Orla Perć (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

: ''Eagle's Path'') is a tourist path in the

Tatra Mountains The Tatra Mountains (), Tatras, or Tatra (''Tatry'' either in Slovak () or in Polish () - '' plurale tantum''), are a series of mountains within the Western Carpathians that form a natural border between Slovakia and Poland. They are the hi ...

in southern

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. It is considered one of most difficult and dangerous public paths in the entire Tatras (an equivalent to Grade 2 Scramble) and is therefore a suitable route only for experienced climbers. The path is marked with red signs. Since it was established, at least 112 people have lost their lives on the route.

Technical data

The route is located in the centre of the

High Tatras The High Tatras or High Tatra Mountains ( Slovak: Vysoké Tatry; pl, Tatry Wysokie; rue, Высокі Татри,'' Vysoki Tatry''; hu, Magas-Tátra; german: Hohe Tatra; french: Hautes Tatras), are a mountain range along the border of norther ...

. The total length of the accessible route is 4.5 km. Total walking time (summer, depending on trails conditions) varies between 6 and 8 hours. The highest point is Kozi Wierch at 2291 m AMSL. The path starts at Zawrat pass (2159 m AMSL) and finishes at Krzyżne pass (2112 m AMSL), leading through several peaks and traversing others. The path is exposed, leading mostly along the mountain ridge. Numerous aids for tourists are provided at the most steep and vertical stretches, including ladders, stepladders, chains and metal steps. The most frequent ground constitutes mainly

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

slab, rough

rubble Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture; undressed especially as a filling-in. Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as 'brash' (compare cornbrash)."Rubble" def. 2., "Brash n. 2. def. 1. ''Oxford English Dictionar ...

and uneven surface. The path is linked to other routes; there are altogether eight junctions with other paths, leading to mountain shelters and

chalet A chalet (pronounced in British English; in American English usually ), also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, typical of the Alpine region in Europe. It is made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof and wide, well-suppo ...

s. The stretch from Zawrat pass to Kozi Wierch is one-way only. Falling stones and

avalanche An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope, such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be set off spontaneously, by such factors as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, animals, and eart ...

s are possible along the route.

History

The path was conceived in 1901, the brainchild of

Franciszek Nowicki Franciszek Henryk Siła-Nowicki (29 January 1864, in Kraków, Austrian Empire – 3 September 1935, in Zawoja, Poland) was a Young Poland poet, a mountaineer, socialist activist, and designer of the '' Orla Perć'' (Eagle's Path) High Tatras moun ...

, a Polish poet and mountain guide. The route was partially funded, constructed and marked by Fr. Walenty Gadowski between 1903 and 1906 with the aid of a few locals; however, the junctions and other auxiliary routes were led and marked by 1911. After several fatal accidents, in 2006 a mountain guide Irena Rubinowska and Piotr Mikucki, a film director, launched an appeal to the authorities of the Tatra National Park to dismount all climbing aids along the path and change it to

via ferrata A via ferrata ( Italian for "iron path", plural ''vie ferrate'' or in English ''via ferratas'') is a protected climbing route found in the Alps and certain other locations. The term "via ferrata" is used in most countries and languages except ...

.Juliusz Wysłouch "Via ferraty dla tatr Wysokich, "Na szlaku" 10/2003
/ref> The appeal met with different reactions from groups and professional lobbies involved in the tourist business. It was concluded that this is a historic trail, and will remain unchanged. As many accidents took place when passing in the opposite direction, the TPN Directorate has introduced one-way traffic at the most difficult section of Orla Perć from Zawrat to Kozi Wierch in July 2007.

Gallery

File:Zejscie-z-koziego-wierchu.jpg, Descent through The Honoratka Couloir File:Orla Perc - mapa.png, Map of the path File:KCz.jpg, The path descends from Kozie Czuby File:2007Orla perć kozi wierch.jpg, The path on Kozi Wierch File:Orla Perć a5.jpg, Climbing aids on the path

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orla Perc Mountain ranges of Poland Hiking trails in Poland Via ferrata

Technical data

History

Gallery

See also

References