Play a Game of Miners in Gelnica

Kaško climbed a sad willow tree, sat on a branch while swinging and thinking. He was also thinking about a ghost ice rink.
There are many lakes, ponds, and bodies of water of various sizes in the land of Haravara. And on one of them, on the Turzovské Jazero (Turzov Lake), near the town of Gelnica, there is a ghost hockey championship taking place every year. When the lake freezes over, it's the best ice rink in the world. 
There used to be an old castle right next to the lake. Now there are its ruins left there.
"We're going to Gelnica."
"Where?" the children didn't understand, "we thought you wanted to learn to skate!"

The whole story about how Kaško learned to skate on the Turzovské Jazero (Turzov Lake) can be found The story set in the Betliar Manor can be found HERE.

The landscape of Haravara is not only bountiful because of the wonderful sites you will discover in it, but It is also literally "bountiful"! In its underground, there were once precious metals that the ancient Haravarians were mining. This included copper, iron ore, and gold. Kaško remembers that period very well. Follow in his footsteps to the royal town of Gelnica and discover for yourself the precious mining history of the land of Haravara.

The trip in brief

Počas vášho výletu si môžete zvoliť viacero cieľov - či už to bude banícke múzeum v Gelnici, banícky chodník v Žakarovciach, banícky skanzen s Dedičnou štôlňou Jozef, staré Turzovské kúpele alebo kyslíkové chodníky... je už na vás. Na každom mieste však objavíte niečo spojené s baníctvom v Gelnici. Verili by ste, že gelnické klince a reťaze boli v minulosti známe v celom Uhorsku?

The Mining Open-air Museum in Gelnica (Jozef Adit, pochwerk, smelting furnace)

If you want to see for yourself how ore was being processed in the 17th century, you have a unique opportunity to do so in Gelnica. In the Open-air Museum of Mining, visit the Jozef Adit, see the pochwerk mining machine, the historic mining crushing machine pochwerk, powered by water from the nearby clear Turzovské Jazero (Turzov Lake), and the unique smelting furnace which was rebuilt after almost 300 years. This type of furnace has not been preserved anywhere else and has not yet been reconstructed in any form, so you have an opportunity you won't find anywhere else.

Turzovské Kúpele spa

Imagine the surface of the water as boats are wading across it, as concerts and the fabled Anna-balls are held on the shore in the spa, with a gypsy band playing. Imagine a place by the water where there is a bowling alley and tennis courts. And all this in the days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire! Turzovské Jazero (Turzov Lake) was one of the most visited among spa resorts. The entire monarchy knew the Turzovské kúpele spa. Both the nobility and the common people gathered there, even guests from Budapest travelled to the lake. The water from the lake was boiled with pine needles and used in the spa with medicinal resins for inhalation.

The mining instructional trail in Žakarovce 

Learn about the hard craft of the miners, whose workplace was in the underground full of rich metals. You can find out more about mining activities on the instructional trail, where several interactive stops await you and, at the end, a room of traditions and crafts. Forgotten crafts will be an experiential bonus of this trip filled with new knowledge.

How to get there? 

The picturesque foothill Turzovské Jazero (Turzov Lake) lies in a beautiful natural environment, only about 3 km away from the district town of Gelnica. Several hiking trails of varying levels of difficulty and length lead to it. You can park your car in front of the former open-air school, walk right around the fence along a narrow path and head into the forest. Right at the turn-off to the Erihof guesthouse (by the Lower Lake), there is a remote exhibition of the Mining Open-air Museum in Gelnica and the Jozef Adit.

Who is the trip intended for?

  • All small admirers of underground treasures
  • For fans of mining history,
  • Curious admirers of mining technology

What will you learn during the trip?

  • How metals were processed in the past
  • What a pochwerk or smelting furnace are and how they worked
  • How they worked underground
  • What natural treasures and other mysterious worlds are hidden underground, how they were created, who discovered them and why they are important

More information

Catering options on the trip

  • Reštaurácia Tatran, Hlavná 336, 056 01 Gelnica
  • Emporio casino pizza pub, Záhradná 2, 056 01 Gelnica
  • Morning Smile CAFE, Hlavna 29 Drevená Teraska, Gelnica 05601

Accommodation options in the neighbourhood

  • Penzión pod hradom Gelnica, Banícke námestie 43, 056 01 Gelnica - 0903 646 046
  • Zlatý Orol Reštaurácia & penzión, Helcmanovce 151 05563, 055 63 Helcmanovce - 053/381 06 64
  • Penzión Erihof , Thurzovská 1822, 056 01 Gelnica - 053/482 21 38

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