San River

The San is a right-bank tributary of the Vistula and the largest of its Carpathian tributaries. The river is about 458 km long (Polish sources give 457.76 km, Ukrainian ones 444 km), and its basin covers 16,861 km², 14,390 km² in Poland and 2,471 km² in Ukraine. The San rises in the Bieszczady on the Ukrainian–Polish border, forms the border for 54 km and then flows through Poland across the Bieszczady, the foothills and the Sandomierz Basin to the Vistula. Its name is thought to be very old, perhaps Proto-Indo-European, meaning «swift stream».

The course: from source to mouth

The source of the San lies in Ukraine, at about 925 m on the south-eastern slopes of Piniaszkowy in the Western Bieszczady, near the village of Sianki. In 1996 the Ukrainian side hung a sign reading «Source of the San» at border marker No. 224, but that spring is in fact the source of the first left tributary; the main source is about 300 m to the south-west, in a forest clearing right by the border. From here to the great bend around Łysań near Smolnik the river forms the border between Poland and Ukraine.

The San then flows north-west through the Bieszczady and cuts a scenic gorge between the Otryt and Tołsta ridges. Further down it is dammed by two reservoirs, Lake Solina and Lake Myczkowce. At Solina stands Poland's highest dam, 81.8 m high and 664 m long; the reservoir, covering about 22 km² and up to 60 m deep, holds the largest volume in the country, 472 million m³. It was filled in 1968, flooding the villages of Solina, Teleśnica Sanna, Horodek, Sokole, Chrewt and most of Wołkowyja. Lake Myczkowce (about 2 km²) evens out the discharges of the Solina power station. Passing Lesko, Zagórz and Sanok, the river turns north through the foothills between the Przemyśl and Dynów uplands, turns east near Dynów and meanders to Przemyśl. Down to Przemyśl the San is a mountain river; beyond it flows through the wide Lower San valley full of oxbow lakes and joins the Vistula north-east of Sandomierz. Tributaries include the Solinka, Osława, Wisłok, Wiar, Wisznia, Lubaczówka and Tanew. The mean flow near the mouth is about 124 m³/s.

What to see along the river

• Lake Solina and the Solina Dam — the dam, Poland's largest reservoir and Bieszczady views.
• Lesko Synagogue and Jewish Cemetery — above the San valley in Lesko.
• Sobień Castle ruins — on a hill above a San loop between Lesko and Sanok.
• Royal Castle in Sanok and the Beksiński Gallery — on the high bank above the river.
• Museum of Folk Architecture in Sanok (open-air museum) — an open-air museum on the San bank.

On the water: rafting and kayaking

The San was once an important waterway. In 1851 Wincenty Pol wrote that rafts of plain logs went down from Lesko and small barges from Dynów downstream; larger vessels sailed the lower course, and Ulanów was the largest raftsmen's centre on the San. Today the San is one of the most popular kayaking rivers of Subcarpathia. The voivodeship's official tourism portal recommends the stretch from Sanok to Tyrawa Solna — 12 km, 2–3 hours, easy even for beginners and families with children — and the longer Dynów – Krasiczyn route (54 km, 1–2 days), which can be split at Słonne. Canoe and pontoon trips on the Sanok stretch are run by local operators.

Nature and safety

The upper San lies in the Bieszczady: on the Polish side a nature and history trail of Bieszczady National Park follows the valley, and on the Ukrainian bank is the Nadsiansky Regional Landscape Park. The banks of the upper river are empty: after wartime and post-war expulsions, including Operation Vistula, the Boyko and Lemko villages along the San disappeared. The San is prone to floods: the largest came in July 1980, when 1,500 m³/s flowed into Lake Solina, and big floods also struck in 1913, 2008 and 2010. During downpours the water in the mountain section rises fast, so do not camp or leave gear on gravel bars. In the Bieszczady, mountain rescue is GOPR: 985 or +48 601 100 300; the general emergency number is 112.

Nearby: peaks, trails, huts

Closest to the upper river is the Nature and History Trail "In the Upper San Valley". From the San valley in Zagórz the trail Krysowa – Zagórz begins, and from Sanok Sanok – Chryszczata climbs into the hills.

Photos: Panek, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Silar, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Silar, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Prodi6520, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons.