Commune: Bystrzyca Kłodzka (pow. kłodzki, woj. dolnośląskie) , Lądek-Zdrój (pow. kłodzki, woj. dolnośląskie) , Międzylesie (pow. kłodzki, woj. dolnośląskie) , Stronie Śląskie (pow. kłodzki, woj. dolnośląskie)
Framework element or context represented:
Old metamorphic massifs of the eastern Sudety Mts.
Primary geological/geomorphological interest:
Metamorphic rock series; karst phenomena.
Comparative assessment justification:
The large metamorphic massif most characteristic for the eastern part of the Sudety Mts. It continous to the terittory of the Czech Rep.
Protection status and accessibility:
Śnieżnik Landscape Park was established in 1981 in the area of 28.800 ha. It comprises three geological reserves: the Niedźwiedzia Cave, The Śnieżnik Kłodzki and Wilcza Waterfall.
Character of site: Mountain range.
Area: 28 800 ha
Altitude: 310 - 1423.7 m a.s.l.
Lithology: gneisses, other metamorphic rocks, limestones, dolostones
Discipline: Geomorphology, Petrography, Stratigraphy of Proterozoic
Process Age: Quaternary, Paleogene, *all periods
Bedrock Age: Devonian, Silurian, Ordovician, Cambrian, Proterozoic, *all periods
Description of primary interest:
The Massif of Śnieżnik, the Bialskie Mts. and the Złote Mts., which all from the Śnieżnik Landscape Park consist mainly of the metamorphic rocks forming a larger unit called the metamorphic massif of Lądek-Śnieżnik. To the west, the massif is divided by the fault from the Upper Nysa Kłodzka Graben. The massif is composed of two main, Precambrian - Early Palaeozoic rock series, schistaceous and gneissic ones. The former, called the Stronie Group, consists of the mica schists, paragneisses, quartzite, amphibolites, crystalline limestones and dolomites, while the latter consists of a series of gneisses (Śnieżnik-Gierałtów Group) with inserts of eclogites and granulites. In the vicinity of the village of Bielice the outcrops of tonalites occur. The remnants of Tertiary volcanic activity are the lava sheets nearby the town of Ladek Zdrój. The most characteristic element of the relief is a planation surface developed in Palaeogene. The above mentioned town of Ladek Zdrój is a well known health resort. In the fault zones, forming the preferential pathways of groundwater flow, occur highly mineralised, thermal waters. Geological settings are strongly reflected by relief and dense drainage pattern, including number of waterfalls. The continental water divide forms three different catchment areas, feeding Baltic Sea, Black Sea and Northern Sea. Karst phenomena developed in the inserts and lenses of marbles located within the metamorphic complex. The karst features are represented by numerous springs, ponorsand sinkholes as well as by the most beautiful cave in the Sudety Mts., the Niedzwiedzia Cave, nearby the village of Kletno.
Literature:
BOBIŃSKI W., GAWLIKOWSKA E., KŁONOWSKI M. 1999 - Important geosites of the Polish Sudetes. Pol. Geol. Inst., Spec. Papers, 2: 19-25. DON J. 1972 — Stosunek gnejsów śnieżnickich do gierałtowskich w świetle analizy mezostrukturalnej. Przewodnik Pol. Tow. Geol.: 19-21. Wrocław. GAWLIKOWSKA E. 2000 - Geodiversity conservation of the Lower Silesia (English sum.). Pol. Geol. Inst. Warszawa. JAHN A., KOZłOWSKI S. & PULINA M. (red.) 1997 — The Massif of Śnieżnik. Changes of natural environment (English sum.). Pol. Ag. Ekol. Warszawa, 320 pp. SMULIKOWSKI K. 1979 — Polymetamorphic evolution of the crystaline complex of Śnieżnik and Góry Złote Mts in the Sudetes (English sum.). Geol. Sudetica 14, 1: 7-76.