At 5:00 am, under a veil of darkness, the choking engine of the Land Rover piercedthe tranquility of morning as it roared into life. When I perused the word ‘hunting’on the day’s itinerary, I was altogether horrified, but these concerns turned into excitement upon learning that the only shots we’d be firing would be from a camera.

Dreary eyed, Marcin and I clambered aboard, cameras in hands, to accompany Sebastian to the depths of the forest. We’d been forewarned not to apply strongly scented toiletries, for fear of scaring the animals; I was more concerned about attracting the wolves! These anxieties were amplified on our arrival in Drawieński National Park, as Sebastian advised us that three packs of wolves inhabited the region. The headlights went dim and we were immersed into darkness once again.

Practically tiptoeing from tree to tree, each of my footsteps on the mossy undergrowth incited a pang of nervousness. We took cover under the branches of a tall pine tree, surveying the open field before us. The forest was silent. We sat completely still for roughly 20 minutes. As day began to break, the dewy grass shone, but, apart from the odd bird, there was still no sign of any creatures. Sebastian silently motioned for us to move on.

Careful to avoid twigs on the ground, we passed through the forest, following paths and narrow tracks; each step leaving a print on the forest floor, which was carpeted by pine needles and water droplets. We pressed, the rising sun making our destination more visible. With each new location we visited, our hopes of seeing wildlife abated. I was content, nonetheless, to have experienced the fresh, crispness of the morning in the forest. We spend a further hour or so listening to the noises of the forest: chirping birds, woodpeckers drilling, and the wind rustling the trees. We were hopeful with each faint snap of twigs, but we saw nothing.

Dejected, but consoled by the sheer beauty of the forest, we yawned and headed for the 4×4. On the walk back, however, we were stopped by Sebastian once more. To our left was a fox! Granted, foxes swarm the streets in England, yet this animal looked magnificent. All was not wasted after all. We stood for a while admiring our friend, before loading up and setting off. I felt inspired by my experience in the forest: in England I take nature for granted, but here, it’s embraced as a valued facet of day-to-day life.

We arrived back at base at roughly 7:30 am and agreed to rendezvous for breakfast in 2 hours time. “Squirrel!” shrieked Sebastian, and sure enough, there it was – a red squirrel clinging to the trunk of a tree. Chuckling at the irony, we headed for bed.

After bidding farewell to Sebastian and the team at natursport.pl, who had accommodated us most invitingly, we drove out once more. The theme song? You guessed it, The Beatles…again.

The next destination on the Az Po Morze itinerary was Wałcz, a typical lake district town, with interesting tourist attractions. The first of which was somewhat bizarre. Our amicable tour guide, Roman, escorted Marcin and me to a nearby hill, which was enshrouded in inexplicable mystery. Although Roman spoke very broken English, I gathered from Marcin that the hill could drag cars to its peak, against the pull of gravity. We were as confused as each other. Sure enough, the car continued to roll up the hill, even when the engine was turned off. Next, Roman demonstrated with a rolling bottle. Again, the bottle continued to roll. Roman put it down to a natural phenomenon, iterating that nobody had ever discovered a reason for gravity’s failings. I don’t remember ever being so perplexed.

After our questions returned no answers, Roman took us to the Olympic training facility on the town’s outskirts. We took a walk along a serene lake and crossed a rather wobbly suspension bridge, which ultimately led to no notable destination.

Finally, and most interestingly, we were taken to the remnants of a German bunker at the far end of town, past the industrial factories on the town’s periphery. The facility, known as ‘B-Werk Cegielnia-West’ (catchy, I know) was the largest fortification on the Pomeranian Wall. Through an underground tunnel, which stretched for 85m, the bunker connected with another fortification. It could house up to 50 soldiers and had 4 heavy machine guns, which guarded against invasion from all angles. The history surrounding the bunker was fascinating to learn about. Much can be seen about how the bunker operated, from communication lines to lantern fixings, our guide pointed out points of interest. Prints in the German language even still line the walls. In some rooms, vandals had broken in and left their marks. Across a small valley was a further bunker, which had toppled down the bank at some point. Marcin and I strolled around the grounds, exploring every nook and cranny that remained of the bunker.

After a quiet meal at a restaurant, we were brought to our accommodation for the night. It seems we’re the only 2 occupants of an entire apartment block! Spooky.

With plenty in store for tomorrow, you’d be mad not to keep up to speed with azpomorze.pl.

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Marcin’s video of the day: