Hello All!
With all the gloomy/rainy weather going on, we decided to sleep in a little today and save the hiking and adventuring until later in the afternoon when the rain was "supposed" to clear up. We had stopped by the grocery store the night before and had eggs, potatoes, and sausage, so Adam cooked us up a delicious breakfast. At around 1:00pm we made the decision to "go for it" and booked our lift tickets up Kasprowy Wierch, one of the peaks of the Tatras Mountains. There was an option for a round trip ticket, at a discounted price, but the plan was to hike down. The trail was only 4 miles, downhill, seemed like an easy walk.
We found parking space close-ish to the lift, but still had to walk uphill about a mile. Once we made it to the lift, we noticed that there weren't many people trying to go up. That just meant a ride all to ourselves. The lift was about 15 minutes to the top. Once we reached the peak, we found the other tourists. They have a nice little restaurant there too, so you can take a break before going on your way. We had bundled up because the temperature was about 42 degrees, so we figured it might be a little cooler at the top. And by a little, I mean a lot. It was 30 degrees! And super windy! At the end of May! I guess Spring doesn't start in Poland until June.
The second we stepped outside, I knew there was no way we were hiking down. The ground was covered in snow (a worker told us it had snowed just the night before), the wind was whipping right through us, and there didn't seem to be a soul in sight heading off down the mountain. Adam wanted to see if it was even possible to hike down. We walked for about 5 minutes, carefully treading through the boot-high snow and came to the trail. It was completed covered in snow, extremely slanted, and right next to a cliff. That was our sign to go back. Looks like we should have purchased that discounted return ticket while we had the chance!
Once we were back inside and gained feeling in our hands again, we stopped by the restaurant and had a snack. It was well deserved after our 5 minute hike in the snow. And after paying full price for another lift ticket, we were headed back down the mountain. Once at the bottom, we decided that we wouldn't be defeated so easily. There was a short 1 mile trail that led up to a lodge. That was our goal. We set off up the hill and after 30 minutes or so we made it! It sounded/looked like they were hosting a Polish wedding, but that didn't stop us from exploring! We even saw our first deer of the trip.
It was starting to get late, so we walked back down to our car and headed off to dinner at a restaurant called Marzanna. We were greeted by the smells of pork and potatoes, Polish staples if you haven't guessed by now. We ordered barszcz ( pronounced "barscht") It is a beetroot soup with dumplings. And we also ordered, pork kutlet with potatoes! Classic. At least there was a little salad this time. It looked like their take on coleslaw, but it was a welcome addition. We left feeling very full and ready for bed. This is our last night in Zakopane! Tomorrow we're off to new adventures, and hopefully nicer weather!!
Steps: 14,723
Miles: 6.9
Stairs: 94 flights
With all the gloomy/rainy weather going on, we decided to sleep in a little today and save the hiking and adventuring until later in the afternoon when the rain was "supposed" to clear up. We had stopped by the grocery store the night before and had eggs, potatoes, and sausage, so Adam cooked us up a delicious breakfast. At around 1:00pm we made the decision to "go for it" and booked our lift tickets up Kasprowy Wierch, one of the peaks of the Tatras Mountains. There was an option for a round trip ticket, at a discounted price, but the plan was to hike down. The trail was only 4 miles, downhill, seemed like an easy walk.
We found parking space close-ish to the lift, but still had to walk uphill about a mile. Once we made it to the lift, we noticed that there weren't many people trying to go up. That just meant a ride all to ourselves. The lift was about 15 minutes to the top. Once we reached the peak, we found the other tourists. They have a nice little restaurant there too, so you can take a break before going on your way. We had bundled up because the temperature was about 42 degrees, so we figured it might be a little cooler at the top. And by a little, I mean a lot. It was 30 degrees! And super windy! At the end of May! I guess Spring doesn't start in Poland until June.
The second we stepped outside, I knew there was no way we were hiking down. The ground was covered in snow (a worker told us it had snowed just the night before), the wind was whipping right through us, and there didn't seem to be a soul in sight heading off down the mountain. Adam wanted to see if it was even possible to hike down. We walked for about 5 minutes, carefully treading through the boot-high snow and came to the trail. It was completed covered in snow, extremely slanted, and right next to a cliff. That was our sign to go back. Looks like we should have purchased that discounted return ticket while we had the chance!
Once we were back inside and gained feeling in our hands again, we stopped by the restaurant and had a snack. It was well deserved after our 5 minute hike in the snow. And after paying full price for another lift ticket, we were headed back down the mountain. Once at the bottom, we decided that we wouldn't be defeated so easily. There was a short 1 mile trail that led up to a lodge. That was our goal. We set off up the hill and after 30 minutes or so we made it! It sounded/looked like they were hosting a Polish wedding, but that didn't stop us from exploring! We even saw our first deer of the trip.
It was starting to get late, so we walked back down to our car and headed off to dinner at a restaurant called Marzanna. We were greeted by the smells of pork and potatoes, Polish staples if you haven't guessed by now. We ordered barszcz ( pronounced "barscht") It is a beetroot soup with dumplings. And we also ordered, pork kutlet with potatoes! Classic. At least there was a little salad this time. It looked like their take on coleslaw, but it was a welcome addition. We left feeling very full and ready for bed. This is our last night in Zakopane! Tomorrow we're off to new adventures, and hopefully nicer weather!!
Steps: 14,723
Miles: 6.9
Stairs: 94 flights
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