Short characteristics

With 102km, it is one of the longest marked loops in Lower Silesia. There also is nearly 1800m of elevation gain and mainly off-road tracks. This route is excellent, with a beautiful smooth ride and it is well marked. You can enjoy impressive views in all directions and a variability of the surface, although it is mostly unpaved dirt roads. The route has almost no weak points, however I will mention a few later. I would like to say it is a must! The natural starting point for most cyclists, both those arriving by train and by car, is Janowice Wielkie.

Ring road step by step

Fortunately, you do not have to ride the full loop in one go. There are well connected trains and 4 train stations located exactly on the loop. For the drivers it would be best to get to the selected railway station at the time of departure of the train. Go to the next station and then return to the car by bike. The easiest way is to divide the route into two sections. For example, it could look like this: 8:20am you start from Janowice Wielkie by KD (Lower Silesian Railways) train to Piechowice where you begin your ride at 8:52am and you can take the sections of the loop in both directions (61 or 42 km). If 61 km is still too much, starting from Janowice at 9:16am, you will be at 10:02am in Stara Kamienica, from where there is only 41km section to Janowice. So you can also divide this route into three parts.

Jelenia Gora Valley and the Ring Road

The valley is a vast mid-mountain depression measuring over 270 km2, closed from the north by the Kaczawa Mountains, from the south by the Karkonosze Mountains, from the west by the Izera Mountains (and the Izera Foothills) and from the east by the Rudawy Janowickie Mountains. The ring road practically runs along the outline of this mesoregion. I decided to divide the description of the route into four parts according to the mountains mentioned above.

Janowice Wielkie – Wrzeszczyn Lake

This section runs along the Kaczawa Mountains. Paradoxically, there definitely is the best view over the Rudawy Janowickie (at the beginning) and the Karkonosze Mountains. You mostly ride on asphalt roads, although there is a longish field stretch from Janowice, and there are a lot of uphill and downhill sections. In Maciejowa you pass a charming complex of ponds and you finish this part of the loop with a descent to the Bobr River Valley, and more specifically to the Wrzeszczyn Lake, where you reach the lowest ordinate of the trip (about 290m a.s.l.). There you can already see the Foothills (Podgorze) and the Jizera Mountains, which is the next stage.

Wrzeszczyn Lake – Piechowice Gorne

You ride along the Izera Foothills and the Izera Mountains catching up with the height. You start the whole ride at the aforementioned 290m a.s.l. and you have to climb to 740m a.s.l. The road is asphalt, the views to the right are very pleasant. In the vicinity of the Kopan mountain, at the end of the uphill stretch, you enter the forest gravel and the routes of the ‘Bicycle Land’- an extensive MTB system going more or less around Szklarska Poreba. The descent is rather light, especially on a suspension bike. When entering Piechowice, you are at the elevation of 400m a.s.l. and that is where you start the ‘Karkonosze’ section.

Piechowice Gorne – Kowary

You ride there at the foot of the Karkonosze Mountains. The beginning, for me, is that tiny drop of tar in the honey tank as you can lose your bearings cycling around Piechowice. You can sweeten it by visiting the Pakosz Palace. Further on, as you have passed Sobieszow, there is a busy, and therefore less pleasant, section of about 3 km. Then route gains momentum and rhythm again. The views of Sosnowka, the ponds in Glebock and the beautiful panorama of the Sniezka Mountain together with the Kowary Ridge immediately raise the level of endorphins. The route bypasses Kowary and there are more climbs waiting for you, e.g. the last section.

Kowary – Janowice Wielkie

There you ride along the edges of the Rudawy Janowickie Mountains entirely on moderate-traffic asphalt roads. The first stretch is uphill to the Bukowa Mountain with beautiful views of the Sniezka and the Karkonosze Mountains. This section is 6 km long with about 200m of vertical. After that, you mostly go downhill. There are no extensive panoramas as this stretch of the route runs in forests but the ride is very pleasant and smooth.