On waymarked routes in both countries you will frequently encounter a variety of green signs, bearing text in either yellow (Slovakia) or white (Poland), always in the appropriate language, but usually with a translation into German, Russian or Hungarian, and occasionally English! They are invariably exhortations of a common-sense nature, concerning walkers’ safety or the protection of the environment. They include, for example, ‘Keep to the waymarked routes’, ‘No short cuts’, ‘Do not pick flowers or fruit’, ‘No camping or fires’, ‘No bathing in the tarns’.
Some short stretches of routes, described in this book as ‘airy’ or ‘exposed’ (steep ground with a long drop below), are protected by fixed chains, or sometimes wires of about 2cm diameter. You use them to haul yourself up – or lower yourself down, which is more difficult, as it is not so easy to see where to put your feet. The chains or wires are usually firmly attached to the rock, but you should test them first. For walkers who have yet to experience such situations, the anticipation is often worse than the actuality. Provided that you take care, and do not rush it, there is rarely cause for alarm, and there will be a thrill of achievement afterwards.
If there is a choice, you are advised to walk in the direction which will allow you to ascend, rather than descend, such sections. In either direction, you must always face the mountain, as this provides greater stability. Some busy routes with chains or wires have a one-way system, so that there is no conflict of interest between walkers travelling in opposite directions, and to reduce the risk of being hit by a rock dislodged by another walker.
Apart from the chains and wires, some routes involve short, steep stretches of scrambling – using hands as well as feet to get yourself up or down. Stretches involving fixed chains, wires or scrambling are clearly marked in this book, so if you do not like the sound of such activities, they can be avoided.
On routes needing a qualified mountain guide (also on the Orla Perć route in Poland), you are likely to encounter a via ferrata, an Italian term meaning ‘iron way’. As well as chains or wires, this may involve ironware of a more exotic nature, such as fixed ladders and pegs, which you use to negotiate trickier sections in exposed situations. For walkers with a sense of adventure, confidence, a cool head and no great fear of heights, such routes represent the pinnacle of their experience.
In Slovakia the higher paths are closed during winter and spring (1 November to 15 June inclusive), partly because of danger from avalanches and partly due to consideration for wildlife, which may be hibernating or rearing their young.
In Poland there is no such formal closure, although walkers are expected to use their common sense and take notice of avalanche warnings posted at the kiosks where entry fees are collected. In this book we indicate whether for practical purposes each path is likely to be open or closed in winter and spring.
In both countries a considerable number of waymarked routes remain open in winter and spring – see ‘Winter walking’, page 59. However, you should not use them if there is too much snow, making the waymarks invisible, or in fog. You can check the conditions at a tourist information or mountain rescue office.
Ascending the chained approach to Priećne Sedlo (Yellow 8860, Slovakia) (photo: R Turnbull)
Paths may be closed at other times for some other reason, such as emergency maintenance. In Slovakia you may see signs saying either otvorená (open) or zatvorená (closed) or pozor lavíny (beware avalanches). In Poland, przejscie uzbronione (no entry) or uwaga lawiny (beware avalanches).
Refreshments and toilets
It is safe to drink water from taps in the Tatras villages and from the mountain chalets, although many people prefer to buy bottled water from shops or cafés. You can refill your water-bottles from springs (the water from some of these contains iron), and also from the higher tarns and streams in the mountains, provided that they are above the level of the mountain chalets. (It is not recommended to drink water from below this level, because there is a danger that it will have been contaminated by sewage from the huts.)
You can buy food for picnic lunches in supermarkets and food shops, of which there are plenty – the word ‘supermarket’ is often used, otherwise look for potraviny (food shop) in Slovakia, or sklep spożywczy (grocer’s shop) in Poland.
There is a wide choice of refreshment facilities in the main resorts (often in hotels), and most of the smaller resorts have at least one or two bars or cafés. In Slovakia the cafés may be called kaviareň (coffee shop) or cukrareň (confectioners), in Polish kawiarnia or cukiernik respectively; most sell mouthwatering cakes and a bewildering range of coffees and teas. The entries for the resorts in the Gazetteers indicate the availability of refreshment facilities.
The source of ‘Starý Smokovec Water’
Refreshments can be obtained at mountain chalets or refuges (see below).
Toilets are generally available where refreshments are provided, at main railway stations and at the top and bottom stations of mountain railways and cable-cars. In Poland, toilet cubicles are also provided at most starting points beside roads, and at some other points along the long valleys that lead into the mountains – they are indicated on most walking maps and in the route descriptions in this book.
See also ‘Mountain safety and emergency services’, page 54, regarding emergency rations.
Mountain chalets or refuges
In the mountains there is a network of establishments that provide refreshments and accommodation. In the Slovak High Tatras there are 11, called chata (‘chalet’, plural chaty), on the Polish side there are eight, called schronisko (‘refuge’, plural schroniska). English speakers sometimes refer to them as ‘mountain huts’, Slovaks happily refer in English to ‘chalets’, whereas Poles prefer to translate to ‘refuge’, as ‘chalet’ implies ‘toilet’ to them! In this book we use the preferred translation on each side of the border.
Some offer a higher standard of accommodation than may be expected at a ‘mountain refuge’ and call themselves mountain hotels (horsky hotel in Slovak, hotel gorski in Polish), although the facilities may be rather basic. In Slovakia they are Popradské Pleso, Sliezsky Dom, Hrebienok and Bilíkova Chata. In Poland, Hotel Gorski Kalatówki (1198m) above Kuźnice is really a mountain refuge offering accommodation and facilities of a higher standard than the others.
The chalets or refuges are located in such strategic positions that you are unlikely to undertake a day’s walk in the Tatras without passing by or close to one or more of them. They are usually in splendid, often spectacular situations – beside a tarn, in a remote valley or below a towering cliff face. Food and drink cost more than in the resorts, due to transportation costs, but prices are reasonable. If it is cold or wet outside, a steaming bowl of goulash soup, some sausages or a mug of delicious, spiced lemon tea, will soon warm you up.
Toilet facilities in the chalets or refuges may be rather primitive, and you may wish to carry a small supply of your own toilet paper, as it may have run out.
In Slovakia the chalets are privately owned and leased to individual wardens. Since the revolution in 1989, three have reverted to their original names, because new ones were given by the communist authorities against the wishes of local people. They are Zamkovského Chata (formerly Nálepkova Chata or Chata Kapitána Nálepku), Chata pri Zelenom Plese (formerly Brnčalova Chata), and Chata pri Popradskom Plese (formerly Chata Kapitána Morávku). Old maps may
