Olsztyn by bike?

In 2019, we organizeda competition for students to create city cycling guides . We received more than a dozen entries, offering interesting descriptions of infrastructure, suggested tours, and other attractions for those who would like to explore these cities by bike. It's probably difficult to draw far-reaching conclusions from this, but all submitted text proposals concerned cities, more or less located in the western part of the country. No one considered Olsztyn, Białystok, Rzeszów, or Lublin. This may be a coincidence, as it's difficult to conclude that these cities have a less developed network of cycling routes than, for example, Szczecin, whose cycling description was included in the aforementioned competition.

In Allenstein/Olsztyn

In any case, Olsztyn is a wonderful city for cycling. As elsewhere in Poland, one might object that the bike paths and routes don't constitute a complete and coherent network connecting all parts of the city. But there's probably no other place in Poland where you can reach a lake or a long hike in the forest from virtually anywhere in the city in just a few minutes. Furthermore, the city has consistently restricted car traffic in the city center for years, emphasizing public transport and building new bike paths at every opportunity. And only such an approach makes sense, as we've been writing about on our blog for a long time. The capital of the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship is one of the few cities where significant funds were invested in the ground-up construction of new tram lines. Interestingly, a tram was already running in Olsztyn before World War II. The last tram tracks were dismantled a few years after the war. When Olsztyn was called Allenstein and part of German East Prussia, it was a popular destination for excursions, including bicycle trips. From the perspective of Germany at the time, this entire area was considered less affluent and less economically developed. But this also meant that it offered excellent conditions for recreation. In Olsztyn itself, spa guests, or simply vacationers, had access to excursion houses, health resorts, countless inns, and pavilions. These were scattered throughout the even more numerous city parks and surrounding forests. Where possible, they had views or were right by the lakes. After years of neglect, the city's recreational side is gradually gaining in appeal. It's worth mentioning the investments around Lake Krzywe (or, as the locals still call it, "Ukiel"). Besides the practically newly built municipal beach, there are sports equipment rental shops, a marina, restaurant pavilions, and more. Cycling routes like the one along the lakeshore have a completely unique character. We start on asphalt and cobblestones, but after a few kilometers, the surface not only changes to dirt and forest floor, but also the elevation gain begins to resemble a mountainous area.

The Olsztyn area by bike

Thanks to years of effort by cycling enthusiasts, a route along the Łyna River was created last year. Originally, the name "Łynostrada" ("Łynostrada") was reserved for a short, urban section. Olsztyn could be easily explored by bike this way, traveling north-south. Currently, after expansion, the route connects Olsztyn with Dobre Miasto and then Lidzbark Warmiński. The entire route features specially constructed new cycle paths, but also utilizes existing road sections. The very beginning of this route in Olsztyn is interesting, as it leads through the city forest, a unique attraction in itself. There is probably no other resort in Poland with such a vast forest area within its administrative boundaries. A detailed map of the Łynostrada can be downloaded here.

Not only Olsztyn, Warmia and Mazury by bike.

Many associate Warmia and Mazury with lakeside recreation. But the region has undergone significant changes in cycling in recent years. The real revolution, in terms of scope, quality, and above all, length of the route, was the creation of the Green Velo . Of course, only part of this fantastic route runs through the Warmia-Masuria and Podlaskie Voivodeships. Another major undertaking is the Masurian Cycle Loop. This project was initiated by the Great Masurian Lakes Association . The project recently received PLN 47 million in funding from the European Union. The total cost will be approximately PLN 80 million, and implementation will continue until 2023, although many sections of the route are already open. Ultimately, we will cover a 300-kilometer cycle route (map below). Additionally, small cycle loops will be created around individual towns.