1020mm. Covers the area between Važec, Poprad, Poronin and Veľká Franková. Printed one side only and sold in a plastic folder together with a booklet containing supplementary information (currently available in Slovak only) and a map measurer.
VKÚ: Ortofotomapa Vysoké Tatry (Orthophotographic Map of the High Tatras, 1:20,000) 1145 x 775mm. An unusual representation of the area based on satellite photography. Covers the area between Tri Studničky, Stará Lesná, Czarny Staw and Šalviový Prameň. Printed one side only. Includes panoramas of Tatras ranges from several angles.
Geodis: Vysoké Tatry Atlas Ortofotomáp (High Tatras Orthophotographic Atlas, 1:15,000) 128-page atlas based on satellite photogaphy. Covers the area between Hrádok, Stará Lesná, Kuźnice and Dolina Bachledova. Also contains 1:6000 scale photographic maps of the main resorts (Štrbské Pleso, Starý Smokovec and Tatranská Lomnica).
Shocart Active sheet 1097: Vysoké Tatry (High Tatras, 1:50,000). 655 x 945mm. Covers the area of Slovakia and Poland between Važec, Poprad, Szaflary and Spišská Stará Ves. Reverse side has information in Slovak only, plus key with English translation and a relief panorama of the Tatras.
Maps of the Polish Tatras
PPWK/Copernicus: Tatry Zachodnie (Western Tatras, 1:20,000) 875 x 600mm. Covers the area between Wołowiec, Kasprowy Wierch, Turek and Kuźnice. Reverse shows additional information in Polish only and panoramas of peaks from four viewpoints.
CartoMedia/Sygnatura: Tatra National Park Tourist Map (1:25,000) 1190 x 815mm. Covers the area between Wałowiec, Morskie Oko, Witów and Bukowina Tatrzańska, including all of Zakopane and the Gubałówka ridge. Reverse shows additional information in Polish only, but includes information in English about geographical features, wildlife and mountain huts, panoramas of peaks from two viewpoints, and a town plan of Zakopane at 1:15,000.
CartoMedia/Sygnatura: Tatry Wysokie Słowackie i Polskie (High Tatras of Slovakia and Poland, 1:25,000) 1190 x 815mm. Covers the area between Tri Studničky, Stará Lesná, Kuźnice and Ždiar. Reverse shows additional information in Polish only and a panorama of peaks.
CartoMedia/Sygnatura: Tatry Zachodnie Słowackie i Polskie (Western Tatras of Slovakia and Poland, 1:25,000) 1190 x 815mm. Covers the area between Bobrovec, Tri Studničky, Habovka and Kuźnice. Reverse shows additional information in Polish only and a panorama of peaks.
Compass: Tatry Polskie (1:30,000) 980 x 675mm. Covers the area between Witów, Bukowina Tatrzańska, Morskie Oko and Wołowiec. Reverse shows additional information in Polish only and a street plan of Zakopane at 1:18,500.
CartoMedia/Sygnatura: Tatry Polskie Kompaktowe (Polish Tatras Compact, 1:30,000) 935 x 610mm. Covers the area between Wołowiec, Morskie Oko, Witów and Bukowina Tatrzańska, including all of Zakopane and the Gubałówka ridge. Reverse shows additional information in Polish only.
Mapa Roku 3x1 Tatry Polskie (1:20,000) A pocket-size set of three maps in one folder, covering respectively the western, central and eastern regions of the Polish Tatras. Each map measures 675 x 480mm and the full area covered is between Wołowiec, Rysy, Siwa Polana and Łysa Polana. Includes a street plan of Zakopane.
Larger scale maps can be obtained locally of specific areas, such as Orla Perć (1:5000) and Dolina Chochołowska (1:20,000).
Street plans
Some maps include street plans of the Tatras resorts as mentioned above. A wide selection of street plans of Zakopane can be bought there, and a street plan of Poprad can be bought at bookshops and tourist information offices in the Slovak resorts.
Many of the maps shown can be obtained or ordered from Stanfords at 12 Long Acre, Covent Garden, London, WC2E 9LP (tel 020 7836 1321) or 29 Corn Street, Bristol, BS1 1HT (tel 0117 929 9966), or from their website www.stanfords.co.uk. An excellent and knowledgeable mail order service is provided by The Map Shop at Upton-on-Severn (tel 01684 593146, www.themapshop.co.uk).
Paths and waymarking
The Tatras are blessed with a dense network of well-maintained and waymarked walking routes – some 600km altogether. This is more than may appear likely from a glance at the map, but you should remember that in the mountains, paths twist and turn and rise and fall much more than in flatter terrain, and at high levels they frequently zigzag for quite long distances, the combined effect in some cases doubling the apparent length of a path.
You must keep to the waymarked routes inside the national parks, unless you are accompanied by a registered local mountain guide, and you are forbidden to take short cuts – if you are caught ‘off-route’ by a national park ranger, you are likely to be fined. This may annoy some walkers, but it is based on sound reasons, including protecting wildlife in the more sensitive areas, preventing erosion, or giving badly eroded areas a chance to recover (the Tatras, being the most accessible alpine mountains for a considerable section of the populations of Central and Eastern Europe, have suffered much overuse and erosion).
There are a few places where, despite not actually being permitted, it is accepted practice to go slightly off the waymarked path. These include the minor summits of Ostrva and Veľka Svištovka along the Tatranská Magistrála in Slovakia, and of course places where picnic tables are provided away from the path.
A typical Slovak High Tatras signpost, near Popradské Pleso
For most walkers the waymarked routes will provide more than enough scope for their visit, and take them to some of the highest summits. In Slovakia, more experienced mountain walkers can extend their range by engaging a local guide – see ‘Mountain guides’, page 53. In Poland, walking off the waymarked routes is not allowed, even with a guide. It is also strongly recommended that groups of 10 or more engage a mountain guide.
Average walking times are indicated on signposts at each path junction, as well as on most maps, and they are also given in the lists of Suggested Routes and path descriptions later in this book. There may be slight variations between times shown in various sources. Time required for refreshment and other stops must be added, and you should allow plenty of extra time in case of unexpected delays.
As a rough guide, for every 300m (1000ft) of altitude, you can expect to take around an hour for the ascent, and 45 minutes for the descent, although on some routes descending is as tricky or strenuous as ascending, and therefore almost as time consuming. While paths are well constructed, the terrain is often steep and rocky, often consisting of quite large boulders, and you will need strong knees and ankles to stand up to the pounding they will receive, especially on descents.
Unlike skiing, the colours that appear on waymarks have no bearing on the difficulty of any route – they have only been allocated by the authorities for ease of identification.
In Slovakia, four-digit reference numbers are used for administrative purposes by the national park authority, and appear on some maps, but do not appear on the waymarks themselves. However, they provide a useful means of reference in this book, so we have used them in the route descriptions. There is no equivalent numbering system in Poland, so the authors have devised their own numbering system (with three digits) for those routes. The corresponding numbers are shown on the maps on pages 2–3 and 4–5.
For more detailed information about the waymarking systems in Slovakia and Poland, see ‘Introduction to Walking...‘ in Sections 3 and 4.
Visitors to the national park
