First published: 10/11/18.

Walter 1.0

Białowieża Forest

Białowieża Forest (Inscribed)

Białowieża Forest by Walter

Reading reviews about this site, I was not enclined to spend too much time trying to get to tick it.

I am not a big fan of animals in captivity. As I had a rental car on the Belarus side, my objective was (as Soligvant mentionned) to enter the UNESCO inscribed area and « experience » the forest. I tried to research the best way to visit the forest while skipping the touristic village (called « Father Frost Village ») or being driven around in a tractor for  a « photo-safari ».

Not much information is available on the internet, I just went with google map and try to find a route through the northern part of the inscribed area. It is 1 :30 hours south from the city of Hrodna

I first tried the north-south road parrallel to the Belarus-Polisg border, leaving from Nezbodichi village. Unfortenately, this road is closed by military police, being in a border area, and is checked. I was (very politely) turned down just after having passed a big roadsign welcoming me into the national park (but not in the inscribed area after the 2014 boudary modification).

Leaving the border area I took a road 3 km east, leaving from the village of  Grinki. Bad luck again. The road is blocked by a wooden fence just at the national park (and inscibed area) limit (see picture). The key to gate’s padlock is hidden in one of the stakes. Just after having been turned down by military police, I did not dare to drive through. Instead, I went into a one-hour hike in the forest. I was a very nice walk in the forest, along a very kind local dog.

I then drove along a main road (the P47) south of the village of Porazava. The road enters the forest afetr Novy Dvor for a few kilometers, and then crosses a natural bog area for a few kilometer. This forest and the bog area is part of the inscribed area after the 2014 boundary modification.

Visiting the northern part of the site was enough for me to fulffill my objectives and to tick an additional site, even if I had not seen any wild bisons. I spend maybe two hours altogether, and decided not to send more time, preferring to see some time on TL sites on the road back to Minsk.

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