Ojców Castle

The Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, also known as the Polish Jurassic Highland or Polish Jura (Polish: Jura Krakowsko-Częstochowska), is part of the Jurassic System of south–central Poland, stretching between the cities of Kraków, Częstochowa and Wieluń. The Polish Jura borders the Lesser Polish Upland to the north and east, the foothills of the Western Carpathians to the south and Silesian Upland to the west. The Polish Jura consists of a hilly landscape with Jurassic limestone rocks, cliffs, valleys and vast limestone formations, featuring some 220 caves. The relief of the upland developed since the Paleogene, under climatic conditions changing considerably. Its main component is a peneplain, crowned by monadnocks, rocky masses that resisted erosion, generated as hard rock on Late Jurassic buildup surrounded by less resistant bedded limestone of the same age. The Polish Jura is visited by roughly 400,000 visitors a year. Part of it belongs to the Ojców National Park, the smallest of Poland's twenty national parks, ranking among the most attractive recreational areas of the country.

Ojców National Park (Polish: Ojcowski Park Narodowy) is a national park in Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship in southern Poland, established in 1956. It takes its name from the village of Ojców, where it also has its headquarters. Chopin visited Ojców in 1829. It is Poland's smallest national park, with an original area of 14.40 square kilometers (5.56 sq mi), since expanded to 21.46 km2 (8.29 sq mi). Of this area, 15.28 km2 (5.90 sq mi) is forested and 2.51 km2 (0.97 sq mi) is strictly protected. The park lies 16 kilometers (10 mi) north of Kraków, in the Jurassic Kraków-Częstochowa Upland.

Ojców [ˈɔi̯t͡suf] is a village in Gmina Skała, in Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It is one of the sights of the Eagle Nests Trail (Szlak Orlich Gniazd), as there are the ruins of a gothic castle near the village. The village is where the authorities of the Ojców National Park (the smallest of Poland's 23 national parks) have their headquarters. It lies approximately 4 kilometres (2 mi) south-west of Skała and 18 km (11 mi) north-west of the regional capital Kraków.

Sąspówka is a river of Poland, a tributary of the Prądnik at Ojców.

Kraków Gate (Polish: Brama Krakowska) is one of the few rock gates in Ojców National Park. It is in the Valley of the Pradnik and closes the outlet of the Cracow Gorge Gateway to the valley. It is a classic example of the gates of rock. The name derives from the fact that once led the way trade route from Kraków to Silesia. In 1928, it was laid on the memorial plaque on the occasion of the construction of a new road from Krakow to Ojcow, running the bottom of the Pradnik Valley, but because of the protests of environmentalists, array removed in 1935.

Smardzowice [smard͡zɔˈvit͡sɛ] is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Skała, within Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately 4 kilometres (2 mi) south of Skała and 17 km (11 mi) north of the regional capital Kraków.

Wola Kalinowska [ˈvɔla kaliˈnɔfska] is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Sułoszowa, within Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately 10 kilometres (6 mi) south-east of Sułoszowa and 21 km (13 mi) north-west of the regional capital Kraków.

Czajowice [t͡ʂajɔˈvit͡sɛ] is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Wielka Wieś, within Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. It lies approximately 19 km (12 mi) north-west of the regional capital Kraków.

Tunel Wielki (literally "Big Tunnel") is a cave in Ojców National Park, Poland. It is an archaeological site, located in the karst area of Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, about 20 km north of Kraków.The 1967–1968 excavations identified 15 layers in 4.5-metre-deep (15 ft) sediments in five distinct series coming from early Würm stage and early prehistorical cultures—Lengyel culture, Corded Ware culture, Funnelbeaker culture, Lusatian culture—as well as from the Middle Ages to 19th century.In 2016 excavations were repeated to verify and confirm the previous finds and conclusions.Initially it was concluded that the oldest human presence in the cave dates back about 40,000 years. However more recent inspections of the finds dated the oldest tools to about 450,000–550,000 BP, suggesting Homo heidelbergensis as tool owners, which would indicate the oldest human species found in Poland.

Sobiesęki [sɔbjɛˈsɛŋki] is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Skała, within Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland.

Skała [ˈskawa] is a town in southern Poland, situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship (since 1999), previously in Kraków Voivodeship (1975–1998). On December 31, 2010, its population was 3,646. Skala is one of the oldest towns in Lesser Poland. In the early 13th century, it was a defensive gord, known as Scala and Magna Schala. Its name (the Polish word skała means rock in English) probably comes from a rocky hill above the Pradnik river valley.

Gmina Skała is an urban-rural gmina (administrative district) in Kraków County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship, in southern Poland. Its seat is the town of Skała, which lies approximately 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of the regional capital Kraków. The gmina covers an area of 74.3 square kilometres (28.7 sq mi), and as of 2006 its total population is 9,635 (out of which the population of Skała amounts to 3,693, and the population of the rural part of the gmina is 5,942). The gmina contains part of the protected area called Dłubnia Landscape Park.