Shyrkovets Swamp, Novyi Mizun

Shyrkovets Swamp is a well-known hydrological monument of national significance. It is located in the Dolynskyi district of Ivano-Frankivsk region, between the villages of Staryi Mizun and Novyi Mizun, within the Vyhodska basin. The area of the protected territory is 12 hectares. The swamp became a protected area in 1975, and since then, hunting and plant harvesting have been prohibited around it. It is managed by the State Enterprise "Vyhodske Forestry".

Shyrkovets Swamp still preserves relics of the plant world from the glacial period. This area is home to rare, endangered species of animals and plants, which cannot be found anywhere else today.

Today, Shyrkovets is fed by rainwater, which prevents it from drying out. The raised bog is located in a hollow on the lower terrace of the Myzunka River, at an altitude of 500–550 m above sea level. The central part of the swamp is oligotrophic, with suppressed pine and predominance of sphagnum-bog cenoses. In the mesotrophic part of the swamp, sedge-sphagnum communities prevail. Among the rare plant species, you can find the round-leaved sundew – an insectivorous perennial plant that Charles Darwin once experimented on. He fed it various types of food, but not everything was consumed by the plant. Sundew particularly enjoyed cheese, sausage, and fried meat.

Also, small-fruited cranberry grows in Shyrkovets, which is listed in the Red Book of Ukraine. However, most of the swamp's surface is covered with mosses and various types of sedges, as well as forest berries – blueberries and lingonberries. If you are lucky, you can see rare black storks that come here to nest in March – April.

Western Ukraine is one of the most picturesque corners of the country. This region is especially popular due to its favorable climatic conditions. In Prykarpattia, there are more than 2 thousand hectares of preserved wetlands, half of which are part of Ukraine's nature reserve complex.

Raised bogs, of which there are almost 90 here, occupy an area of over a thousand hectares. Tourists come here to enjoy the beauty of this picturesque region.

There are no analogs of "Shyrkovets" in the Carpathians. This patch of pristine nature, untouched by human hands, is definitely worth visiting for those who appreciate active recreation and love to discover everything new and unexplored. By coming to the Mizun Forestry, you can enjoy clean air, the beauty of Prykarpattia forests, and spend time alone with nature. For true lovers of flora and fauna, such a vacation will be simply unforgettable.

To find Shyrkovets Swamp, you first need to get to the village of Novyi Mizun. You can reach here by a direct bus from Lviv, which departs from Dvortsova Square near the railway station. There are also buses from the Dolyna bus station. From the village to the swamp, you can walk; it is better to ask the locals for the route – they definitely know the safe and short way. Note that Shyrkovets is one of the stops of the Carpathian tram, so you can also visit this swamp as part of a broader excursion program.

Experienced guides from the “Boykivshchyna” museum will help you organize excursion tours through Dolynshchyna if you want to see the Museum of the Insurgent's Hideout in Dolyna, the old salt factory, the bunker where Ukrainian nationalists hid, the Carpathian tram in Vyhoda, the Dovbush Rocks in Bubnyshche, the Myzun Waterfalls near Novyi Mizun, Mountain Polyanytske Lake (Dead) or the Hoshiv Monastery, Ivan Franko Museum in the village of Lolin.