Leskowiec (922 m) in the Little Beskids – from Krzeszów

Leskowiec is located in the eastern part of the Little Beskids. It rises to an altitude of 922 m a.s.l., making it the third highest peak in the entire range – after Czupel (930 m a.s.l.) and Łamana Skała (929 m a.s.l.). Leskowiec is a popular destination for hiking trips due to its attractive panoramas, the PTTK mountain hut, and the nearby Mountain Sanctuary of Our Lady Queen of the Mountains on Groń Jana Pawła II. Personally, this is a special peak for me because… it was the first one I ever conquered. I ascended here for the first time in the summer of 2009, and since then I have returned many times. I have described one of these returns in this article. I cordially invite you to the report!

The Leskowiec area offers a dense network of tourist trails. In this article, we will focus on a loop from the village of Krzeszów, but this is only one of many possible variants. Using marked routes, we can also reach Leskowiec from the villages of Tarnawa Dolna, Śleszowice, Mucharz, Świnna Poręba, Ponikiew, or Rzyki.

Spis treści

1. Krzeszów – Władysław Midowicz Pass
2. PTTK Mountain Hut on Leskowiec
3. Groń Jana Pawła II – the sanctuary
4. To the summit of Leskowiec
5. Descent from Leskowiec via the yellow trail
6. Trip map
7. Leskowiec from Krzeszów – proposals for extending the trip
8. Bibliography

Krzeszów – Władysław Midowicz Pass

My companion today is Ada, whom I have wanted to show Leskowiec for a long time. Our relationship has been going on for three months now, so it’s high time to show her the mountain of my childhood, located just a few kilometers from my Mother’s family home. We start the trip in Krzeszów (Stryszawa commune). You can easily leave your car here in the church parking lot or, closer to the trails, at the store belonging to the Lewiatan chain. We choose the latter option, remembering, however, to do some shopping in the store beforehand (according to a threatening sign, the parking lot is for customers only under the threat of towing the vehicle). In Krzeszów itself, it is worth paying attention to the charming, Neo-Gothic church of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, built in the years 1901–1903 and consecrated in 1906. From the road above the church, there is an incredible panorama of the entire Leskowiec Massif and nearby Łamana Skała.

From Krzeszów, two tourist trails lead to the summit of Leskowiec: red (a fragment of the Little Beskid Trail; slightly longer but gentler) and green, then yellow, which gives the possibility of constructing an interesting loop. We will start today with the first of the mentioned variants and descend with the second. The red trail from Krzeszów requires the hiker to overcome approximately 440 meters of elevation difference over a distance of just over 6 kilometers.

We spend the first half kilometer among the buildings of the Krzeszów Podchlebówka district. Then we head out into an open field, and our trail runs adjacent to a small stream. For this reason, it is usually muddy here, and during the thaws or after heavy rains, one should expect minor flooding of the route. In winter, however, it can be quite slippery here. After covering about four hundred meters, we reach a charming chapel, erected by Tomasz Harańczyk in 1861. Behind us, there is a view of the buildings of Krzeszów and the Żurawnica mountain rising above it. Then we continue the trip along the red trail, surrounded by idyllic meadows and intense spring greenery. Just over a kilometer after leaving the parking lot, we cross the forest line, entering the Little Beskids Landscape Park.

The trail leads mainly through a dense forest, but in some places charming glades appear to our eyes. The most beautiful of them is located at an altitude of approx. 650 m a.s.l., in a place where a dirt road from the Targoszów Role district joins the marked path. It even offers a panorama in the eastern direction. Initially, the trail rises very gently; it only starts to get a bit steeper at an altitude of approx. 700 m a.s.l. (approx. 4 kilometers from leaving the parking lot in Krzeszów). We gain the next meters of elevation surrounded alternately by majestic Carpathian beech forest and charming glades. By the way, some of them are excellent places for picking blueberries (let’s remember, by the way, that in the Beskids “borówka” means the fruit called “jagoda” in the rest of the country). Along its entire length, the trail is wide and excellently marked.

In this way, after a 5.5-kilometer walk, we reach the Władysław Midowicz Pass (approx. 875 m a.s.l.), named after the distinguished popularizer of mountain tourism, many-year host of the Markowe Szczawiny hut, and marker of the first trail to Leskowiec (he achieved this feat at the end of the 1920s). At this point, we turn right to find ourselves at the PTTK mountain hut on Leskowiec after just a few minutes.

