Museums
a Gothic castle on the summit of Choina above Bystrzyckie Lake, today a museum with an inn and a hotel
Mountains
a 450-metre mound with the ruin of Piast-era Grodno Castle on its summit, within a nature reserve
Parks and nature
a forest reserve on a hill with the ruins of Grodno Castle on the summit and views over Lake Bystrzyckie
a stud farm on Michała Drzymały street, not far from Grodno Castle
Zagórze Śląskie has Grodno Castle on Choina hill and Lake Bystrzyckie at its foot. See how to combine castle, forest and water.
Grodno Castle is a Gothic stronghold of the 14th century on top of Choina, which rises 450 m above sea level over the Bystrzyca valley between the Owl Mountains and the Wałbrzych Mountains. Today it holds a museum with a visitor route, a tavern and a hotel, so a visit is easy to plan for a few hours. The castle is entered in the register of monuments, and the place carries the "Architecture", "Rainy day" and "Solo" tags. At the foot of the hill spreads the reservoir of Lake Bystrzyckie, which makes one of the more scenic castle locations in Lower Silesia.
Choina is a small hill in the Wałbrzych Mountains, about a kilometre south-east of Zagórze Śląskie. It has the shape of a broad mound with steep slopes on the south, east and west, and on top stands the ruin of the Piast castle Grodno. The whole is protected by the Góra Choina nature reserve, created in 1957 by order of the Minister of Forestry and Timber Industry mainly to protect the natural mixed forest that covers the gneiss hill. Walking up is free, and the ruins and forest make a good goal for a solo stroll.
Lake Bystrzyckie, also called Lake Lubachowskie, lies in the narrow Bystrzyca valley in the Owl Mountains, in the Walim municipality. The reservoir was created in 1911-1914 after a stone dam was built on the river, and wooded slopes and rock cliffs surround it. From its shore you see the hill with the castle ruins, and Zagórze Śląskie itself lies on the bank.
If you are interested in horse riding, check Ibiza Stable on Michała Drzymały Street. Sources do not confirm the range of its offer for outside visitors, so call before you come.
Other places nearby are Jedlina-Zdrój, Szczawno-Zdrój, Głuszyca, Boguszów-Gorce and Grzmiąca.
