Tatra Mountains · Moderate · There and back

Dolina Kościeliska and Smreczyński Staw from Kiry

Up the broad Kościeliska valley through its limestone gates to the Ornak hostel and the small Smreczyński Staw among the spruce.

Distance
14.3 km (8.9 mi)
Ascent
338 m
Time
About 4 h 30 min
High point
1,232 m
Grade
Moderate

Line © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), checked by Global Adventurer.

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Dolina Kościeliska and Smreczyński Staw from Kiry
Downar · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

The walk

From the national park's car park at Kiry, walk south into the Dolina Kościeliska on the green-marked track, past the Kantak gate, the meadows of Wyżnia Kira Miętusza and the chapel at Stare Kościeliska, where iron was once smelted. A short side path leads to Lodowe Źródło, a spring that runs at 4.5°C all year. The valley narrows through two more limestone gates to Polana Pisana, then climbs gently to the PTTK hostel on Hala Ornak. From there a black path rises through the forest to Smreczyński Staw. Return the same way.

It is 14.3 km there and back with 338 m of ascent; allow about 4½ hours. The grade is Moderate: a broad, easy track for most of the way.

A yellow side path from Polana Pisana leads into the Wąwóz Kraków gorge, which ends below a ladder; it is not part of this walk. The valley is open all year, but icy in winter. All Tatra paths are closed from dusk to dawn between 1 March and 30 November, and dogs are not allowed.

The park's car park at Kiry costs 30 zł a day. Buses run from Zakopane to Kiry. The park entry ticket is 11 zł.

Route drawn by Global Adventurer along OpenStreetMap paths (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), with figures worked out from it. Check the forecast and the ground on the day: paths change.

Good to know

  • A broad track up the Kościeliska valley through three limestone gates: Brama Kantaka, Brama Kraszewskiego and Brama Krakowska
  • The Lodowe Źródło spring beside the path runs at 4.5°C all year
  • Stare Kościeliska, the old mining settlement, keeps a chapel and the remains of an ironworks
  • Smreczyński Staw is a small moraine lake at 1,226 m among spruce

Summits on the way

  • Okręt 1,052 m · passed close by
  • Głucha Skała · passed close by

Getting there

Start: Kiry car park · Pay and display. 49.27599, 19.86719

Directions to the start

Places to stay nearby

Rooms in and around Tatra Mountains: Booking.com → Expedia →

Affiliate links: if you book, Global Adventurer earns a small commission at no cost to you.

Paths change, and the weather decides the day. The line and figures come from OpenStreetMap and our own checks; take a map, check the forecast, and turn back if it isn't right.