The Kościeliska is a valley in
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
, in
Tatra Mountains,
Western Tatras, Poland. It stretches from the village of
Kiry, about 9 km, right up to the main ridge of the Tatras. Halfway up is the ''Ornak'' mountain
refuge, built in 1948.
Is reached by road from
Zakopane - 7 km.
Geography
Near the exit the valley is narrow but farther up it fans out into several lateral branches, above which rise the rounded summits of the Western Tatras, the highest of which is Mt.
Bystrá, on the
Slovakia
Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
side of the frontier.
The upper part of the valley (the Hala Tomanowa and Hala Pyszna) have been constituted as a
strict nature reserve
A strict nature reserve (IUCN category Ia) or wilderness area (IUCN category Ib) is the highest category of protected area recognised by the World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), a body which is part of the International Union for ...
, thus forming a sanctuary for the flora and fauna peculiar to them.
The whole valley is pervaded with the aura of old legends about hidden treasure. There are ancient mining traditions going as far back as the 15th century.
In the 19th century Kościeliska valley was one of the strongest and biggest
metallurgical centres in the area; in the neighbouring mountains various metals were found, mainly
silver
Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...
, and later on also
iron ore.
This valley owes its exceptional charm not only to its beauty spots, but also to its numerous forms of characteristic of
limestone
Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...
country:
cave
Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...
s,
wells, shaped
rocks and
crags. There are about 70 larger and smaller caves here, the longest of which are ''Jaskinia Zimna'' (6 km) or ''Jaskinia Wysoka – Za Siedmiu Progami'' (11,5 km), and the deepest ''Jaskinia Miętusia'' (200 m) or ''Bańdzioch Kominiarski'' (570 m).
Among the most interesting tourist spots in the valley are:
* Lodowe Źródło (Icy Spring)
* Jaskinia Mroźna (Frosty Cave), Jaskinia Mylna (False Cave), Jaskinia Raptawicka (Raptawicka Cave)
* Wąwóz Kraków i Smocza Jama (Kraków Gorge with Dragon's Den) - one of the most picturesque part of the valley.
* Hala Pisana (Pisana Alp)
* Staw Smerczyński (Smreczyński Pond)
Trails
In the lover part of the Dolina Kościeliska the red trail branches off Polana Upłaz, and takes one to the summit of
Ciemniak (2,090 metres
AMSL), a mountain in the
Czerwone Wierchy (Red Peaks) group of peaks. The blue trail leads to the Polana na Stołach. The black path "Ścieżka nad Reglami" leading to Chochołowska Valley.
From the middle section of the valley the green trail leads from the Ornak refuge along the Dolina Tomanowa (Tomanowa Valley) to the
Czerwone Wierchy.
Yellow trail leads up to the pass Iwaniacka Przełęcz and thence to the summit Ornak (1,854 metres). Green trail leads to the pass Raczkowa Przełęcz.
About 35 minutes walk along the black trail from the Refuge leads to the mountain pond Smerczyńki - one of the very few in this part of Tatra Mountains.
Top Attractions on the Way
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Gallery
References
External links
Dolina Kościeliska
(pl.)
Przez Dolinę Kościeliską
(pl.)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kościeliska (valley)
Tatra County
Western Tatras
Tourist attractions in Lesser Poland Voivodeship
Valleys of Poland