Szczęśliwice Hill (

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

: ''Górka Szczęliwicka'') is an artificially created hill with a height of above sea level. It is in Szczęśliwice Park, in the western part of

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

Ochota Ochota () is a district of Warsaw, Poland, located in the central part of the city's urban agglomeration. It is Warsaw's most densely populated district and home to the scientific campus of the University of Warsaw. The biggest housing estate ...

district and it is the highest hill in the city. The biggest attraction of the hill is

skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow for basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the International S ...

at the Szczęśliwice Centre.

History

The hill was created as a dump for rubble from the

destruction Destruction may refer to: Concepts * Destruktion, a term from the philosophy of Martin Heidegger * Destructive narcissism, a pathological form of narcissism * Self-destructive behaviour, a widely used phrase that ''conceptualises'' certain kin ...

of Warsaw during the

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

, and later as a

dump Deoxyuridine monophosphate (dUMP), also known as deoxyuridylic acid or deoxyuridylate in its conjugate acid and conjugate base forms, respectively, is a deoxynucleotide. It is an intermediate in the metabolism of deoxyribonucleotides. Biosynthes ...

for trash. From 1967 to 1970 the dump was covered with earth and a park was created. By the 1980s, an illuminated slope with a

ski lift A ski lift is a mechanism for transporting skiers up a hill. Ski lifts are typically a Lift ticket, paid service at ski resorts. The first ski lift was built in 1908 by German Robert Winterhalder in Schollach/Eisenbach, Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, ...

already existed. The hill was 138 meters above sea level. In June 1997, the resort was leased for 30 years to Energopol Trade SA, which made the hill 14 m taller (raising it to 152 m above sea level) and built a chairlift. In the winter of 2005/2006 the center was closed as a result of conflict between the tenant and the City of Warsaw. In subsequent seasons 2006/07 and 2007/08 was opened for several winter months until September 2008, when an agreement was reached under which the city took over the equipment and buildings.

Equipment

The ski slope has an area of 9,500 square meters covered with a Dendix mat made in England, which at zero and positive temperatures is sprayed with a "water spray" to reduce friction and improve slipperiness, while at sub-zero temperatures and with the absence of, or low amounts of snow, can be covered by a snow cannon (initially installed in 1999). The camber (difference in height) of the slope is 44 m, which at its approximately 227 m gives the average slope of 19% (11°), which in turn qualifies the route as blue (easy). The maximum slope is 17°. At the bottom of the slope there are isolated practice runs with a length of approximately 60 m. The site has a

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tran ...

with a capacity for 1200 people per hour (in winter) and 782 (in summer), and a

with a capacity for 700 people per hour (winter and summer). There is an observation deck at the foot of the slope which is about 900 m². The hill is one of the 3 year-round ski sites in Poland, along with one in

Poznań Poznań ( ) is a city on the Warta, River Warta in west Poland, within the Greater Poland region. The city is an important cultural and business center and one of Poland's most populous regions with many regional customs such as Saint John's ...

and the other in

Bytom Bytom (Polish pronunciation: ; Silesian language, Silesian: ''Bytōm, Bytōń'', ) is a city in Upper Silesia, in southern Poland. Located in the Silesian Voivodeship, the city is 7 km northwest of Katowice, the regional capital. It is one ...

References

External links

Official site (in Polish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Szczesliwice Hill Ochota Landforms of Warsaw Hills of Poland Landforms of Masovian Voivodeship