Siedlec Desert, Olsztyn

The Siedlec Desert is an area of sand near the village of Siedlec, district of Gmina Janów, within Częstochowa County, Silesian Voivodeship, in the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland area of southern Poland. The "desert" was formed during sand-mining operations, with the sand itself coming from a buried Jurassic-era sea-bed. The sand-mine finally closed in the 1960's. The desert covers approximately 30 hectares, of which 25 hectares is sand and the rest is made up by a pond and pine-trees planted in the area during the 1960's. The dunes at Siedlec reach up to 30 meters high and mirages are visible there in summer. Local legend has it that the desert was formed when a clever sorcerer pursued by the Devil escaped through the gates of hell, leaving the area around scorched. ()