The area around Stare and Nove Rochowice in the Eastern Ridge of the Kaczawskie Mountains is characterized by picturesque landscapes, with a mosaic of forests, pastures, and fields. Wooded hills hide greenstone and limestone rocks, with the largest being Rochowicka Skała. There are numerous abandoned limestone quarries accompanied by ruined lime kilns. Stare Rochowice is located in the Rochowicka Woda valley, a left tributary of the Nysa Szalona river, stretching for about 5 km until the Rochowicka Pass (504 m). The clustered buildings of Nowe Rochowice are situated about 2 km northwest, on a gentle slope at the foot of Rakarnia (548 m). In the village, there is the church of St. John the Baptist from the turn of the 15th/16th century, rebuilt in the 18th and 19th centuries. The enclosed area around the church is the former cemetery, with one impressive 16th-century tombstone preserved. Nearby, there are ruins of a palace complex from the 17th century. An interesting episode in the history of Stare Rochowice was the attempts to develop a spa industry based on mineral springs of the Bolko I and Bolko II type. Known for a long time, they were exploited in the early 20th century, and the small spa in the lower part of Stare Rochowice was called Hedwigsbad (Hedwig’s Spa). However, even before World War II, the spa declined, and post-war plans to revive the spa were never realized.
Description: Piotr Migoń
