2025 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos

[Chargeride]

Be careful

11 Former Russian Forts of Warsaw

I decided to do a thematic trip on last Sunday.

Historical note (necessary!)
Russian Empire had ruled a third of Poland for 123 years since 1795. Having already built the Warsaw Citadel to control those Polish rebels the Russian decided to give us as many as 28 new forts in Warsaw. The construction was completed by 1890. However, the Tsarist military realized by 1909 the fortified defence was an obsolete warfare doctrine, and maintaining the fortresses cost the Empire a fortune. Starting 1909, the Russian Army managed to demolish all the forts on the right bank of the Vistula, and they even partly damaged the other strongholds. In 1913, the Russian went in panic mode: as the next war was near, they started reinforcing the remaining structures with concrete but it was too late. In 1915, the Russian Army left Warsaw without any combat (leaving the city to Prussian forces).

I counted 16 locations of possibly remaining Russian Warsaw forts so set off for the trip late on Sunday (because the morning was very cold!)

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I need to show you the ride map first. There were two rings of defence: outer (where the forts were numbered) and the inner (where the forts were named by letters).

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The two first forts (V and VI) were located not far away from the train station. There is an air crash memorial in Fort VI "Okęcie". On March 14th 1980, a Soviet made IL-62 of LOT Polish Airlines (that departed from NYC earlier) was approaching for landing at the Warsaw Okęcie Airport (now: Chopin). Suddenly, some engines exploded and detached from the aircraft. Cpt. Paweł Lipowczan realised he wouldn't make it to the nearby airport, and his only choice was where to crash the plane. He saved lives of many people as he flew above a Correction Home and intentionally crashed the airplane into the Fort with no survivors. He is remembered as a hero.

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Fort VII is located on the opposite side of the airport. Good weather allowed me taking this picturesque photo

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Fort VIII has completely gentrified!

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Fort IX was a surprise for me as it was turned into a part of the Polish Military Museum! I had to buy a ticket in a vending machine, and was disallowed to ride my bike by a guard! (Thursdays are free!)
Fort IX is one of the few that ever saw action: It was heroically defended by Poles against the Nazi in September 1939 and in August 1944.

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Top: IS-3 and IS-2 (Iosif Stalin) Soviet heavy tanks.
Centre: Soviet assault guns (tank destroyers): ISU-122 and SU-85.
Bottom: Have look at the next picture!

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American friends: This is your M107, a 175 mm self-propelled howitzer from 1960s!

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Polish Air Force section.
Top: Antonov AN-2, a Soviet airplane that is claimed to be produced in the biggest number worldwide.
Centre: A battery of Soviet SAMs.
Bottom: MiG-23.

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Polish designed and made TS-8 Bies, a trainer aircraft.

All the weapon must have been used by the Polish military at some time in history, perhaps except for the M107

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Not Fort X but Battery X, as the fortification near to the Vistula had only been groundworks. Siekierkowski Bridge is seen in the background.

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As I was riding my Vado at a good speed on a bike path, I was stopped by a cyclist who rode from the opposite direction, who said these mysterious words to me: 'I DON'T THINK SO...' We saw a family of wild boar feeding by the pavement/sidewalk! Boars are now a plague for Warsaw. The picture was taken in the neighbourhood of Czerniaków, which for historical reason is a wilderness inside the city! We heard of boar attacks on the pedestrian. The beasts are not allowed to be killed so they are transported deep into the forest after each incident.

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Now, I was riding along the inner ring of defences. Here, the fort Ч (Russian letter "che"), which underwent gentrification, too.

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Similarly gentrified Fort M.

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Nothing except for groundworks remained from the Fort Щ-М (shcha-em) in Rakowiec.

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Fort Щ (shcha) in Szczęśliwice was sold into private hands.

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Not much remained from Fort В-Щ (ve-shcha) either. Now, it is a part of the Polish Railways imperium A very climatic place with a great "urbex" feel!

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An unusual view on the City with the highest EU building Varso Tower.

The trip took twice much time as just riding, so I had to go home! I will visit the remaining 5 locations as well as the Citadel another time!

The full map of fortifications on Komoot. I didn't include non-existing locations at the very north of Warsaw (the ring touched the Vistula at the north of the city, too!)

That SAM missile bank looks like something out of a Marvel comic.
So you grew up under Soviet Russia, was it that bad comrade.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

I rode a little over 14 miles today. I stopped to take a picture of a skeleton on a tractor holding a beer can. I first started seeing these around here this last Halloween. This picture of one is roughly life sized but some are 10 or 12 feet tall. I figured people would take them down after Halloween but I figured wrong. People put t shirts on them, a Santa Claus hat and other holiday decorations on them and leave them up year round.
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Appropriate in a way: The guy who owned that tractor probably looks like that now.

I"ve seen a lot more full skeleton models in various roles in recent years. Maybe they’re cheap enough to have fun with now.

 

[JGcycle]

A couple of pics from today's 30km ride:

 

[Stefan Mikes]

That SAM missile bank looks like something out of a Marvel comic.

So you grew up under Soviet Russia, was it that bad comrade.

You even cannot imagine how bad! Given the Partitions of Poland, two big uprisings over 123 years, the Bolshevik-Poland's war of 1920, incorporating half of Poland in 1939, and 44 years of occupying Poland since 1945, you should not be surprised why Poland supports the fighting Ukraine so strongly, and why Poland is arming to the teeth now.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Chargeride you might be interested to learn our coming gravel race is located in the notorious Suwałki Gap

The arrows mark the beginning and the end of the Suwałki Gap.

 

[Chargeride]

You even cannot imagine how bad! Given the Partitions of Poland, two big uprisings over 123 years, the Bolshevik-Poland's war of 1920, incorporating half of Poland in 1939, and 44 years of occupying Poland since 1945, you should not be surprised why Poland supports the fighting Ukraine so strongly, and why Poland is arming to the teeth now.

I just had to check, I think this AI is Polish
AI Overview
No, Polish people are not Russian. Polish people are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation who share a common history, culture, and the Polish language, and are identified with the country of Poland. Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group and nation, and their cultural ancestry is based in Kievan Rus'. While both are Slavic, they are distinct ethnic groups and nations.

 

[Chargeride]

@Chargeride you might be interested to learn our coming gravel race is located in the notorious Suwałki Gap

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The arrows mark the beginning and the end of the Suwałki Gap.

You do have some interesting neighbours, looks like a splendid ride.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

looks like a splendid ride.

You cannot know all the regions of your pretty big country before you try. In my past history, I was in Suwałki (city) the farthest, and then we took the motorway to the flatland Lithuania. Only last year, I could discover the Sudovian Mountains and their deep clean lakes. I fell in love with the area!

Fancy you only climb and descend on your ride, and the hill grades are big. In the area of no technical high mountains, you get the elevation gain as big as ifyou were riding in high mountains!

Only... the weather forecast reads 'Cold and rainy'. Ouch.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

While both are Slavic, they are distinct ethnic groups and nations.

You wouldn't even believe how different Slavic nations are. There are many "translator false friends" between the Slavic languages, the most famous being the Polish "szukać" (look for) and the Czech meaning "to f*ck" Or, the Polish "zachód" (West or sunset) meaning "a toilet" in Czech.

This funny Czech song is totally based on "false friends". The title means "I'm looking for you, Milosz" in Polish but it means "I f*ck you, Milosz!" in Czech.
The best part of the lyrics is "We made love at the sunset (Polish)/in the toilet (Czech)"
Or, "I'd like to be your girlfriend (Czech)/whore (Polish)"

Most Poles don't grab the joke I do.

 

[Chargeride]

So the national sport of Lithuania is Basketball and they have many types of potatoes.

Belarus is also famous for potatoes and there are 45 potato dishes and it still has the death penalty by headshot , no warning is given to family and you are buried in secret .
I carried on reading but the history of Belarus is just unbeleviable, its like every disaster, gncide, revolution and communist plaything rolled into one.
You Eastern Europeans like a bit of argy bargy

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

There are many "translators false friends between the Slavic languages, the most famous being the Polish "szukać" (look for) and the Czech meaning "to f*ck" Or, the Polish "zachód" (West or sunset) meaning "a toilet" in Czech.

Conversations between Poles and Czechs must get interesting at times.

 

[Chargeride]

Anyway, we digress.
Extending the video height makes for an unreal perspective.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Conversations between Poles and Czechs must get interesting at times.

We usually speak in English, making the life easier Poles speak with Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians exclusively in English (Baltic languages are not Slavic!)
Slovak is more mutually intelligible with Polish than Czech. Polish and Ukrainian are mutually intelligible; no issue to understand them (only the Ukrainians use the Ukrainian Cyrillic script in writing).

