Orla Perć
Encyclopedia
Orla Perć is a tourist path in the Tatra Mountains
in southern Poland
. It is considered the most difficult and dangerous public path in the entire Tatras and is therefore a suitable destination only for experienced tourists and climbers. The path is marked with red signs. Since it was established, more than one hundred people have lost their lives on the route, the most frequent cause being slips and trips on the snowy surface and the slippery granite.
. The total length of the accessible route is 4.5 km. Total walking time (summer, depending on trails conditions) varies between 6 and 8 hours. The highest point is Kozi Wierch at 2291 m amsl
. The path starts at Zawrat pass (2159 m amsl) and finishes at Krzyżne pass (2112 m amsl), leading through several peaks and traversing others. The path is exposed, leading mostly along the mountain ridge. Numerous aids for tourists are provided at the most steep and vertical stretches, including ladders, stepladders, chains and metal steps. The most frequent ground constitutes mainly granite
slab, rough rubble
and uneven surface. The path is linked to other routes; there are altogether eight junctions with other paths, leading to mountain shelters and chalet
s. The stretch from Zawrat pass - Kozi Wierch is one-way only. Falling stones and avalanche
s are possible along the route.
. The appeal met with different reactions from groups and professional lobbies involved in the tourist business. It was concluded that this is a historic trail, and will remain unchanged. As many accidents that took place when passing the tourists going in opposite directions Directorate TPN since July 2007 has introduced a one-way traffic at the merest track on the section from Zawrat to Kozi Wierch.
Tatra Mountains
The Tatra Mountains, Tatras or Tatra , are a mountain range which forms a natural border between Slovakia and Poland, and are the highest mountain range in the Carpathian Mountains...
in southern Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. It is considered the most difficult and dangerous public path in the entire Tatras and is therefore a suitable destination only for experienced tourists and climbers. The path is marked with red signs. Since it was established, more than one hundred people have lost their lives on the route, the most frequent cause being slips and trips on the snowy surface and the slippery granite.
Technical data
The route is located in the centre of High TatrasHigh Tatras
High Tatras or High Tatra are a mountain range on the borders between Slovakia and Poland. They are a part of the Tatra Mountains...
. The total length of the accessible route is 4.5 km. Total walking time (summer, depending on trails conditions) varies between 6 and 8 hours. The highest point is Kozi Wierch at 2291 m amsl
Above mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
. The path starts at Zawrat pass (2159 m amsl) and finishes at Krzyżne pass (2112 m amsl), leading through several peaks and traversing others. The path is exposed, leading mostly along the mountain ridge. Numerous aids for tourists are provided at the most steep and vertical stretches, including ladders, stepladders, chains and metal steps. The most frequent ground constitutes mainly granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
slab, rough rubble
Rubble
Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture. This word is closely connected in derivation with "rubbish", which was formerly also applied to what we now call "rubble". Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as brash...
and uneven surface. The path is linked to other routes; there are altogether eight junctions with other paths, leading to mountain shelters and chalet
Chalet
A chalet , also called Swiss chalet, is a type of building or house, native to the Alpine region, made of wood, with a heavy, gently sloping roof with wide, well-supported eaves set at right angles to the front of the house.-Definition and origin:...
s. The stretch from Zawrat pass - Kozi Wierch is one-way only. Falling stones and avalanche
Avalanche
An avalanche is a sudden rapid flow of snow down a slope, occurring when either natural triggers or human activity causes a critical escalating transition from the slow equilibrium evolution of the snow pack. Typically occurring in mountainous terrain, an avalanche can mix air and water with the...
s are possible along the route.
History
The path was conceived in 1901, the brainchild of Franciszek Henryk Nowicki, Polish poet and mountain guide. The route was constructed and marked between 1903 and 1906; however the junctions and other auxiliary routes were led and marked by 1911. After several fatal accidents, in 2006 a mountain guide Irena Rubinowska and Piotr Mikucki, the film director, launched an appeal to the authorities of the Tatra National Park to dismount all climbing aids along the path and change it to via ferrataVia ferrata
A via ferrata or klettersteig is a mountain route which is equipped with fixed cables, stemples, ladders, and bridges. The use of these allows otherwise isolated routes to be joined to create longer routes which are accessible to people with a wide range of climbing abilities...
. The appeal met with different reactions from groups and professional lobbies involved in the tourist business. It was concluded that this is a historic trail, and will remain unchanged. As many accidents that took place when passing the tourists going in opposite directions Directorate TPN since July 2007 has introduced a one-way traffic at the merest track on the section from Zawrat to Kozi Wierch.
See also
- Tatra Volunteer Search and Rescue
- Tourism in PolandTourism in PolandPoland is a part of the global tourism market with constantly increasing number of visitors, particularly after joining the European Union. Tourism in Poland contributes to the country's overall economy. The most popular cities are Warsaw, Kraków, Wrocław, Gdańsk, Poznań, Lublin, Toruń and the...