Segiet Nature Reserve and Srebrna Góra

In Poland, there are just 16 facilities entered in the UNESCO World Heritage List, the ones particularly worthy of conservation as the heritage of humanity. One of them is situated in Bytom and Tarnowskie Góry.
The Lead, Silver and Zinc Ore Mine in Tarnowskie Góry is a facility comprising the whole underground mine, including adits, shafts, galleries and underground water management systems. There is a preserved 19th-century steam pumping station on the ground, being a testament to the continuous work related to removing water from the mine for over 300 years. Thanks to a dedicated system, any superfluous water was used to provide potable and industrial water to the city. The entry of the facility in Tarnowskie Góry in the UNESCO list has also some Bytom touch, as it comprises the post-mining landscape of Srebrna Góra and Segiet Nature Reserve.
The part of the UNESCO facility in Bytom can be best visited on foot or by bike. When visiting Segiet, you can follow the educational path called “Segiecki Forest”. It runs e.g. along the stream valley, at the picturesque forest ponds and via the vantage point above “Blachówka” quarry.
The Segiet nature reserve was created in 1953 to preserve a part of the natural beech forest of a former Segiecki Forest. The rockbed of this area is made from Trias shell-bearing limestone (i.e. “Muschelkalk”) as well as marls and ore-bearing dolomites. The reserve flora is composed of 15 tree species, 9 shrub species and 103 species of herbaceous plants. It is covered by an almost uniform beech forest, with some addition of sycamores, spruces, pines and birches.