Trzy Wody Waterfall, Kombornia

Trzy Wody Waterfall (Wodospad Trzy Wody, "Three Waters") is a natural waterfall on a small forest stream in the woods near the village of Kombornia in the commune of Korczyna, Krosno County, in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship. It lies in the Dynów Foothills (Pogórze Dynowskie), a range of the Outer Carpathians north of the Low Beskids, within the Czarnorzeki-Strzyżów Landscape Park, at about 445 m above sea level. It is the largest waterfall in the park.

The water drops from a step about 5 m high, about 6 m wide at the base and less than 2 m wide at the top. The step is formed by outcrops of thick-bedded sandstone blocks tilted at an angle of about 45°. These are the so-called Ciężkowice sandstones — Eocene rocks found across large parts of the Carpathians; the age of the waterfall's rocks is estimated at about 35 million years. The stream is small, so the amount of water depends strongly on the season and rainfall: in spring and after rain the fall is full, while in dry spells it barely trickles.

On 26 March 2008 the waterfall was declared a natural monument on the initiative of the Korczyna commune, the Carpathian Landscape Parks Board in Krosno and the Kołaczyce Forest District. It is one of the few rock waterfalls in the Podkarpackie Voivodeship under legal protection. In the same year 2008, a nature path was laid out to it on the initiative of the Korczyna commune councillors.

What to see

• The waterfall itself — a sandstone step in a shady ravine; best in spring and after downpours.
• The nature path through the Kombornia forest: three stops with information boards describe the local nature, including a stand of black pine and trees that were once tapped for resin.
• The Lost Rocks (Zaginione Skałki) — outcrops of Ciężkowice sandstone right by the path.

How to get there

This is an easy short walk for the whole family: according to Komoot, the loop to the waterfall is about 2 km and takes roughly half an hour. The path starts at the forest edge; visitors report that there is no official car park and a few cars can be left on the roadside. Public transport hardly serves the spot, so it is easier to come by car: the waterfall lies about 8 km in a straight line north-east of the centre of Krosno. There are no marked mountain trails nearby.

Season and safety

The waterfall is accessible all year round with no tickets. The stones in the ravine and on the step are slippery, especially after rain — do not climb the step and keep children close. In winter and in a dry summer there may be almost no water. This is a natural monument in a landscape park: do not leave litter, break branches or light fires near the waterfall. In an emergency call 112.

Nearby

A few hundred metres from the waterfall, on the hill above Kombornia, is the vineyard Winnica Widokowa, Kombornia: wine with a view of the Beskids. The nearest big waterfall in the mountains is Magurski Waterfall in Folusz on the edge of Magura National Park (about 40 km to the south-west).

Photos: Andrzej Otrębski, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Korona b, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Korona b, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Wojciech Zabolotny, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.