Cycling Poland: Poznan & Torun

This is the first part of a cycle tour around Eastern Poland and Lithuania that I rode in late July and early August 2024. Here are links to Part Two and Part Three. I flew from Alicante to Poznan with Ryanair and it was very straight forward bringing my bike in a cardboard box. The flight arrived on time in the early afternoon, leaving me plenty of time to assemble my bike and do a 40km ride exploring through some of the parks around Poznan.

Poznan is a small airport and it was easy to find a quiet spot outside to assemble my bike. There are cycle lanes running directly from the airport, so I followed these for a few kilometres, before heading north into Lumina Park.




This was a fantastic area for cycling, with several rolling gravel trails which which went through forest and passed by various lakes, beaches and sports facilities. I stopped for a brief lunch including a Kielbasa and a not so tasty alcohol-free IPA.

Back on the bike I looped around to Zlotniki on good trails and headed towards the Morasko Meteorite Park. This is a small forest which has several distinctive craters which are the result of meteor strikes 5000 years ago. The largest meteorite found here weighed 164kg, so you can imagine that it left quite a dent!



Leaving the park, I headed south following really nice dirt trails and gravel roads through the forest. I took a bad turn at some point and ended up on a very sandy and overgrown trail which I've marked on the map (25.5km) and is best to avoid.

From there it was mostly on paved cycle paths into the center of Poznan. Traffic was pretty light and drivers seemed to be very respectful of cyclists in the city, which was a promising sign!

Exploring Poznan

My initial idea for the tour was to fly into Gdansk and ride over to the Masuria region from there. However, I was put off by the fact I was going there in the height of summer and that it would probably be extremely crowded. I searched for other flights from Alicante or Valencia to central Poland and was left with a choice between Warsaw and Poznan.

I didn't really fancy riding out of Warsaw, so I settled on Poznan without knowing much about the city. When I first arrived in the old town, I was more than pleasantly surprised.

Poznan is not really a touristy place, but I found it to be extremely beautiful. The central square is the most picturesque part, but there are a lot of side streets and narrow alleways with charming buildings. The main attraction is the astronomical clock, from where the figures of two goats appear and butt heads at midday - the goats have become a symbol of Poznan with quite a long story behind them (look it up!).



Aside from the old town, I really enjoyed exploring Tumski Island (by foot). This was the original Poznan, which was first built in the 8th or 9th century. It became a bishopric in the 10th century, when the cathedral was first constructed, and played a significant role in Poland's history at this time.

It is believed that Poznan was at the center of the first dynasty to rule Poland (Piast), and its cathedral was probably where Duke Mieszko first converted to Christianity in 966.

Not too much remains from Medieval Poznan, but on Tumski Island you can see parts of the city wall, as well as the reconstructed cathedral. There is also an excellent small archaeological museum which I recommend visiting.

I really enjoyed it in Poznan, both cycling into the city through the parks and also exploring the historic center. It is not as spectacular as cities like Krakow or Prague, but it has a similar kind of feel and with far fewer tourists!

Torun

I only had two weeks to cycle through Poland and Lithuania before flying to Georgia, where I would ride my main tour of the summer. I had considered riding from Poznan to Bydgoszsz, but decided I would rather spend more time riding around the Masuria Lakes, and so headed straight to Torun.

It was a very long way to cycle all the way there from Poznan, so I took the train to Inowroclaw. This was pretty simply - I booked tickets through the Polish Railways website including reserving my bike. Poznan station was very busy when I arrived and the train was full (I think it had come from Wroclaw), including people sitting on the floor in the bike storage area. They kindly moved, allowing me to put the bike there, although the 2.6" tyres were too wide to fit in the hooks. There seemed to be a lot of people going on their holidays, so I don't know if the train is usually so crowded outside of rush hours.

In any case, I soon arrived in Inowroclaw and was able to quickly leave the city on quiet roads heading north.



The ride was pleasant rather than spectacular. The paved roads were in very good condition and I made fast progress before turning onto gravel roads through the forest.

This was a very nice section riding through pine trees and I saw a couple of local cyclists on gravel bikes. The trail got a bit sandy around Jarzebiec, but it was mostly flat and so it was enough to power over any rough sections.

The ride ended following a cycle lane alongside the 273 road, which continued on the bridge over the Vistula into Torun. There are some trails running alongside the river which I checked out, but they looked pretty rough and bumpy, especially for a bike without suspension.



When I arrived in Torun I was greeted with the spectacle of a professional bike race - a women's team trial was underway on the road alongside the river. I watched this for a bit before checking into Hotel Gromada in the center.

Torun's old town is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is a beautiful place with a lot to see. I spent the evening wandering around the streets and squares, where there seemed to be a spectacular church or stunning Hanseatic style house on nearly every corner. The defensive walls still line the city close to the river and are fun to explore, including seeing the famous leaning tower.

Torun was one of Poland's most important cities in the late Middle Ages, and it still has a lot of architecture from that period. It's known for being the home town of both the astonomer Nicholas Copernicus and also a delicious variety of gingerbread (pierniki)!



The following morning I visited Torun Castle, which dates from the 13th century, although was extensively rebuilt aroudn 60 years ago. It belonged to the Teutonic Knights, who were very active in the region at the time as they attempted to colonize and convert the remaining pagan areas of Europe (Old Prussia and Lithuania) during the Baltic Crusades.

The castle was supposedly the residence of a Teutonic commander and was well fortified - although not enough to withstand a rebellion by the residents of Torun against the knights in the mid 15th century. Inside the castle there are several exhibitions and rooms, including the dungeons, and there is plenty to explore outside.

After looking around the castle, I had to check out and head to the train station to continue with my trip. I only stayed one night in Torun, but with hindsight I would have liked to have spent longer here to visit more of the museums and soak up the atmosphere in the main square.



My plan was still to get to the Masuria Lakes in short order, so I took the train from Torun to Ostroda. This was much less busy than the train into Torun and I could hang my bike up and sit down with no problem.

Ostroda is the entrance to the Masuria region, that would form the bulk of my riding in Poland. Find out how it went in Part 2...


Part 2 - Masovia Lakes


Part 3 - Kaunas & Vilnius


Poland & Lithuania Tour Overview


Cycle Touring Guides