There is a big group of Lithuanian riders to start in Sudovia Gravel. They only communicate in English with us!

Antanas the Lithuanian considers starting in eSprint

"The Lithuanian Express", the masters of the stage competition at Sudovia Gravel 2024.

 

[Chargeride]

The number one complaint us Brits get in Europe is..'why dont you try to learn our language?'.
I have to point out, why dont you bother either?
How Many Germans can speak Italian?
But a German speaking English to an Italian looks very cultured and educated, but when we do it , just another lazy Brit who cant be bothered.

But yes, we cant be bothered

 

[Stefan Mikes]

The number one complaint us Brits get in Europe is..'why dont you try to learn our language?'.
I have to point out, why dont you bother either?
How Many Germans can speak Italian?
But a German speaking English to an Italian looks very cultured and educated, but when we do it , just another lazy Brit who cant be bothered.

But yes, we cant be bothered

You Brits could learn your own language better.

It is pedalling not peddling

 

[Chargeride]

I usually check, but now I cant be bothered because it can do it for you, but then that makes mistakes more real.
Those cycling drug dealers pedalling while peddling

 

[Stefan Mikes]

But a German speaking English to an Italian looks very cultured and educated, but when we do it , just another lazy Brit who cant be bothered.

Now Chris, you're gonna to dislike me for what I'm saying.

It is not the language travelling Brits speak making the issue. It is the behaviour of the British in general when they travel in the EU. Let me give me an example.

I know an Englishman who is a highly respected professional, and he is a musician in his spare time. John always puts himself into trouble when abroad (and in London too!) On his last trip to Frankfurt an der Main he was beaten up and robbed in the evening on the street leading from the Old Town to the City. I was to Frankfurt/M on another trade fair that same year. I met my colleagues at an Old Town pub, ate, had some beer and then I took a public share e-scooter and rode to my hotel in the city. How come he was attacked but I felt perfectly safe?

Think of the attitude. I can bet he misbehaved and it was clear to the robbers he was yet another stupid drunk Brit, an easy target. While I looked inconspicuous.

Brix says: "Those Brits! They will drink a couple glasses of piss and cannot behave afterwards!"
I say: "You learn drinking before your A-level exam not after 50 yo"

 

[Chargeride]

This does interest me.
All countries have various levels of antisocial drunks who mob up when an occasion enables their tribal rampage gene.
Almost entirely around football, the only time Europeans cause trouble in the UK is at football events, Ive never seen a hordes of French taking over public spaces except football supporters.

The fat tattoed drunk Englishman in his british pub by the Spanish beach is the go to stereotype of the middle classes when they are mocking the orcs, they prefer the Tuscany wine and cheese set.


We love drinking.
checks stats
The French are out drinking you Stefan,
though I doubt that counts as the French are all in bed by 9pm and take their kids with them to the pub.

I checked with Euronews for the figures and the UK isnt on the list of top drinkers in Europe because we voted to physically leave the continent and are now the sea people with no home.

Anyway its the Eastern Europeans who dominate the list, Poland needs to up its game or become the Dudley do goods.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

UK isnt on the list of top drinkers in Europe

That is the whole point. You guys cannot drink, and when you have the access to strong inexpensive alcohol, you lose your minds. Just come to Kraków in the warm season to see the Main Square with its 600 dive bars, and Kazimierz in Kraków literally infested by Brits on their stag parties

"A drunk Brit has become a standard for Cracow"

According to the statistics, Britain is the 23rd world consumer of beer, Poland is 5th, Germany 4th, and Czech Republic 1st. (I would not involve football in this discussion, the Polish fans are among the worst).

 

[Chargeride]

It is beginning to drop off, getting absolutely shirt faced has been the backbone of British culture for half a century or more.
Im seeing much less wobbly, lying on the floor youngsters thesedays.
As you say respectful men turning into loud, pushy and innapropriate louts crosses all social classes in the UK.

But the japanese do the same without
generally turning into idiots.

Might be worth slightly blaming the muggers, dont want victim blaming getting any worse these days .

I blame the Vikings.

I never go on European stag do's /bachelor parties , the son in law went on his to Prague with the entire crew dressed as oompah loompahs, complete with full face paint and quality outfits, they were all in bed by 10pm drunk senseless.
It would be funny for a one off, but everyone is doing it and it just becomes tiresome for all involved.