In less than two minutes we give you an overview of our hike to the mountain lakes Morskie Oko & Przedni Staw, located in the Polish High Tatras.
After we had a car ride of over 27 hours from Montenegro to Slovakia (30-31 July), thanks to the Serbian-Hungarian customs near Horgos, we decided to go for a less challenging hike in the High Tatras on 1 August 2022. So, we headed towards Poland for a walk towards Morskie Oko (1,395 m), a beautiful iconic mountain lake in the Polish High Tatras. We parked our car near the Slovak-Polish border in Lysá Poľana (967 m, Slovakia), about 2 km away from the entrance desks of the Tatrzański Park Narodowy. In contrary to Slovakia, in Poland a small fee is charged to enter the High Tatras National Park (remember to have Polish złoty in your pocket). Despite the amazing nature, … from the very beginning it was clear that it was going to be very crowded, with many hundreds of cars parked along the road, buses coming and going, and the endless queues at the ticket booths … The walk to Morskie Oko (via Bielovodská dolina and Dolina Rybiego Potoku) is entirely on a gently sloping paved road that is walked by many thousands of hikers, except for a few short cuts you can take, and tens of covered wagons pulled by horses. The crowds were immense and unseen to us and became even worse at the lake itself, where it seemed like we were at the entrance to a music festival … so we (unfortunately) quickly decided to leave this beautiful location. We continued hiking over Świstowa Kopa (1,875 m) and Świstowa Czuba (1,763 m) to Przedni Staw (1,668 m) (blue trail), located in the nearby valley Dolina Pięciu Stawów Polskich. From the top of Świstowa Czuba you also had a great view on the other two lakes in the valley: Wielki Staw and Czarny Staw. Here, we could enjoy nature, away from the crowd. We had a meal in the mountain hut near the lake. Afterwards, we started our way back via Dolina Roztoki.
So …, should you hike to the iconic Morskie Oko or the less known Przedni Staw (Dolina Pięciu Stawów Polskich)? If you like to enjoy nature in peace while hiking, definitely opt for option 2 during the summer. If you don't mind lots of people during your nature experience, then Morskie Oko is more spectacular, as the iconic lake is surrounded by the steep flanks of some of the highest peaks of the High Tatras, including Polands highest mountain (Rysy - 2,499 m) ... but you have been warned ...
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↔ 22.4 km
↕ 1,011 m
Duration: 8 hours (incl breaks)
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- ABOUT US -
We are a Belgian family with three kids (Kyllian °2009, Iluna °2012, Jaylinn °2015). We are hiking intensively since 2015. By bringing our children into contact with nature in many unique regions, we want to make them aware of the fragility of nature, which we should all cherish. We hope that watching our videos can inspire you, give you a moment of joy or can give you inspiration for your own holidays. All the best! Thomas & Lesley
- CREDITS -
Production: Thomas Verleye
Hikers: Jaylinn Verleye (°2015), Iluna Verleye (°2012), Kyllian Verleye (°2009), Lesley Vermeir & Thomas Verleye
Music: Aakash Gandhi – Till death parts us
