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Strzelin
The granite quarry in Strzelin is a still operating extraction site on the edge of the town in Strzelin County. The pit is reckoned to be the deepest man-made excavation in Europe — it reaches some 123 metres into the rock. The works themselves are normally closed, but the crater can be seen from above, from a publicly accessible hill beside it.
A path winding among grasses, shrubs and scattered granite blocks leads to the edge of the precipice. From the top of Góra Szubieniczna (Gallows Hill), whose name recalls a former place of execution, you look down on almost vertical grey walls dropping more than a hundred metres. The floor of the pit is partly flooded, and huge machines work on the terraces.
The mine periodically holds open days with entry in guided groups — an opportunity to see close up how granite blocks are cut and processed. Outside those dates the works are off limits. The rim of the pit is unfenced, so caution is needed.
