3 Easy Hiking Routes in Tatra Mountains
So you’re planning what to do once this COVID-19 issue is over. You’re thinking of coming to Poland or Slovakia for a bit of hiking in the Tatra Mountains. You check the pictures in the Interned and see rocky, rugged mountains and think you’re not up to that? Here are my three ideas for an easy hike in the Tatras for beginners. In no particular order.
Rusinowa Polana — Roztoka
When people come to the Polish side of the Tatra Mountains, the most commonly visited attraction is the Morskie Oko lake. It is a beautiful lake surrounded by soaring peaks, including Poland’s highest summit — Rysy. A beautiful place, definitely worth seeing, but also crowded with tourists.
Let me propose a different route in the region. This route has two variants you can choose depending on your fitness and familiarity with walking in the mountainous terrain. The shorter one is about 3:05 h walk on a distance of 10.7 km, with an elevation gain of 502 m. The alternative is 4:20 h walking with a length of 12.6 km. The elevation gain is 734 m.
When you leave a car or bus at the Palenica Białczańska parking and go past the ticket booth, look for blue markers to the right from the main road. That one leads to Morskie Oko, and we don’t want to go there. The path starts climbing quickly and continues for about 1.5 km. Don’t worry about it. Take your time and go as fast as you can. The climb is worth it.
Once you get to the spot where a black-marked path joins yours, turn right. Soon you’ll come out at the clearing called Rusinowa Polana. It’s a lovely high mountain meadow with a magnificent view of the High Tatras. Undeniably a place worth staying for a bit longer either sitting at one of the wooden benches or simply lying in the grass, enjoying the sights.
From here, you have two choices. One is to take the black path downwards, go past the trail you came in, through the forest to a small clearing at Polana pod Wołoszynem where you reach a red-marked way. This is a shorter variant I mentioned before.
The alternative would be to take a green-marked trail upwards from the Rusinowa Polana to the peak of Gęsia Szyja (1489 masl). The view from the top is fabulous, but the caveat here is that the path get’s slightly narrow and goes precariously close to the edge at some points. It does not present much technical difficulty, but if you have space anxiety, it may be somewhat tricky. When you continue walking down the green trail, you will reach a junction with the red-marked path at a clearing called Rówień Waksmundzka. Turn left.
Whichever variant you take, you’ll reach a red-black crossing spot at the Polana pod Wołoszynem. Follow the red markings till you reach the asphalt road leading to Morskie Oko. Here turn right and follow the road for about 500 meters till you reach Wodogrzmoty Mickiewicza waterfall. The asphalt continues toward the Morskie Oko, but you should look for a side path leaving the clearing at its far end. From here, you have about a 10-minute walk down towards the lovely Schronisko Roztoka, hidden in the forest. This out of the way mountain hut serves one of the best food in all the Tatra Mountains — my personal opinion. It’s a great spot to rest, eat, and enjoy your vacations in the Tatra Mountains.
From here, go back up to the Wodogrzmoty Mickiewicza, then follow the asphalt road to the parking in Palenica Białczańska.
Zamkovskeho Chata
This route is in Slovakia. The starting point is in the city of Stary Smokovec. Completing the course takes about 3:33 h walking on a distance of 10.7 km with an elevation gain of 688 m. You can shorten it using a cable car to take you to and from the Hrebieniok pass.
Once you’re in Stary Smokovec, look for a green-marked track starting to the right of the cable car station. The trail slowly climbs up running for the most part along the asphalt road but having a couple of convenient shortcuts along the way.
Once you get to Hrebieniok (1285 masl), do not follow the red markings (you’re going to use that path on your way back) but look for a descent to the right of the buildings — the green trail. You will go past the Bilikova Chata. If you want to stop there for something to eat or drink, make sure to get a seat next to the window or at the outside terrace for the views. Otherwise, stay on the green path.
At the junction of green and yellow tracks turn left. From here, the yellow path follows the Velky Studeny stream upwards. Look for good spots to get near the river to watch small waterfalls that form on the rocks. There’s one just below the place where green and yellow tracks meet.
Following yellow — and then blue — markings you reach Rainerova Chata, and shortly after a junction Nad Rainerovou Chatou. From here, take the red track to the right, pass over the bridge above the Velky Studeny stream and keep climbing until you enter the forest and then reach a sharp turn. At the junction, there should be green markings leading to Zamkovskeho Chata. This is a rather small but cozy mountain hut — good spot to eat something and relax. It should take you a little over 2 hours to get here.
The way back is pretty simple: keep to the red trail down to Hrebieniok, and from there, take either a cable car or a green path to Smokovec. If you’re feeling like it, before leaving the Zamkovskeho hut, follow the red trail for about 600 meters in the opposing direction (15 minutes walk) to a nice viewpoint of the Tatra foothills.
Popradske Pleso
This is a very easy and really short route. Quite popular with the tourists, so you will meet a lot of people either going straight to the Popradske Pleso or further on to Koprovsky Stit or Rysy. Also, the area is popular among the climbers so you can meet them on your way as well. I’m mentioning this route because of two reasons: a beautiful lake Popradske Pleso that’s worth seeing and a symbolic cemetery commemorating the memory of all those that died in the mountains. The route should take about 3 hours walking on a distance of 9 km with an elevation gain of 364 m.
You start at the Popradske Pleso railway station (there are also parking spots along the road). Almost all the way upward, you walk on an asphalt road, following blue markings. About two-thirds of the way, there’s a crossing at the Popradska Polana, with a yellow trail leaving right.
Here is the Symbolicky Cintorin, the symbolic cemetery for those who died in the Tatra Mountains, and not only. Symbolic, because no one is buried here, only commemorative plaques for the people of the mountains. The history of mountain exploration is quite often the history of human tragedies: people who died in the mountains, people who died while bringing help — the mountaineers, tourists, and rescuers alike.
The yellow track leads you through the cemetery and to the bank of Popradske lake, then around it up to the Popradske Pleso mountain hotel. You can rest here, go for a stroll around the lake and enjoy nature. To get back, simply follow the asphalt road to your car or train station.
Summary
I hope you’ll find my suggestions for hiking in the Tatra Mountains useful. Tatras are beautiful alpine type mountains, with a lot of terrain variety all condensed into 57 km of length. It’s one of my favorite places on Earth. You can do multi-pitch climbing, high mountain hiking, and relatively easy trekking, all with a stunning view.
