Roháče is a long and demanding trail in Western Tatras. It goes along a ridge at about 2000 m a.s.l. and offers gorgeous views, exposure and steep rocks which force to concentration on every step. I was fascinated!
The trail starts at Volovec (2063 m) which is located at the border of Poland and Slovakia and ends at Brestová (1903 m). In the meantime you will get to among others Ostrý Roháč (2088 m), Plačlivé (2125 m), Hrubá kopa (2166 m), Baníkov (2178 m) and Salatín (2048 m). You can see the whole trail on mapa-turystyczna.pl/route?q=304n,1487n
It’s 10 km but because of difficulties it takes about 8 hours. To this amount you have to add a time required for ascent and descent from the trail. We spent two days on Roháče and we didn’t walk the whole.
Here you can see our trip:
We stayed in Chata Zverovka but there are also other accommodation places close to Roháče: Žiarska chata in Slovakia and shelter on Polana Chochołowska in Poland. You can stay also in Zuberec village in Slovakia. It’s 8 km from Zverovka and you can get from Zuberec to Zverovka by a car or a bus. We stayed one night in Zuberec and I can recommend Roman Pilarčík. We had clean comfortable room and big shared kitchen for only 9 euro. There are also hotels close to Chata Zverovka: Hotel Primula, Hotel Osobita and Penzión Šindľovec.
There are many possibilities for accommodation but the best is of course in mountains :) Prepare for great adventure!
If you start from Zverovka the same way as we did, the first 5 km would be easy and quite boring. It’s just a wide asphalt road in a forest. At the end of this road there is a restaurant Ťatliakova chata. It’s good idea to take advantage of it because it’s the only place on the trail where you can eat some hot dish.
From Ťatliakova chata we went by green trail to Rakoń and then to Volovec (Wołowiec). It’s also an easy part of the hike however nice landscapes start already there.
And if you look ahead you will see what waits for you :)
Fun begins on Ostrý Roháč. Steep rocks which require concentration and sure-footedness that’s what I like!
Further, difficult parts like on the photo above intersect with easy narrow paths, which let you rest from excitement and just soak up the views. You will not be bored there :)
First day we finished on Smutné sedlo where we turned right to blue trail and went down to Zverovka. This part of trail again is an easy hike, leading all time gently down.
Next day we went up again on Smutné sedlo, where we started another part of Roháče trail. Another cool hike with amazing views and demanding parts which will rise you adrenaline level!
Just after Smutné sedlo we saw a superb view on the summits we have reached the day before.
By the way, I wonder where does a name Smutné sedlo come from. In English it means “Sad Pass”. In this area there is also Smutna Dolina – Sad Valley and Plačlivé, which can be translated to “Tearful”. I was there joyful ;)
The part of trail we hiked second day is similar to first day. There are more difficult and more easy parts, and the whole trail leads along the ridge so landscapes are amazing.
It was Saturday in September and there was pretty many tourists.
We met dozens of people during whole day and I was the only one with helmet. I tell it everyone who tells I’m risky ;)
Because, you know, I call it “fun” and “cool”, but actually it’s also really dangerous. Everytime I hike on such difficult trail, I tell myself “you can die here”. Thinking this way motivates me to be careful on every step. But I know also that although my attention and experience, I can always make a mistake. And even if I don’t make a mistake, if there are so many tourists, someone can fall on me, push me or accidentally throw a stone on my head.
Two tourists on Roháče trail told me, that wearing here a helmet can be indeed a good idea and they admitted that next time maybe they would buy. I was feeling like trendsetter and I encourage you to join me ;)
See more photos from our trip below. As I said on the beginning, we didn’t walked the whole trail. We finished on Baníkovské sedlo and the rest I plan to hike in 2017.
If you think you would like this trail, read also my article about Orla Perć. It’s a trail in polish part of Tatra National Park, similar to Roháče.
Read also about 15 Best Places to Visit in Slovakia.
Thank you :)
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