I would have loved some company to attempt this adventurous trail. Sucha Bela is the most popular hike, but on a rainy day, I didn’t think doing it on my own was a good idea, considering it has a vertical gorge to be climbed with ladders, sheer drops into rivers / waterfalls and a one-way path so there’s no turning back. According to the tourist information office in the city centre, only one bus plies there at 10:30 am and back at 4:23 pm, which is how I got there. The gorgeous Slovak Paradise National Park – with alpine forests, waterfalls and rivers – is just half an hour from Poprad Tatry, though poorly connected by public transport. This one takes about 3 hours one way and climbs up along beautiful forests and rugged mountain terrain stop for snacks / drinks at the mountain hut Pri Popradskom Plese. While the walk around the glacial lake Strbske Pleso feels more urban than alpine, there are some spectacular hiking trails up to other glacial lakes like the biggest in the Slovakian High Tatras – Pleso Hincovo. My Airbnb host recommended the longer and steeper trail from Hriebienok to Slavkovska Vhyliadka, which takes about 3 hours, and leads to what he believes is one of the most beautiful parts of the valley. Two hours further, the trail leads up to the beautiful Teryho Chata with more rugged Tatra scenery on the way. Chata is the Slovakian word for hut, and at Zamkovskeho Chata, I was delighted to find warm vegan lentil soup on a chilly afternoon. A wild fox crossed me on this hiking path, and I loved taking a little detour to chill at by the river. The one-hour hiking trail from Hriebienok to Zamkovskeho Chata follows a wooded trail with stunning views, wooden bridges, a crystal clear river and a couple of gushing waterfalls. While Stary Smokovec is probably the most popular tourist settlement in the High Tatras, the real beauty of the mountains begins after Hriebienok – accessible through a one-hour uphill hike on a paved road or by the Tatry Motion Train, which costs 11 Euros for a return journey, runs every half hour, has a glass roof and climbs up the steep track in a few minutes. The folks at the tourist information office in the central area of Poprad speak great English and are very helpful! Hriebienok to Zamkovskeho Chata / Teryho Chata Think rugged beauty, solitude on the trails with only wild creatures to keep me company, locals who speak not a word of English, the lingering traces of a communist past, the surreal feeling of being somewhere far off the beaten path.Īlso read: First Time to Europe? 10 Travel Tips to Get You StartedĪlthough hiking trails in the Tatra Mountains are well-marked, I recommend getting a hiking map in Poprad, the main town, and figuring out which hikes you plan to do. The alpine Berchtesgaden National Park of Germany, the Tyrol region of Austria and the stunning Julian Alps of Slovenia.īut the High Tatras of Slovakia felt different. I’ve been lucky enough to hike through some incredible landscapes in Europe. My heart skipped a few beats as I thought: damn, I’m hiking alone in the High Tatras of Slovakia!
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Along gushing rivers I walked, past waterfalls so intense that I couldn’t hear my own jumbled thoughts.Ī wild fox ran past me on the trail, stopped just a few feet away and turned to face me before darting off. On a cool spring day, under the warm blue sky, I set out hiking along jagged peaks, through forests of tall spruce and Scots pine trees. But the High Tatras of Slovakia felt different.