zen in zakopane & the tatra mountains

‘turns out when you mix polish culture and nature you get a very very happy me. making zakopane one of my favourite spots in poland, europe and the world so far‘

zakopane; the southernmost town in poland and a fantastic base for reaching the tatra mountains. in the winter season a town transformed into a winter wonderland, summertime however, a balmy naturist paradise that manages to maintain its wintery charm. the snow is replaced with the gleaming sunshine that beats down over the surrounding mountains yet the frosty cabin woodland aesthetic remains.

this was my 3rd visit to this neck of the woods. my second time in zakopane itself and one other time during a ski programme in the neighbouring małe ciche ski resort. my previous trip to zakopane was a short yet incredibly sweet one. spending just 2 nights in ‘goodbye lenin hostel’ with three solo wanderers; 2 of which i had travelled from tallinn with and the 3rd we met in warsaw. we decided, on a whim might i add, to take a trip to zakopane. a bitter sweet retreat to the mountains to prolong our time with one another. a time that was coming to its inevitable end and consequently was to be our last destination together.

i had a tight schedule and was very unsure with the logistics of going; lacking both money and time tied with the prospect of rushing a place i had heard so much about and yearned to visit more than adequately. yet why wouldn’t i? would there be a better time, let alone another opportunity. i began saying why not a lot more and bloody hell it works so well. i mean when it doesn’t, so what? at least i know.

one hike, stream slurping, stream swimming, hostel cats, vodka welcome shots and a lot of laughs later (at the expense of mine and michaels hiking endeavours) our time had ended. i knew i’d return to zakopane, i simply had to. i just didn’t know when that time would be.

alas, here we are. september 2020 and i’m back in zakopane. different world, different perspective and for a very different purpose. longing for me time; a break. reconnection to nature through hiking, digital detoxing, meditation. in search of peace, alignment and further consciousness. to create new memories and discover new areas.

living and costs

first time round i stayed in ‘goodbye lenin hostel’. a wonderfully quaint cabin in the woods, with cats, a warm host, a real traveller community feel and like-minded individuals. situated 4km away from krupówki, it is away from the centre. however, there is regular and cheap public transport if needed. available on hostelworld at 50PLN (£10) per night for a 6 or 8 mixed dorm; goodbye lenin hostel really is a fantastic option whether travelling alone or with others.

second time round and travelling as a couple, we opted for ‘rent like home’ in lukaszkowski for 185PLN (£38.50) per night. a modern private apartment sleeping up to 5 people. complete with a kitchen, washing machine, bathroom and balcony. a quiet local neighbourhood just a 10 minute walk from the bus station and 5 minutes from krupówki street.

zakopane costs in general are comparable to other polish cities such as poznan or kraków. prices are relatively cheap with a piwo costing you around 9PLN (£1.80). there is a lidl and biedronka in the centre. so plenty of opportunity to save on food and drink.

hike spots

morskie oko/czarny staw

morskie oko is without doubt the most popular hiking route. a tarmacked path filled with floods of families and even the odd pram pusher. it’s a fantastic option for beginners or simply people just looking for an enjoyable stroll with a wonderful reward. morksie oko is the largest lake in the tatra mountains. a crystal blue bed of water

getting to morskie oko is very easy. simply take a shuttle bus titled ‘morskie oko’ from the zakopane bus station to palenica białczańska. the journey takes 30 minutes and costs 10PLN (£2). to avoid the flocks of people be sure to leave early in the morning or alternatively in the early afternoon. entrance to the tatra national park, regardless of the entrance, will cost you 6PLN (£1.20) per day.

once reaching the stunning morskie oko lake you’ll have the chance to chill and reap the reward that is the stunning lake and towering rysy mountain. being the largest lake in the tatra mountains and a hypnotising bed of crystal clear blue water; it’s quite the sight for sore eyes. perch on the surrounding rocks and enjoy your packed lunch or grab some traditional polish food in schronisko PTTK morskie oko.

if you fancy an additional hike and a bit more of a challenge, then you can take on czarny staw. start by making your way around morskie oko. a 30 minute steep incline met with yet another glistening lake. on the way up you won’t be able to help but turn around in awe at morskie oko. after making your way back down, finish the circle around the lake and begin your descent.

palenica białczańska to morskie oko – 8km, 2h
morskie oko to czarny staw – 1.8km, 50m
czarny staw to morskie oko – 1.8km, 40m
morskie oko to palenica białczańska – 8km, 2h
round trip: 19.6km, 5.5h

+ option to go to rysy and back adding a total of 5.5h/6km

dolina kościeliska/ornak ridge/dolina chochołowska

the second hike we did was across ornak ridge via two valleys: starting at dolina kościeliska and ending at dolina chochołowska. this is without doubt my toughest hike to date but also the most rewarding. acclaimed by some as the best hiking views in the tatra mountains and the best route in the western tatra range, it makes for a fantastic day. a delightful mixture of tested physical endeavour and breathtaking views.

getting to dolina kościeliska is easy enough. head to the bottom of krupówki street and catch a shuttle bus titled ‘dolina kościeliska’ or ‘kiry’. the bus will cost you 8PLN (£1.60) and takes 15 minutes. for this hike be sure to leave in the morning allowing yourself plenty of time to embark on this adventure. following from this point is the perfect moment for story time. a tale of two naive wanderers with none of the gear and absolutely no idea.

setting the tone for the hike early doors, we stepped off the shuttle at kiry and began our walk in the opposite direction to dolina kościeliska. our amateur hiking skills immediately exposed, unable to notice that we were walking away from the 2,000m+ tatra mountains range. this was the first red flag and we hadn’t even got to the first valley yet. start as you mean to go on and all that.

dolina kościeliska is a stunning valley that follows a river and gorge area up towards ornak. a easy stroll with plenty of pleasant areas to stop and ponder over the rushing fresh river waters. following the green trail, the walk to ornak is approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes. once there you’ll be met with PTTK shelter on hala ornak. a quaint cabin that serves as the perfect checkpoint for a break before the real adventure begins. i touch more on the shelter itself and it’s delicious assets later in the blog.

content and with our bellies filled it was time to embark on the yellow trail to iwaniacka przełęcz. this 1 hour 20 minute walk is a constant incline, narrow at points and involves crossing streams (great chance to stock up on water).

iwanicka przełęcz was the point i suspected we’d perhaps bitten off more than we could chew. there was an option to hike down through chocholowska taking 1 hour 10 minutes. however, we came all this way to see the ornak ridge and accomplish a challenging hike. through our ambition driven eyes we were blind to the feat we were embarking on. so, we cracked on. it was 1 hour and 30 minutes to ornak ridge then a further 35 minutes along the ridge eventually descending to siwa przełęcz.

walking up to the ridge was arduous and very daunting at times; narrow in nature, overgrown and having to scramble over large rocks. we encountered nothing but passing hikers saying ‘cześć’ and heading quickly in the opposite direction – DOWN the mountains. a sign perhaps? regardless, regular breaks and fixated on the potential beauty ahead of us, we pushed on.

by this point we felt totally detached from the world; unsure of where we were and unable to see anything outside a few meters ahead of us. we were engulfed by nature, surrounded by fog and grounded only by the odd tweeting bird. i had never experienced the saying ‘deafening silence’ until this moment. the only positive being the incline had now turned into a gradual plateau, albeit briefly. emerging from the fathomless fog like a dose of unwanted news on a monday morning was an intimidating jagged peak. confronted with more almost blind scrambling at 2000m and no view to revel in, motivation was lacking. we simply hoped we were reaching the next checkpoint and soon.

then a special moment occurred. the fog flowing over the mountain tops, oozing between it’s creases and hovering above the mountain peaks. from one look down to a gaze up it began to clear. the opaque view of our surroundings made visible and reality coming back to us. it was all worth it for just that moment.

checkpoint in sight we briskly headed towards it. met with ‘dolina chochołowska 2 hour 25 minutes’, at nearly 7pm and the sun setting, it was time to get the hell off this mountain. a deep breath and a moment of achievement cut short by the lack of daylight left. we began our descend down the rocky, steep black trail.

in and out of forrest, trodding through streams, mud and uneven rocky surfaces, we were losing light very fast. conscious of this, the pace was upped significantly. better to pick up an ankle sprain than to be lost in the tatra mountains was my new mantra.

roughly an hour into our descent, the sun had fully set and darkness was all around us. trees now nothing but frightening silhouettes as our surroundings turned sour. armed with nothing but 2 soggy rolls and an iphone torch between us; we were absolutely not equipped for the conditions. with our visions diminished and the echoing noises of wildlife around us; panic set in.

