Hi Steemians!
This is my next mountain trip. This time to the Kościelsika Valley and to the mountain glade called ''Stoły''. I invite you to read my short relation of August 5, 2017.
The Kościeliska Valley is the second largest valley in the Polish Tatras after the Chochołowska Valley. It is the most attractive valley in the entire Tatra Mountains. There are many ravines, caves, rocks and there is a mountain hostel. The length of the valley is about 9 kilometers. I start my trip in the village of Kiry (927 m a.s.l.). There are several parking lots, many restaurants and hotels. This is the starting place for this trip.
The first photo shows the rock formations located in the valley. The morning of that day was sunny and quite warm. Around 7 am I start walking through the Valley. I will also visit today a beautiful mountain glade, from which the view is in the photo above and the next two photos. The trip here is technically easy and I recommend this route to the Kościeliska Valley even for families with children. I think reaching the glade above also will not be a problem.
There is a blue trail about 2 kilometers long from the Kościeliska Valley to the Stoły glade. The starting point is at an altitude of 971 m a.s.l. and the glade is at an altitude of about 1,400 m a.s.l. So it takes about 1.5 hours to get from the Kościeliska Valley to this glade. The trail leads partly through the forest. Then we go higher and thanks to this we have views like in the photos. At the bottom of the valley you will not see such views.
In the old days this glade served as a place for grazing sheep. Today it is only a tourist place. There were a dozen or so wooden huts on it (currently there are only 3 left). They are placed in the national register of monuments and are protected. From this place we have beautiful views of Czerwone Wierchy and Giewont. In 1955, the glade had an area of about 11 hectares. Today it has about 6 hectares left.
After leaving the glade back to the Kościelisko Valley, I went to the mountain hostel, which is located at the end of the valley at an altitude of 1100 m a.s.l. The building was built in 1947. The hostel has 49 beds. Open all year round, this place always helps tourists, even in winter. I recommend visiting the Kościeliska Valley if you haven't been here yet. We invite foreign tourists to Poland. There are many attractions waiting for you. Greetings to all those who love mountains!
