18,000 years is a lot of time… It needs to be said that Sven the Continental Glacier left Poznań rather a long ago. However, he left behind many keepsakes. They can be found both in the city and in the surrounding area. Of course, it is best to see them with your own eyes!
The range of available glacial experiences is incredibly wide. So where should you start? Don’t worry! Our travel agency will help you choose a trip tailored to your needs.
Table of contents
Let’s go to the lake!
For those who love to sunbathe and relax by the water we recommend our lake holiday. The range of places you can visit is wide because there really are quite a lot of lakes in Poznań and the surrounding area. You do not even need to leave the city because two natural lakes are right within its borders. Of course, all of this is thanks to Sven the Continental Glacier and his years of workout in the area!
What if you have trouble choosing which lake you want to visit? Pick the one whose shape you like best!
-> small, round or oval
Jezioro Kociołek in the Wielkopolska National Park
Lakes like this one were formed in places where an ice block buried underground had melted.
-> long, narrow and, usually, deep
Jezioro Kierskie
Jezioro Niepruszewskie
Jezioro Strykowskie
Jezioro Bnińskie
Lakes like these were formed in tunnel valleys.
-> one with numerous peninsulas
Jezioro Strzeszyńskie
Lakes like this one were formed in valleys surrounded by kames.
(Not)mountains
If you like to spend your free time actively, you simply must choose our mountain holiday. You will have an opportunity to hike, surrounded by beautiful nature and breathtaking views. All this is waiting for you just a stone’s throw from Poznań:
Góra Moraska – the highest mountain in Poznań, 153 m a.s.l.
Dziewicza Góra – a slightly smaller sister of Góra Moraska, 144 m a.s.l., there is a viewing tower at the top
It has to be said that it is a slight exaggeration to call them mountains. First and foremost, their relative height is not 300 m, which is required for calling something a mountain. This does not change the fact, however, that in the Wielkopolska Region, which is as flat as a pancake, even such hills are viewed as mountains. 😊
Where did these (not)mountains come from? They were formed by Sven the Continental Glacier, of course! They are part of his terminal moraine and mark the area which Sven reached during his last visit to Poznań’s neighbourhood.
Rock as a souvenir
We also have an offer for those who prefer something “heavier”. But do not worry, the subject matter will not crush you! What we mean is a small sentimental journey in Sven’s company. When he embarked on his journey to the south, he took with him some souvenirs. They reminded him of his family home. When he was going back north, he left many of them behind in the area of Poland.
Sure enough, these souvenirs were not the lightest. But who are we to tell such a strongman as Sven not to put a few glacial erratics in his pocket? The Continental Glacier plucked these large pieces of rocks from the ground and carried them over the distance of hundreds of kilometres. The ones found in Poznań and its neighbourhood mostly come from Sweden and from the bottom of the Baltic Sea.
The biggest glacial erratic in Poznań can be found in the Botanic Garden – it is 5,5 metre tall!
Another two large erratics can be found in the lapidarium located by the Faculty of Geographical and Geological Sciences of Adam Mickiewicz University in Morasko.
Glacial erratics were used to build the first cathedral in Poznań. Today a piece of the wall made from them can be found at the base of one of the cathedral’s towers.
Glacial erratics were used to build the Imperial Castle. The bottom part of the building’s walls is made of them.
Erratics were also used to build cobbled streets. You can see them, for example, at the entrance to the Śluza Gallery.
Pass me the brick – a very local trip
No time for a long journey? Choose a micro-trip and discover your inner detective! A walk through the Śluza Gallery is a fantastic opportunity to track the remains of the past. But let’s start at the beginning…
The building of the Śluza Gallery is made of bricks. They were mostly produced in brickyards operating in Poznań and the surrounding area. The material to make bricks, however, was provided by none other than Sven the Continental Glacier.
Clay accumulated under the moving Continental Glacier. For hundreds of years it formed a thick cover on the surface of the earth. Later, it was through this cover that the Warta River cut her valley. Initially, the river flowed through numerous riverbeds. Hills made of clay were formed between them. For the inhabitants of Poznań they were the first material from which they could make bricks. They were used to build, for example, the Gothic cathedral. Over time people flattened almost all hills in the river valley, turning them into bricks.
A perfect material for making bricks is also loam. It accumulated at the bottom of the ice-marginal lakes. What are these? Do you remember the exercise “be like an ice block”? Exactly! The Continental Glacier left behind ice blocks which stopped the flow of the water. It was in these places that the ice-marginal lakes were formed. In Poznań they were located in the Bogdanka River Valley and the Strumień Junikowski Valley. When the Continental Glacier retreated, these lakes disappeared but the loam deposit remained. In the first half of the 19th century brickyards were built in these places. They produced bricks necessary to build Poznań Fortress. Today the area of the former brickyard in Świerczewo is a charming place for taking a walk called Szachty.
Great bricks can also be made of Poznań variegated clay. This type of clay was created several million years ago. It should be buried deep in the ground but the Continental Glacier pushed it to the surface. This material was used by brickyards in Radojewo and Promnice.
And now it is time for a little walk! Take a look at the walls of the Śluza Gallery. On some of them you can see mysterious numbers and letters. These are stamps which inform us which brickyard produced each brick. The date which sometimes appears next to the name is the year in which a particular brick was made.
Try to find bricks with the following stamps on them:
Radoiewo – a brickyard near Radojewo and Owińska,
Praemnitz – a brickyard in Promnice near Biedrusko,
W, V – probably a brickyard in Wilda,
A – a brickyard in Gorzów Wielkopolski,
H – Hoffmann, probably a brickyard in Starołęka.
Keepsakes from Sven – a virtual tour
For those with an inquisitive mind, we have prepared a special offer: an opportunity for a unique, glacial armchair travel! Find out if the Continental Glacier left any keepsakes under your own house! Perhaps you will stumble upon an interesting glacial landform in your neighbourhood? Brose through our interactive map which shows you all the landforms in Poznań’s landscape.
Would you rather experience the trip from the comfort of your own home? Use the map on the website zywaplaneta.pl/po-poznaniu.
