Trail running in Bieszczady

The Bieszczady are Poland's wild south-eastern corner, and their signature is the połoniny — high, open, grassy ridgelines that run for kilometres above the treeline, giving long, flowing running with views in every direction and almost nobody else on the trail. For a runner who wants space, this is one of the emptiest ranges in Europe.

The appeal is solitude as much as terrain. This is thinly populated country better known for wolves, bison and lynx than for crowds, so a long day on the ridges can pass without meeting another soul — just grass, sky, and the rounded summits rolling on ahead. The running is proper hill work, with real climbs to gain the ridge, but the ground up top is fast and open.

Summer and early autumn are the seasons, when the połoniny are clear and the colours begin to turn. Carry more than you think you'll need — help is a long way off out here — and go for exactly the emptiness that's the whole point.

Poland's wild south-eastern corner, and its signature is the połoniny — high, open, grassy ridgelines that run for kilometres above the treeline, giving long, flowing running with views in every direction and almost nobody else on the trail.

The appeal is solitude as much as terrain: this is thinly populated country better known for wolves, bison and lynx than for crowds, so a long day on the ridges can pass without meeting another soul.

The running is proper hill work, with real climbs to gain the ridge, but the ground up top is fast and open. Expect exposed grass, minimal shade, and very little water once you are up high.

Run it in summer or early autumn, May to October, when the połoniny are clear and, later, the colours turn.

Carry more water than you think you will need — there is little on the ridges — and tell someone your route, since phone signal is patchy and help is a long way off out here.

This is intermediate-to-advanced running: come with hill fitness and the sense to turn back if weather rolls onto the exposed tops. Base around Ustrzyki Górne or Wetlina. No permit is needed for the open trails, though the national-park core has its own rules.

Go for exactly the emptiness that is the point.