Eulengrund (Giant Mountains)
Coordinates: 50 ° 45 ′ 18.8 ″ N , 15 ° 46 ′ 32.8 ″ E
Eulengrund is the German name of a valley and old mining area in the Giant Mountains on the Plagnitz (Polish Płomnica ) southeast of Karpacz (German Krummhübel ) in the Lower Silesian Voivodeship .
location
The valley with the Polish name Sowia Dolina is cut deep into the surrounding area. The slopes in the west belong to the Black Koppe (Polish Czarna kopa, Czech Svorová hora), those in the east to the table stone (Polish Skalny Stół , Czech Tabule ) and its pre- peaks . It stretches from a bridge called Szeroki Most near Karpacz in the north to the Owl Pass (Polish Przełęcz Sowia , Czech Soví sedlo or Můstek , 1164 m) in the south with a difference in altitude of 450 meters over a length of three kilometers. The saddle on the Owl Pass separates the part of the main mountain ridge east of the Schneekoppe , also known as the giant ridge ( Obří hřeben in Czech , Czarny Grzbiet in Polish ), from the Schmiedeberger ridge ( Kowarski Grzbiet or Střecha in Polish , Lesní heben in Czech ).
history
The area at the foothills of the table stone has been known for its wealth of precious stones since the 14th century. On Rabenberg (or Rabenstein, in Polish Krucza Kopa ), a pre-summit of the table stone above Wilcza Poręba (German Wolfshau), a district of Karpacz, there are pegmatite deposits with tourmaline , amethyst and sapphire crystals .
The first mention of the pits in Eulengrund goes back to 1703 and concerns the extraction of garnet stones typical of Bohemian folk jewelry . A good description of the gem pits can be found in the travelogue of Pastor JT Volkmar from Petersdorf (today Piechowice ), which was published in 1777 under the title Journeys to the Giant Mountains .
In the second half of the nineteenth century, copper, silver, tin and lead deposits were opened up. There are also rich iron ore deposits, which is why the place was then called the Black Cliff. The last mining work was carried out in the 50s of the 20th century, when uranium ore was searched for in Eulengrund, rather unsuccessfully. Remains of the tunnels and landfills are still visible in many places in the Eulengrund.
Flora and fauna
Another name for the Schmiedeberger ridge is forest ridge, which indicates the rich forest and the economic use of the area. In the 20th century, extensive spruce monocultures had been created. However, these did not prove to be resistant to increasing air pollution and soil acidification , and this forest died on large areas. This situation also affected the owl ground. Although there are still areas that are exclusively dominated by spruce trees and here and there bare trunks of dead trees tower up, the slopes of the valley have recovered since the 1990s and are again more densely forested. Because the Polish nature conservation authority gave the forest its natural regeneration two decades earlier than the Czech KRNAP .
This gradually creates an original mixed forest of beech , fir and spruce trees . As a result, plant diversity generally increases. In the years 2004-2005 the lichens in the valley were inventoried. A total of 62 species have been identified, including Cladonia bellidiflora . The occurrence of many endangered species in Poland and a large number of young lichens growing on healthy trees indicate a qualitative improvement in living conditions after a period characterized by the term forest dieback .
The forest is also home to many birds. The rough owl lives here , a small mountain owl, which is seldom seen, but can be heard often and especially after dusk. Some woodpecker species find their prey in the dead wood , chaffinches and crossbills feed on spruce seeds. The ring thrush , a relative of the blackbird, can be seen in the clearings . Bird species can already be found on the Owl Pass that are more typical for higher elevations in the Giant Mountains, e.g. B. the bullfinch and carmine finch . Among the mammals, the Alpine shrew , swamp vole and earth vole are mentioned. Not to mention the different species of bats, including the Northern bat ( Eptesicus nilsoni ) who find shelter in the numerous abandoned mine tunnels.
Hydrology
The Plagnitz (also Plagwitz or Plakwitz) is formed from the confluence of two mountain streams. The shorter of the two with the Polish name Niedźwiada rises at an altitude of about 1145 meters below the Owl Pass. The other, called Płóknica in Polish , has its source about 1200 meters above sea level on the northeast slope of the Black Koppe. After the devastating floods in Krummhübel, the steepness of the stream in the Eulengrund was regulated with torrent barriers. After leaving the valley, the Plagnitz flows through Krummhübel and after 3.8 kilometers flows into the Little Lomnica ( Łomniczka in Polish ), which is a tributary of the Great Lomnica ( Łomnica in Polish ). The named waters belong to the river system Oder - Baltic Sea . In the picture on the right: the Plagnitz in the upper part of the valley.
Tourism and nature protection
The most attractive part of the valley for tourism is the central section below the Keuligeberg (Polish Buławą , 877 m) and the Grenade Rocks (Polish Granaty ), a rock formation that rises at an altitude of around 1000 meters. The upper, particularly steep part belongs to the Karkonoski Park Narodowy (KPN, Giant Mountains National Park ) from a height of approx. 950 meters . Strict nature conservation conditions apply here and the paved hiking trail must not be left.
▬ Marked in black, this path leads from Karpacz to the former tourist border crossing to the Czech Republic on the Owl Pass. From there it is not far to Horská bouda Jelenka , a mountain hut at 1260 meters above sea level, which goes back to the former Emma spring hut. The current building, which is open all year round, is modernly equipped and offers the opportunity to recover from the strenuous climb. Now you can follow the path of Polish-Czech friendship down the valley to Malá Úpa (German Kleinaupa) or in the opposite, westerly direction to Schneekoppe .
Pictures from the area
Individual evidence
- ↑ Precious stone deposits on Rabenstein ( Memento of the original from February 8, 2015 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ The mining tradition of Wolfshau ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Karpacz onLINE ( Memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ VESELÝ VÝLET, edition 40, p. 12 PDF 7 MB
- ↑ Przyroda Sudetów 2006, page 43 PDF 3.5 MB
- ↑ Przyroda Sudetów 1999, p. 88 PDF 6.5 MB
- ↑ Detail map ( memento of the original from March 4, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
