Rediscovering geoheritage, reinventing geotourism: 200 years of experience from the Sudetes, Central Europe

Abstract

The Sudetes is a mountain range in Central Europe and an area of remarkable geodiversity. In recent years, the area has been promoted as a geotourist destination and various initiatives aimed at better understanding geoheritage have been implemented. An interest in scenic landscapes is not new however, and dates back to the end of the eighteenth century. Two areas within the Sudetes are cradles of local nature-based tourism. These are the granite massif of the Karkonosze in the west and the sandstone stepped plateau of Broumov Highland and Stołowe Mountains in the central part of the Sudetes. In both, physical access to the key geosites was provided as early as in the nineteenth century, while an interpretation component was added in the early twentieth century. A side-effect of political change following the end of World War II was the neglect and dilapidation of many sites, as well as the disappearance of geoheritage appreciation from the collective social memory. In the last decade many of those early achievements were rediscovered and provided the foundations for contemporary activities. An educational component based on modern science is now included in the features which were discovered as tourist attractions long ago.

Three centuries (1670–1970) of appreciating physical landscapes

“…Primary geosites have geological and/or geomorphological features, either natural or artificial and generally permanently exposed, within a delimited area and of some significance for their scientific, educational or interpretative value; they range from quarries and natural cliffs to mines and caves (Cope 2014) requiring husbandry rather than strict preservation, for much of their value lies in the access they provide to in situ rocks and their fossils and minerals. They can be refined on the nature of the localities at which geotouristic activities are focussed; for example coastal (van den Ancker & Jungerius, this volume, in press), mountainous/alpine (Cayla et al 2015;Gordon & Baker 2015;Migoń 2014;Whalley & Parkinson, this volume, in press), volcanic (Hose 2010a;Pullin 2014) and mining localities (Bristow 2015), and waterfalls (Hudson 2015). Tourists visiting waterfalls have a long history, and in the eighteenth century they were briefly termed 'cataractists', perhaps an interesting descriptor worth resurrecting.…”

The untapped potential of scenic routes for geotourism: case studies of Lasocki Grzbiet and Pasmo Lesistej (Western and Central Sudeten Mountains, SW Poland)

“…In this context, it is regrettable that the idea behind the development of certified scenic routes in Polish tourism (not necessarily in a geotourism context) has not gone beyond academic consideration and that is, unfortunately, mostly quite old (the 11 th volume of the academic journal 'Problems of Mountain Land Development', Problemy Zagospodarowania Ziem Górskich, published in 1973 by the Polish Academy of Sciences, was almost entirely devoted to the topic). The use of landscape for the explaining of geological/geomorphological processes is currently implemented only in some parts of the Sudeten Mountains, the most attractive geotouristically, but also the most frequented by tourists (Giant and Stołowe Mountains; Migoń 2016;Migoń and Knapik 2013;Pijet-Migoń and Migoń 2019;Wojewoda 2011) where there is not necessarily a need to create new tourist routes (see: Kołodziejczyk 2019Kołodziejczyk , 2020b. On the other hand, the remaining parts of the Sudeten Mountains are almost undeveloped in this respect, including areas analyzed in this paper.…”

The potential of the Sudetes Mountains for the Development of Geotouristic products.

“…In recent years, the area has been promoted as a geotouristic destination. Various initiatives were aimed at better understanding of its geoheritage (Migoń, 2014a). All Sudetes Mts.…”

“…cross-border regions have the possibilities for geotouristic development, but two areas are cradles of local nature-based tourism. These are the granite massif of the Karkonosze Mts., in the west, and the sandstone stepped plateau of Broumov Highland and Stołowe Mountains, in the central part of the Sudetes (Migoń, 2014a). After initial review, two types of regions with the potential touristic development can be distinguished:…”