The southeast of Białowieża Forest is a remote and wild place. With no public roads and sparse tourist infrastructure, you can easily go a whole day without seeing another person.

Large parts of southern Białowieża Forest have escaped the forester’s axe, meaning the forest in the south is, for the most part, remarkably well-preserved. To get to the interesting parts, you’ll need to cycle south-westwards from Białowieża Village.

You’ll have to put up with drab plantation forests for the first half hour or so, but I assure you, it’s well worth it. The forest becomes more natural the further south you go. Soon after you turn off Jagielloński Tryb, the main east-west track in this part of the forest, the forest begins to resemble the national park’s strict reserve — ancient, mossy, and prehistoric.

Mode of transport

I recommend cycling. There are no roads open to cars down here and walking won’t get you far, as the distances are too large.

How to get here

For any trip into the southern parts of the forest, you’ll want to cycle out of the village along Jagielloński Tryb. If you have a car to transport your bikes, you can park at ‘Miejsce Mocy’ and cycle southwards from there.

Trips

There are a couple of marked trails and lots of assorted forest tracks to choose from. Based on my personal experience, I recommend two alternative trips — a trip following the marked yellow cycle trail between Białowieża and Topiło, and another that explores unmarked forest tracks through some of the most scenic nature reserves.

Pay attention to the names of the tracks (tryb in Polish). They can be identified by their names (e.g. Tryb Bagienny) and can be easily found on any decent tourist map. As with other parts of Białowieża Forest, stick to the nature reserves if you want to see primeval forest.

1) Nature reserves on the Belarusian border — three variants

Difficulty: Medium. Terrain is flat but tracks can be muddy, sandy and hard work at times — the 3 km stretch through Kozłowa Tropina, while spectacular, is particularly badly maintained.

This route has a few variants that can be shortened depending on the length of trip you want to do. All are similar in that you will see the entire variety of different forest types that Białowieża forest has to offer.

Bear in mind, the further south you go, the wilder it gets. So once you get halfway to the Belarusian border, it might be worth continuing southwards to see the natural forest in all its splendour. I highly recommend the Kozłowa Tropina track — a 3 km stretch through the heart of a nature reserve.

1a: Olemburski Circuit

Time	Distance	Mode	Difficulty
3–4 h	20 km	Cycle	Easy

Tracks: Jagielloński, Pacowski, Olemburski, then return via Sinnicka droga.

This is the shortest route option — it may suit you if you only have a morning or afternoon to spare. Travelling southwards along Pacowski Tryb will gradually take you out of plantations into primeval forest. It’s downhill, and as you travel southwards, the forest on either side of the track will get wetter. The old-growth deciduous forest will gradually morph into a sodden alder bog forest.

Look out for the prehistoric-looking horsetails that grow here in spring. Turn right onto Olemburski Tryb, where you’ll emerge into one of my favourite alderwoods. On the left is a classic alderwood, the likes of which are rare in western Europe. On the right is a transformed habitat — once a drying alderwood, it’s now a wide-open landscape covered in dead standing trees, myriad colourful flowers, and various water-loving species. I’ve spotted the black stork feeding here several times.

Continue along Olemburski and you’ll gradually return to the oak-lime-hornbeam deciduous forest typical of Białowieża Forest. To return home, take a right at the crossroads with Kozłowy tryb, which will take you onto Sinnicka droga. Carry on straight up this road until you get to the main tarmac road, then turn right towards the village.

1b: Kozłowa Tropina Circuit

Time	Distance	Mode	Difficulty
3–4 h	22 km	Cycle	Medium

Tracks: Jagielloński, Pacowski, Kozłowa Tropina, then return via Kozłowy and Sinnicka tracks.

For the most part, this route is the same as the previous, except it adds the short spur of Kozłowa Tropina. At the end of Pacowski tryb, continue straight into Kozłowa Tropina for a trip through one of Białowieża Forest’s finest sights.

It’s a bumpy, hard ride for 3 km, but it’s well worth it. Be sure to stop on the bridge over the Podcerkówka — it’s another semi-human made wetland, created some 15 years ago. At the end of Kozłowa Tropina, turn right onto Kozłowy Tryb, which will take you to Sinnicka droga and home again.

1c: Kurdzimowski Circuit

Time	Distance	Mode	Difficulty
5–6 h	30 km	Cycle	Medium/Hard

Tracks: Jagielloński, Pacowski, Kozłowa Tropina, then south onto Kozłowy tryb, right along Kurdzimowski Tryb, and back via Sinnicka droga.

