if you travel with children). So we made a walk around but our obvious destination was the seaside.
The shore was surprisingly calm. We didn’t walk too much, we just laid down on the sand, enjoyed the sunshine, built sand castles and played by the water. Oh, and we watched the seagulls. We finished the day with a stroll on the famous jetty and fish and chips. Kids loved it!
This spring was plentiful of activities for us. the weather is very good this year so we can benefit from that having 1-day trips around, we did an almost 3-week trip to Poland and went for holidays on Sardinia. here are some flashbacks from this time.
Versoix:
Toddler’s Group Bake Sales:
Szczecin:
Annecy:
Meyrin:
Sardinia:
