Overview
The little mountain range of
Chočské Vrchy, whose
Veľký Choc is the highest top, is strewn with some deep gorges running from North to South.
Since the north of the
Chočské Vrchy is a high elevated mountain plateau, and the surrounding ground is mostly made of limestone, water made its way through.
Prosiecka Dolina,3.5km long, is the most famous of these gorges, with
Kvačianska Dolina, for their size, but also because they are visitable by hiking trails.
Both together, they form a fine one-day loop. The little top of Prosečné, between them, can also be visited, for the fittests.
However, Prosiecka Dolina is very different than
Kvačianska Dolina. It is a dry narrow valley, whose upper part is equiped with many scales and gateways, in order to ease the scamble for tourists. These equiments are quite reminiscent of
those in the Rozsutec area or
Slovak Paradise.
Half-way down, the valley gets suddenly larger. There is a very high waterfall to visit at this spot, one hundred meters out of the trail, by a secondary trail (signs show it).
Later on, there is another spot where water surprisingly flows out of the ground at an amazing rate, to form a real river all at once from this very point. The limestone area of
Chočské Vrchy hosts many geologic secrets...
As we get nearer the lower end, there is one narrow pass where a chain helps the tourist to scramble the right shore of the river on the rocky wall. After that, the Prosiecka gorge suddenly ends, giving place to the wide landscape of the Liptov valley.
Getting There
Depending on where you come from in Slovakia, you must reach Ružomberok (west), Dolný Kubín (north), or Liptovský Mikuláš (east)
Then, from Liptovský Mikuláš or Liptovský Michal (on the A1 Motorway), reach the village of Prosiek.
Those who want to base in the north side of this valley must arrive to Velké Borové, accessible from the road 584 in the direction of Zuberec, or even better, driving from Zuberec.
From Poland, cross the border at Zwardoń, Chyżne, or Rajcza/Novot.
By public transport, Prosiek, Kvačany and Velké Borové are served by bus.
Red Tape
Chočské Vrchy, in which this valley is located, is a national park. Hence, it is strictly forbidden to leave the marked trail.
Do not try to rockclimb cliffs made of loose limestone.
Do not wildcamp in this area, which also hosts many bears.
Accomodation
B&B and hostels
There are many cheap accomodations at the inhabitant in Prosiek, Kvačany and Velké Borové.
To find such places, type in Google a place name with "Ubytovanie" ("Accomodation"), you'll get a handful of results.
More accomodations are available as you get closer to Liptovský Mikuláš, but they also get more expensive. This can be explained partly with the proximity of the thermal water resorts of
Bešeňová and
Tatralandia (which, however, I recommend you to try once, after an exhausting hike :)
Campsites
ATC Liptovský Trnovec is located in Liptovský Trnovec, near Liptovský Mikuláš, on the shore of the big lake Liptovska Mara.
Maps
The excellent online map of Chočské Vrchy on the site
horskakoza.org :
Another map is available here :
Links
My page about
Kvačianska Dolina and Prosiecka Dolina