Hervartov is a small village in the hills of north-eastern Slovakia, a few kilometres from Bardejov, and its wooden church of Saint Francis of Assisi is considered the oldest surviving wooden church in the country, built in the late Middle Ages in the Gothic style. It is one of eight wooden churches of the Slovak part of the Carpathian Mountain Area inscribed by UNESCO in 2008, alongside Greek Catholic, Protestant and Roman Catholic churches that together tell the story of the many faiths and peoples of this borderland.
The church is small and steep-roofed, built of spruce and covered in wooden shingles, with a tall tower crowned with a slender spire. Inside, the walls are covered with paintings, and the Gothic altars are a remarkable survival from an age when most of Europe's wooden churches were lost to fire, war or rebuilding in stone. Visiting usually requires contacting the local caretaker, so ask in the village or check in advance.
The surrounding landscape is gentle and pastoral, with rolling hills, meadows, forests and villages stretched along small streams in the foothills of the Low Beskids. The roads are narrow and quiet, often in decent condition, but with occasional patches of damage and farm traffic. It is lovely riding at a relaxed pace, with plenty of chances to stop at wooden churches, roadside crosses and small bars in the villages. To the north, the roads toward the Polish border and the Dukla Pass, the site of fierce fighting in 1944, are especially rewarding.
Bardejov, about seven kilometres away, is an essential stop. Its medieval town square, surrounded by Gothic and Renaissance burghers' houses, with the town hall in the middle and the Basilica of Saint Giles on one side, is one of the best-preserved in Central Europe and also a UNESCO site. The nearby spa of Bardejovské Kúpele has an open-air museum of folk architecture with wooden houses and churches.
Bardejov, a town of over thirty thousand people, has fuel stations, shops and restaurants. The Šariš region is known for its beer, brewed in Veľký Šariš near Prešov, and for hearty food: try kapustnica, sauerkraut soup with sausage and mushrooms, or potato pancakes. Spring and autumn are the best seasons, when the hills are green or golden and the roads are quiet.