Červené vrchy
Vörös-hegyek HU
(Red Peaks)

Glossary
wierch/vrch = peak
turnia = crag
grzbiet/hrebeň = ridge
przełęcz/sedlo = saddle/pass
dolina = valley

Above photo - view from ESE: Krzesanica left, Małołączniak centre
- by Tomek Lodowy

Czerwone Wierchy are made up of three summits at around 2,100m each - Krzesanica at 2,122m, Małołączniak and Ciemniak at 2,096m each (photo and map below) plus a fourth, easternmost peak named Kopa Kondracka at 2,005m. The name Czerwony Wierch (singular) was originally used for Małołączniak whereas today the Czerwone Wierchy (plural) is the name of the four-summit massif between Dolina Kościeliska in the west nad Tomanowa Przełęcz/Tomanovské sedlo (1686m) in the southwest, and the two passes north and east of Kopa Kondracka in the east. All the red in the toponyms here, although indirectly, is connected with the rock type. But this time the colour does not result from the usual suspect, the rusty iron compounds, despite iron ore having been mined in the sides of the massif a couple of centuries ago. On the limestone and dolomite rocks that form the bulk of the Red Peaks lies a granitoid, acidic cap of Małołączniak, which yields poor soil, only good enough for some hardy grasses, such as highland rush and the endemic Oreochloa disticha, which turn red easily and early, already in July.

The north face of Czerwone Wierchy:
Wielka Turnia (far left); Czerwony Grzbiet & Małołączniak left of centre; centre: Krzesanica; top right: Ciemniak - photo by Konrad Sus.

Małołączniak

Malolúčniak (once Czerwony Wierch, i.e. Red Peak), 2096m

Wielka Świstówka

Kopa Kondracka (left)
& Małołączniak (right)

The walls of Wielka Turnia, literally Great Crag (right), plunge into Dolina Małej Łąki (Valley of Little Meadow) from the NE edge of the Red Ridge, whose top gently rises towards the summit of Małołączniak. Wielka Turnia is 1847m high, approx. 350m tall, and offers fun, especially winter climbing - unfortunately forbidden recently.

Little Meadow
& Great Crag (centre)

Besides, Małołączniak's bowels contain the largest cave system in the Tatras.

Małołączniak shot from the trail to Giewont - photo by Henryk.

The Blue Trail

While in Zakopane, you get on any of the frequently running buses or minibuses heading for Dolina Kościeliska/Chochołowska and get off at the stop called Gronik. The trailhead is a few hundred metres back towards Zakopane from the bus stop. If you come by car, you can park it right at the trailhead.

The trail leads rather gently up the stream until after about 20 minutes you get to the junction with the yellow trail. Then a steeper part follows, which takes you to a broad pass named Przysłop Miętusi, where several trails intersect. That's a good spot to have a snack and admire a dramatic view of the north, craggy walls of Czerwone Wierchy.

From Przysłop Miętusi

Through fireweed under crags.

Core part of ascent

Having left Przysłop Miętusi the blue trail turns into a narrow path, which sticks to the eastern flank of Miętusia Dolina and runs along the contour line of 1200m, through the forest with plenty of wind-felled conifers and fireweed. It is now really hard to imagine but in the 19th century this part of the trail served the miners who excavated iron ore in the tunnels dug into the rock below your feet. The iron was then smelted where today the lower cable car station stands. An alternate name of our blue trail is the Miner Track...

Now our route climbs up the slope a little, still less than a hundred metres, then again continues almost horizontally. Spectacular views open up towards the huge, glacially moulded steps of the Litworowa and Mułowa valleys, which form the headwall of Miętusia Dolina that is called Wielka Świstówka. All the three cirques are devoid of tarns as this is karst terrain.

Upper reaches of the couloir

Giewont seen from Red Ridge

Glance back: Giewont

But our trail, unfortunately, doesn't go up the steps leading to the cirques (that would be more than YDS class 4), but turns left to enter a wide couloir named Kobylarz, just like the rib and the crag on its left. There's lots of scree, some interesting flora in the early summer, and even about a dozen metres of steel chain to secure your passage by the only one class 3 point en route. Having hiked around 3 hours, you finally reach the gently sloping top of Czerwony Grzbiet (Red Ridge). Another nice place to have a little rest, an interesting view of Giewont, after 5 p.m. chamois highly likely. (Once I was lucky to encounter a bold young buck that barred the trail, hissing at me and kicking the ground with his front hoof so that I wouldn't dare get closer to his two female companions.) The last - rather gentle although about 250m up - section of the trail will take you to the summit of Małołączniak in less than half an hour.

Distance: 7.5km
Time: 3.5h
Elevation Gain: 1,170m
Extra elevation gain on Małołączniak-Krzesanica-Ciemniak: total 110m (time: 0.5h)
Back down to bus stop/car park from Ciemniak/Małołączniak: 2.5h

A westerly view from the summit of Małołączniak - photo by PiotrB.

Krzesanica

Kresanica, 2122m

The south face of Červené vrchy; Kresanica in the centre - photo by Konrad Sus.

Krzesanica is the highest limestone summit within the territory of Poland. Its finest feature is its northwestern, vertical face which forms the headwall of the Mułowa Dolina. There are cliffs on its northeastern flank too, and southerly, into the Slovak territory, Kresanica sends a craggy spur called Rozpadlý grúň, which looks fairly similar to the Czerwony Grzbiet of Małołączniak.

Rozpadlý grúň

Top of Krzesanica

Kresanica on the left

Ciemniak

Temniak, 2096m

The west face from across Dolina Kościeliska. Tomanowa Przełęcz on the right.
The red trail runs all the way along the shoulder left of the summit - photo by Visentin.

Kominiarski Wierch seen from trail to Ciemniak

View from the red trail

On the red trail

Nearing the summit

Kopa Kondracka

Kondratova kopa, 2005m

Kopa Kondracka shot from the trail to Giewont - photo by Henryk.

Zakopane cable car

Halfway from cable car

Dolina Kondratowa

From the upper station of the cable car at Kasprowy Wierch, it takes less than two hours' hike to get to the summit of Kopa Kondracka via a pretty scenic part of the Tatras' main ridge. However, unless you go off season, trying to get a ticket can be difficult and time-consuming, or simply put, a waste of time.

Getting There

Zakopane sits at the foot of the Tatra Mountains about 100 km south of Kraków, where there's an international airport. BTW Talking of Europe's medieval architecture, the city of Kraków certainly boasts one of the most interesting old towns in East Central Europe: Hopefully all you need to know about Kraków.

It should take you less than two hours to drive from Kraków to Zakopane, but at the weekend or in high season, it can take much more than 3.5 hours, which is how long a journey by train lasts. Here's the bus timetable (The station adjoins the central railway station "Kraków Główny")

Czerwone Wierchy far left,
cable car station on the right

Little Meadow in 1917

W face of Red Ridge
from red trail, mid-1990's

Apart from the options depicted in the above chapter, from the outskirts of the town of Zakopane - the Polish, bigger version of Chamonix - a few marked trails lead to the tops of Czerwone Wierchy. In my view, the most interesting – scenic and with relatively little traffic – is the blue trail. But the yellow trail through the compact glacial trough of Dolina Małej Łąki (Valley of Little Meadow) is hardly less attractive in terms of scenery. From Dolina Kościeliska a red trail toils up along the divide between the Kościeliska and Miętusia valleys, to the summit of Ciemniak. There is also a longer, all green variant – see the map – which is a bit more interesting. (I would recommend it for the first half of the hike whereas the shorter route is fine for a quick descent.)

The descent to Dolina Kościeliska from Ciemniak

On the spur running north from Ciemniak (red marks - see Ciemniak chapter)

Access from Slovakia doesn't make much sense, although it is possible. The marked route was designed in order to discourage you from crossing the border with Poland (now no problem any more) and takes a terribly long detour.

Maps & Red Tape

To quickly find the trails on an excellent Slovak online map, click hľadaj bod on the green bar in its top right-hand corner, then select the middle section and pastetype these coordinates:
N: 49.24
E: 19.92
Finally click hľadaj just below them.

There is also a good, older (before the Schengen pact embracing Poland and Slovakia) Polish map to be seen online, which has info on the times needed to walk the trails. You can purchase its paper version here.

Krzesanica (Ciemniak beyond it) from Małołączniak; Slovak W Tatras in background

Red Tape
In Poland, you have to pay for entry to the Tatra Mountains National Park – the fee is currently about €1 per day (a weekly pass: €4). The park rules are quite strict. In a nutshell, you are only allowed to walk along the marked trails. Rock climbing in the Western Tatras is forbidden for nature conservation reasons.

In Slovakia, you don't pay an entry fee but the trails are closed from 1 November to 15 June. Here are the detailed regulations for various fun activities.

Slovakia left, Poland right - photo by Tomek Lodowy.

Danger & Weather

Czerwone Wierchy seem to be incapable of creating any problems but several dozen people have perished on them. Most of the accidents have happened in wintry conditions (which does not necessarily mean winter, summer snow occasionally occurs too), but the summer fog has led to fatal accidents also as some people have fallen down the northern craggy walls after taking the wrong turn while trying to descend.
Mountain rescue team's phone number: (+48) 601100300

Southernmost bluff of
Czerwony Grzbiet

From the west

From the east

Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar | Hurricane Center

WEBCAM: towards Giewont (centre) and Małołączniak (right)

another 6-day forecast for Zakopane

avalanches?

Accommodation

Hut in the Kondratowa Valley

"Ornak" Hut in the Kościeliska Valley

Accommodation in Zakopane

Glossary:

Hala Kondratowa Hut

Inside

Noclegi/Kwatery/Zakwaterowanie - Accommodation
Apartamenty – self-catering flats/apartments
Domki - chalets
Ośrodki wypoczynkowe – lower standard hotels/guesthouses/holiday camps

"Ornak" Hut

Pola namiotowe – rudimentary campsites
Wille – B&B/guesthouses
Campingi - campsites
Motele – motels
Pensjonaty – B&B/guesthouses
Wynajem pokoi – guesthouses
Hotele – hotels (varied standard)

Considering the crowds and prices in Zakopane, especially if you happen to have to go in peak season, it may be a better idea to stay in one of the numerous villages in the Podhale area

, just north of the Tatras.