practically jogging at this point, tripping over and with soggy everything; we moved. following the black trail as much as we possibly could, it became a guessing game and a path based on hope and desire. yet, so far so good. until our nightmare; a fork in the trail with no hint of direction. we were officially lost.

my instinct said right, nicole said nothing. in fact, and nicole will admit this, it was now up to me to get us out of this. after second guessing once or twice, now wasn’t the time for my natural libra indecisiveness to kick in and so we went with my initial gut instinct. we continued for maybe 30 minutes, our minds playing tricks on us and nicole’s lack of presence and noticeable stress slowly getting to me. it had reached the point where nicole began to utter ‘lets call someone, we need help’. then, a metaphorical light of hope; a fellow human being. good or bad? there was only one way to find out.

‘przepraszam, przepraszam, przepraszam bardzo!’ my voice getting louder and more desperate with each utterance. the mad man marching into the unknown with no torch became our hero. with a mixture of polish and english, we got the answer we so desperately wanted. the exit was just a 45 minute hike from where we stood previously helpless. following the soothing sound of the valley river to our side, we knew this was only good news and pushed on with nothing but adrenaline. now with the ending in sight, we really upped the pace.

20 minutes into the walk we saw two lights ahead of us. two dots perceived to us as two lights of life and therefore two lights of safety. only this is when the horror imagination spiralled. the couple disappeared. only to re-appear behind us on scooters. at this point i had no idea what to think. trying to make it seem normal to calm us both i would laugh it off and play it down as if it was a normal thing for polish hikers to do. reminiscent of a scene from the purge, they scooted on passed us. luckily for us not taking our heads with them.

so we continued to follow the path to witów-siwa polana, according to our saviour, just 45 minutes from civilisation. at this point it felt like forever. stuck in a black mirror-like episode; a never-ending loop. endless darkness, barking dogs and the sounds of clanging chains echoing around us. passing a grave to our right and a cult-like fire to our left; the charming wooden huts by day had become mere props for a tara mountains horror movie.

the last stretch of terror was almost over. ahead was a flickering red light, a lit up restaurant and what was to be our saving grace: the witów carpark. now we had gotten out of the mountains just after 9pm, the task of getting back to zakopane seemed easy. we were invincible, anything was possible at this point.

in the near empty carpark, we found a couple. asking them for taxi details, they offered us a lift saying ‘this has actually happened to us before. of course we said yes and we hitchhiked back safely with our faith in humanity restored. poland pulled through for me once again and after all of that, i think i’m ready to take on everest.

points of interest

krupówki street: the lively heart of zakopane. granite carved pavements, horses, cabins and a bustling pedestrian promenade. with a ‘down town’ vibe, the street is filled with bars, cafes, restaurants and shops.
chochołowskie termy: a waterpark featuring a vast amount of thermal pools, jacuzzis, slides, spas & saunas. the perfect place to relax for the day following strenuous hikes. find the price list at: https://www.chocholowskietermy.pl/en/price-list/
gubałówka hill: take the 5 minute funicular up the hill for a return trip price of 25PLN (£5). alternatively hike up the 1500m path to an assent of 300m. at the top you’ll find a theme park environment with rides, bars, restaurants and such. for us it was a fantastic spot to end the day at. catch the sunset over zakopane and the surrounding tatra mountains perched with a hot chocolate or beer in hand and take the last rie down at 8pm.
PTTK shelter on hala ornak: a 2* hotel on dolina kościeliska, a hiking and checkpoint but more importantly home to the best szarlotka in the region. grab a piece of this famous polish apple pie for just 12PLN (£2.40).
oscypek stools: available on most corners of zakopane. especially prevalent on and around krupowki street. pick up the traditional salted goats milk cheese for 1.50PLN-10PLN (30p-£2). exclusive to the tatra mountains region of poland, this is an absolute must.
STRH bistro art cafe: a cute cafe on krupówki street. serving breakfast, lunch and dinner for fair prices. completed with a modern bistro interior and a lovely window view over krupówki.
monte rosa: a pizzeria just off of krupówki street. numerous options to choose from and all for around 25PLN (£5). super friendly staff and one of the best pizzas i’ve had in poland!

revisiting a previous zakopane is the prime example of trusting in the process. i certainly got what i was searching for and then some. turns out when you mix polish culture and nature you get a very very happy me. making zakopane one of my favourite spots in poland, europe and the world so far.