PTTK Mountain Hut on Leskowiec

The PTTK Mountain Hut on Leskowiec is one of only two such facilities in the entire Little Beskids (the second is located on Magurka Wilkowicka). It offers 32 beds, warm meals, and has undergone significant expansion in recent years. On fine weekend days, the hut is bustling with life, the cheerful chatter of tourists and pilgrims can be heard from everywhere, and the smell of a burning grill can often be felt in the air. A beautiful view towards the south spreads from the hut. One can see, among others, the Żurawnica group, a fragment of the Jałowieckie Range, the Polica Range, and Babia Góra. And today? Today, to my surprise, I also saw the Tatra Mountains from here. I knew that our highest mountains can be seen from Leskowiec, but I always assumed that this could only be done on cold days (when air transparency is, of course, much better).

The hut was opened in December 1932. The site was chosen by Władysław Midowicz, and the purchase of the land and the construction of the facility were handled by the Wadowice branch of the Polish Tourist Society. During World War II, a small detachment of German soldiers was stationed in the hut, sent here to fight the partisans operating in the surrounding forests. In 1945, the soldiers even received orders to burn the facility down. Fortunately, the then-host of the hut, Jan Targosz from Targoszów, came to the rescue. He got the occupiers drunk with a few bottles of moonshine, which effectively stopped their enthusiasm and wicked intentions. Inside the hut, it is worth paying attention to the beautiful sightseeing and tourist map of the Wadowice region, drawn in 1982 by Władysław Worytko.

Next to the PTTK hut, there is a GOPR station, a meteorological station, and one of the largest trail junctions in this part of the Beskids. From under the Leskowiec hut, the following trails depart: yellow to Świnna Poręba, green to Jamnik, blue to Tarnawa Górna, black to Śleszowice, blue to Wadowice via Ponikiew, green to Andrychów, black to Rzyki-Jagódki, and yellow to Krzeszów via Targoszów. It is also worth paying attention to the signpost itself at the hut. It is situated next to a characteristic stone with carved footprints. These are the so-called “Count’s Boots” (Hrabskie Buty), a souvenir of the ascent of Leskowiec by 14-year-old Countess Marysia Wielopolska and her guardian, Roman Taube, in 1898.

I would describe the prices in the hut on Leskowiec as quite affordable: I have to pay a little over 30 zlotys for a large chicken fillet with fries today. By the way, I have the impression that we used to approach fees in mountain buffets differently. Formerly, prices in mountain huts were clearly higher than those we have down below. Currently, I have the impression that there are no longer any great discrepancies.

Groń Jana Pawła II – the sanctuary

A few minutes’ walk from the PTTK hut is another interesting peak – Groń Jana Pawła II (898 m a.s.l.). The name of the peak was not a coincidence. Karol Wojtyła, who came from nearby Wadowice, was a regular at the PTTK hut on Leskowiec in his youth. The last time he visited this place was in 1970, so already as a cardinal. Hence, to honor his merits, in 1981 the Wadowice PTTK decided to rename the former Jaworzyna precisely to Groń Jana Pawła II. This decision caused some controversy due to the unwritten rule about not naming peaks after people (especially those still alive). Ultimately, however, in 2004 the new name of the mountain was approved in a regulation of the Minister of Interior and Administration.

In 1995, on the glade on the southern slope of Groń, through the efforts of local believers, the brick Sanctuary of Our Lady Queen of the Mountains was erected. Inside, there is, among others, the papal throne that John Paul II occupied during his visit to Skoczów in 1995. The chapel currently belongs to the parish of St. Martin in Andrychów. Holy Masses are celebrated there only occasionally, but they usually enjoy great popularity among local residents.

In addition to the sanctuary, on Groń we will also find a small viewing platform, from which, in contrast to Leskowiec, there is a view towards the north, i.e., a panorama of the small Bliźniaki range, the village of Ponikiew, Wadowice, and Andrychów.

