Easy hikes and walks around gmina Kęty

The Kozy Quarry is a picturesque place at the foot of the Beskid Mały Mountains, which delights with its steep, rocky walls and interesting history. Sandstone was once mined here, and today it is a popular viewpoint, from where there is a panorama of the Oświęcim Basin and Bielsko-Biała. It is also a great place for a short trip, accessible both on foot and by bike. Due to the steep cliffs, it is worth being careful, especially with children. The quarry is also popular with climbers and photography enthusiasts.

Beautiful views of the surrounding towns, and in good conditions also of Upper Silesia (visible heaps) and part of Lesser Poland. The viewpoint is accessible for strollers and people in wheelchairs. One kilometer from the parking lot on gravel roads

A nice place for a short walk with views. A new large parking lot in front of the facility. Throughout, wide and comfortable gravel slopes increase accessibility for both strollers and wheelchairs. Viewing platforms provide beautiful views - in good conditions even of Silesia and Lesser Poland. There are several designated places to light a bonfire with a fireplace and benches. In good conditions it can be crowded.

In the middle of the forest there is a small water reservoir called by the inhabitants Wilczy Staw. It is believed that this is not a natural reservoir but rather a human creation. It is not known when exactly it was created. It probably served as a place for breeding trout. trout farm, and used by the manor farm. Currently, in its immediate vicinity there is a second, slightly larger pond, which serves as a retention pond.

The quarry was built in the years 1910 to 1912 by the then landowner of the Koza estate, Marian Czecz, and was the property of the manor. The stone was used for railway and road construction purposes. In the interwar period, 280 people were employed in the quarry. The plant had a 2,510 m long cable car running all the way to the railway station in Kozy, where there was a loading bay, sorting room and storage silos. Around 1921, the quarry was sold and passed into the hands of various owners. In 1994 it was liquidated. Due to reaching the boundaries of the property and the significant costs of obtaining sandstone, mining was stopped and then liquidated in 1994. https://youtu.be/49KA5aeDm34?si=Qo-t001bgdUXhP7W A 180° panorama towards the north is visible from the quarry. In the foreground, in all its glory, is the Kozy Commune. Further in the landscape there is the Oświęcim Valley with the Vistula valley and Lake Goczalkowickie, and on the horizon the Silesian Upland with the highest point, Mount Saint Anna (100 km away). The furthest to the east there are facilities located in Krakow (Camaldolese Monastery in Bielany - 55 km away). In the foreground towards the west is the city of Bielsko-Biała, further on you can see the areas of the Cieszyn Foothills, up to the Czech mountains - Jeseniks on the horizon (150 km distance).

Kozy, the largest village in Poland, located on the Bielsko-Biała - Kraków route, according to local legend, it was created from two neighboring settlements. At the foot of the Hrobacza Łąka peak in the Little Beskids, herds of sheep and goats were traditionally grazed. During the Tatar invasion, all of them were killed, except for two that fled to a nearby forest. Thanks to this event, the place was called Kozami, and the heroines found their place in the town's coat of arms. This settlement, as a noble village, was in the hands of contemporary noble families - at the beginning of the 15th century Korbiczów, later Gierałtowski, of which Jakub, a judge of the Zator and Oświęcim principalities, in 1559, on the basis of the Reformation movements, led the village to convert the Catholic Church into Calvinist congregation, agitating the inhabitants to convert to a new faith. At that time, faithful Catholics were reliant on the ministry performed by priests from neighboring churches. In 1636, the Gierałtowscy were heirs on the estate in Kozy Dolne, and the Russocki family in Kozy Górne. In 1658, the existing wooden church was reconciled, restoring its sacred, Catholic character and it was handed over to the neighboring settlements. His polychrome, painted with tempera on wood, has survived to this day. It is located in the National Museum in Krakow, and the door from the bell tower and the stone stoup in the Historical Chamber in Kozy. In the middle of the 17th century the village was bought by the Rej from Nagłowice and it cannot be ruled out that the bard, Mikołaj himself, walked in the Kozienice region. The next 18th century was the time of the wealthy Jordan family from Kraków, then the Czecz de Lindewald baroness. The neighboring manor house was inhabited by Wilhelmina Augusta von Kluck and Hermann Artur Czecz de Lindewald, Austrian baron, son of Przemyśl starost, PhD in agricultural sciences, with two children, Hermann and Karol. During their time, the town started to organize itself, small industries and crafts emerged. Goats were famous in the area for their textile workshops and excellent bricklayers, becoming one of the richer villages in the area. The construction of a brick church was started according to the design of the Viennese Karol Steihofer, the author of the temple of St. Margaret in Bielsko-Biała. Within two years, a neo-gothic building was erected, which was given to parishioners. Equipped for several years, consecrated in 1924, it was called by Saints Simon and Jude Tadeusz. The temple, developing through new pastoral centers, continues to serve the parishioners of Goats. An interesting fact is that in 1950-56 the vicar here was the future metropolitan of Krakow, Franciszek Macharski. http://www.polskaniezwykla.pl/web/place/25693,kozy-kosciol-pw--swietych-szymona-i-judy-tadeusza-.html

It is not fully known why such a name or when it was created. There are beautiful, tall Douglas fir trees probably planted by foresters employed by former owners of Goats. Recently, a second pond has been built nearby - an overflow storage reservoir. https://www.kozy.pl/wilczy-staw-w-kozach-i-i-jego-okolicamiejsceniezwykle/site/88.html https://www.facebook.com/178426498978272/posts/1868144370006468/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g9XfRt3LbQg

The quarry is located at an altitude of 600 m above sea level in Kozy Górne, on the northern slope of Hrobacza Łąka (828 m above sea level) in the Beskid Mały Mountains, within the boundaries of the Beskid Mały Landscape Park, and also on the border of the Natura 2000 Beskid Mały area. It was established in the years 1910-1912, when aggregate production for rail and road transport began in the amount of about 100 thousand tons/year. The quarry was decommissioned in the 1990s. https://slaskie.travel/nature/1019397/1111111111111111118 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GB5wHMrD-A