This whole-day option will take you through the full gamut of south Białowieża Forest’s wild nature reserves. It also gives you the option of going off-piste into the Kozłowe Borki or Przewłoka nature reserves.

In addition to exploring Kozłowa Tropina, you’ll travel along Kurdzimowski tryb — another wonderful and remote track with several side-tracks into ever-remoter forests. Bear in mind that the track surface becomes hard work south of Olemburski. The way home, along Sinnicka Droga, is an easy one along possibly the best-surfaced forest track there is.

2. Topiło

Time	Distance	Mode	Difficulty
5–6 h	40 km	Cycle	Medium

Tracks: Highway, Sinnicka droga, Olemburski track.

Another nice day trip — heading south-west through the forest to the hamlet of Topiło. The tracks are wide, flat and well-surfaced for the whole length of the trip.

You’ll cycle through a variety of different landscapes: dull managed monocultures, dark and murky deciduous forests, the ancient primeval swamps of Berezowo, and then the wild Leśna river valley — the only un-canalised river in Białowieża Forest.

A couple of kilometres after the river, you’ll be rewarded with the only open water body in the forest — Topiło lake. The lake is man-made, created by the damming of the Perebel river, originally to store wood that would be floated on the surface prior to being transported down the river. The only downside is that you have to return to Białowieża on the same route as on which you arrived.

Forest tracks

For those who want to design their own route, here are the key forest tracks in this part of the forest.

Jagielloński Tryb — The main track spanning east-west in the north of this part of the forest. If you’re heading southwards, you’ll definitely cycle this track. It’s very easily cyclable, but not a beautiful area — the forest has been heavily transformed on either side. After WW2, vast spruce monocultures were planted here on completely the wrong type of habitat. Much is consequently now dead or dying. Nature rating: 1.

Sinnicka droga — One of the main southbound tracks, linking up all the other tracks. It was once one of the main arteries through the forest. It’s still a wide and well-surfaced track, which makes for easy cycling. The forest on either side is far from pristine, but not too bad either. Nature rating: 2–3.

Bagienny Tryb — Goes south from Jagielloński Tryb. Not so interesting at the beginning, but as the track goes downhill, it emerges into wonderful primeval bog forests. The final kilometre goes through some of the finest alderwoods I’ve ever seen — horsetails, mosses, and ferns create a wonderful ancient atmosphere. Be aware that after heavy rains the track surface deteriorates considerably. Nature rating: 3.

Pacowski Tryb — Also goes south from Jagielloński Tryb, with a bit more variety of forest types than Bagienny Tryb. It begins with a pine and spruce plantation, emerges into well-preserved natural bog forest, and interchanges between old-growth deciduous and bog forests. It ends at the crossroads with Olemburski Tryb and Kozłowa Tropina. Nature rating: 3.

Olemburski Tryb — The main east-west track spanning the middle-south of Białowieża Forest. It has wonderful swamps on either side for most of its length. The beginning has classical bog forests, but the landscape on the right gradually opens up into a flooded landscape carpeted with flowers and horsetails, providing wonderful views into the local bird life. The swamps reach their pinnacle of wildness around the Berezowo nature reserve. Nature rating: 4.

Kozłowa Tropina — Leads on from the end of Pacowski Tryb. One of the most amazing, wild roads in the forest, showcasing all that Białowieża is about. The road meanders along the border, interchanging between natural forest and plantations until it reaches a most wonderful bog — a uniquely stunning open green landscape. It’s hard to cycle, but it’s only 3 km long, so worth the short journey. Nature rating: 5.

Kozłowy Tryb — A short north-south track linking Sinnicka droga, Olemburski Tryb, Kozłowa Tropina and Kurdzimowski Tryb. Not interesting in itself, but it connects all the most interesting parts of south Białowieża Forest. Nature rating: 2.

Kurdzimowski Tryb — Spans the south part of the area east-west. West of the junction with Kozłowy tryb is cyclable and spectacular. The eastern end is wild and little explored — a dead-end route ending on the Belarusian border, with wonderful spruce forests growing next to ancient bog forests. There are also 3 side roads worth exploring southwards into the heart of the Lasy Naturalne and Kozłowe borki nature reserves. Nature rating: 3.

Zwierzyniecki Tryb (not recommended) — The main north-south track in the centre of the forest. The forest on either side has been transformed into plantations, except for a couple of kilometres around the crossroads with Olemburski Tryb. I wouldn’t bother with this track if you can help it. Nature rating: 1.

The wild southeast is one of the least-visited corners of Białowieża, and one of the most rewarding. We explore areas like this on our 5-day old-growth seminar, away from the tourist trails and into the real forest.