To the summit of Leskowiec

The road from the hut to the summit of Leskowiec (922 m a.s.l.) follows a wide path among beeches and takes us barely a dozen minutes. On the top, there is an extensive viewing glade, on which shepherds still grazed sheep twenty years ago. Since the breeding of these animals has significantly decreased, the place is gradually becoming overgrown year by year. However, the glade still offers one of the most beautiful panoramas of the Little Beskids.

The panorama from Leskowiec spreads primarily over the Babia Góra massif, the Polica range, and the Przedbabiogórskie range. On the right side, already somewhat obscured by trees, Pilsko looms. On days with exceptionally favorable weather, even the Tatra Mountains can be spotted from Leskowiec – a view of fragments of the Western Tatras with Błyszcz and Starorobociański Wierch opens up between Babia Góra and Polica. To the left of Polica, we will notice Lomnický štít, Baranie Rohy, and Ľadový štít in the High Tatras. I found out that such a possibility even exists on a certain beautiful December day – I must admit that I was very surprised by the view of the Tatras then.

On the glade on Leskowiec, there is a wooden tourist shelter, a millennium cross placed in 2000, a stone commemorating the victims of the Smolensk disaster of April 10, 2010, a mast with a white-red flag set up on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Poland regaining independence, and also, helpful for tourists, a graphic with the described panorama from the summit.

Descent from Leskowiec via the yellow trail

We spend a longer while at the summit of Leskowiec, and then we begin the descent along the yellow trail. Our route now leads along a wide and well-marked forest path. It is quite steep here, which on the one hand allows for a quick and efficient loss of altitude, and on the other – requires maintaining special concentration. At an altitude of approx. 700 m a.s.l., we emerge from the forest onto the Targoszów Podbucznik district. We are now walking on concrete slabs, right next to new holiday cottages. Before us, however, a beautiful view of Babia Góra opens up. A few hundred meters of walking and our trail deviates from the paved road again. We now walk straight through a charming green meadow. In this way, accompanied by pleasant views, we descend to the Wieczorki district.

A few hundred meters along the asphalt and we check in at another small chapel. At this point, the trail leads straight through the stream – one of the tributaries of the Targoszówka. Crossing the stream usually does not cause major problems; it only gets wider during the thaws in spring. At the chapel, we take the green trail leading towards the center of Krzeszów. Interestingly, according to the map, the green and yellow trails follow this route together – in the field, however, the signs are exclusively green. The path here is clearly narrower, but still very comfortable.

The next half kilometer passes us during a slight forest ascent to the small summit Gronik (530 m a.s.l.). There is a highland chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary here, erected in 1896 by local miners. It turns out that both Gronik and the nearby Harańczykowa Góra were once places of iron ore extraction. From Gronik to Krzeszów, the trail leads through open terrain. We are now walking across a beautiful green glade with pleasant views of the nearby hills. After walking about a kilometer, we enter the buildings of Krzeszów again. We descend to the main road and return to the parking lot at Lewiatan. It was beautiful, green, and spring-like!

Trip date: June 14, 2025

Trip statistics: 14 km; 550 meters of altitude difference

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Trip map

Leskowiec from Krzeszów – proposals for extending the trip

To people eager for longer loops, I can recommend not descending from Leskowiec along the yellow trail, and instead remaining on the main ridge of the Little Beskids. Along the red trail, you can descend to the Beskidek Pass (805 m a.s.l.), through which it was once considered to lead an asphalt road from Sucha Beskidzka to Andrychów. There, you can turn off onto the so-called “beech trail,” a path marked with a white square with a red diagonal. This is not an official PTTK trail, so its course at times stops being completely obvious. However, it allows for a slight extension of our loop, bringing the hiker to the valley of the Targoszówka river and Targoszów itself. Walking along the main road in the direction of Kuków, we will reach the Wieczorki district.

To people interested in an even longer variant, I recommend wandering the Little Beskid Trail as far as Smrekowica mountain (885 m a.s.l.). At the crossroads below the summit, we descend to the green trail, leading through the forested ridge of Czarna Góra (808 m a.s.l.). In this way, we emerge onto the charming Snakówka district, with pleasant views of the surrounding peaks. Then, for a moment we enter the forest again, only to finally emerge from behind the trees in the Wieczorki district.

Bibliography

• Truś Radosław, Beskid Mały. Przewodnik, Oficyna Wydawnicza Rewasz, Pruszków 2023.