Rudka

Rudka is a mountain 956 m above sea level in the Śnieżnik Massif in the Sudetes, within the Śnieżnik Landscape Park, near the villages of Sienna, Janowa Góra and Kletno. It used to bear the German name Zechenberg, and after 1945 the name Mokrzyca was also used.

Ridge and geology

Rudka lies on the northern side ridge of Śnieżnik, between the valleys of the Sienna Woda and the Kleśnica. The mountain is built of Śnieżnik gneisses and mica schists with crystalline limestones and amphibolites, belonging to the Lądek-Śnieżnik metamorphic complex, with significant mineralisation in the contact zones.

Mining history

At the end of the 16th century, galena, that is lead ore, was mined on the slopes of Rudka. In the 19th and early 20th centuries iron ore was extracted here, and after 1948, on the Kletno side, uranium was mined by the Kopaliny enterprise. Traces of the old mining are still visible today as spoil heaps and adits.

Vegetation

The mountain is covered by lower montane spruce forest, with sparse vegetation right at the summit. The border of the Śnieżnik Landscape Park runs along the edge of the forest.

Practical information

• Rudka lies in Kłodzko County, in the Śnieżnik Massif, near the villages of Sienna and Kletno.
• The nearest major attractions are the Bear Cave and Śnieżnik.
• Also nearby are the Earth Museum in Kletno and Wilczki Waterfall.
• The former adits and spoil heaps on the slopes are not adapted for visitors.