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Up, down, up, down......
We've just come back from a few days walking in the mountains - the idea being that we get in a bit of practice before the Inca Trail. Weird to think that we only climbed to about 2000m in the Tatras and we will be doubling that on the Inca trail with the highest point at 4200m.
There were plenty of ups and downs on our walks - literally and figuratively. To be honest, the weather was pretty crap! Though we did have the odd spell of sunshine. The reward of climbing over a hill and stumbling across some of the most beautiful lakes I have seen more than made up for it. We started to get more creative with our photos too, which you will see in the album. 7 months of Kate or Tim just standing next to something is going to get boring very quickly. I hope you enjoy the new style; chances are they'll get wackier as we go along!
On the first day we climbed up to Przedni Staw. Everything felt very green - the hills were reflected in the lake which was shrouded in a little mist. Rather picturesque and well worth the walk, though my body complained on the way up. On the way back we passed several crystal clear mountain streams and a spectacular waterfall. As we descended to the valley floor we walked through tall pine forests and mossy paths.
Day 2 took us up to Czarny Staw Gasienicowy and the five lakes. It wasn't the most pleasant start to the day, walking up an exposed face into driving icy rain. Luckily the Polish have this fantastic system of mountain lodges, perched in the most precarious and/or unexpected places. A hot chocolate or two later and with the weather looking a little better we continued up to the first lake. It was much bluer than the lake on Day 1 and a lot bigger. Ringed by craggy mountain peaks it looked rather wild.
The clear weather and the pretty scenery pushed us on and we climbed over the next ridge to the five lakes. A great place to stop for lunch and watch the world go by.... though not for too long as it was cold!
Day 3 involved a little stroll along the ridgeline that separates Poland from Slovakia. Yes, we were geeky and took some photos of ourselves with one leg in each country, but how could you not!? The mountains showed us how in control they were. Within a few minutes we went from clear skies and sunshine to snow (in September!). We were nicely rugged up though and trudged through the fog back home.
At this point I'd like to thank my Polish friend Karolina for her tips and suggestions (and to the English couple in our hostel who pointed out some good routes to take). We were only half thinking of visiting here and without Karolina's suggestions we might've given it a miss. I'm very glad we didn't as the photos are bound to show the wonderful things we saw. The area is also really well set up for walking. Maps are readily available with average times stated and the trails are really well marked.
I'd also like to recommend an excellent hostel in Zakopane (www.flamingo-hostel.com). We used this as our base and travelled to the mountains each day for our walks.
If any of our London friends are looking for something to do that's a bit different, this is well worth the trip. Take a long weekend and fly into Krakow. Zakopane is only 2hrs away by bus. Get in before they switch to the Euro and everything becomes more expensive.....
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