Zakopane and the Tatra Mountains
On our way to Slovakia we spent a few nights in the South Poland town of Zakopane. Zakopane is a quintessential mountain town – a hub of outdoor activities including skiing in the winter and hiking in the summer. We arrived during shoulder season, so there was (unexpectedly) a little of both.
Zakopane is in the foothills of the Tatra Mountains, a short range of mountains that forms the border between Poland and Slovakia. While not incredibly tall (the tallest peaks are in the low 2,000 meter range) what sets them apart is the steepness of the slopes, making for gorgeous contrasts between the tall peaks and low valleys. The scenery was beautiful, and not what I expected from Poland. I found it a cross between the stereotypical Swiss Alpine scenery with lush green rolling hills punctuated with small towns of small footprint houses with steeply-sloped roofs (in the foothills), and the dense pine forests of Oregon (in the mountains themselves).
The Tatras have a large network of well marked and maintained trails, but without much time we decided to hike to the most popular attraction, Morskie Oka (“Eye of the Sea”). While touristy, the 4 hour round trip hike was challenging and slightly exhausting (at least in my current athletic shape), but also beautiful.
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- Hiking up.
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- Horses were an option.
At the end we were rewarded with a stunning view of the lake beneath tall slopes with snow still clinging to their sides. A walk around the lake and up to a second lake was even better and less touristy, and shocked us when we ran into skiers along the way. We were told they had skied in from Slovakia, down the steep pitches surrounding the lakes. Maybe next time!
Stunning view of the lake.
Celebrating
Hiking around the lake.
… through rivers and waterfalls …
… and fields of snow…
… but the view was worth it!
Skiers coming down.
Our hostel here has also been a pleasant surprise, located outside of the city in a quiet forest setting with barbecues taking place each night.
Our hostel, set deep in the mountains.
The view from the hostel into the mountains, with the barbecue in the yard.
Chowing down
Aaron’s pasty white legs were the highlight of this post.
In Poland that’s considered tan.
Those views are absolutely INCREDIBLE!! Fascinating!!! They don’t even look real! Happy little trees all over the place! And what a beautiful hostel! Definitely not what I imagined it looked like..