Day 65 SLOVAKIA Hike & Zakopane

The host allowed us to park our car till the evening though we were checked out. We caught a train from Stary Smokvec to Strbske Pleso and the ride took 45 mins. The trains ran hourly and were nice trains with large windows to take in the view. The host also advised us to get the full day 7€ ticket because it was cheaper than each individual trip.

When we got to Strbske Pleso, we went to the visitors information and Ruby asked if the porters were still running supplies. To our astonishment they still are. They carry kegs, wood, supplies like Sherpas to the chalets not accessible by vehicle. The lady added that hikers sometimes volunteer to carry bags of flour, sugar and smaller items too.

There was a school group of teenagers that were very friendly and wanted to do selfies with us. After the exchange of country of origin, they declared they were Gypsy from Slovakia. Coincidentally Ruby's mum rang from Perth, the teenagers wanted to wave and speak to granny.

After a false start heading in the wrong direction, we started our hike from Strbske Pleso to Popradske Pleso. They are 2 huge Alpine Lakes. The hike was difficult because it was a constant climb for 4.5 km on rocky terrain. We had many rest stops on the way up and at one stop we dipped our feet in the freezing cold water from a running brook. It was so cold but refreshing. Only a 3 second dip was all that was tolerated with each dip, before the feet got painfully cold. Ruby had been doing this foot soak regularly so she tolerated a few seconds more.
Slower hikers didn't move out of the way to let you pass. They tended to hog the whole trail. We had to keep a reasonable distance so as not to make them feel that we were tailgating, plus the air was much fresher a few metres back. When the path widened and the rocks not too difficult to negotiate, we would then overtake them.

Both Plesos had crystal clear water and beautiful scenery. We had lunch at the chalet with magnificent mountain views.
I remembered wrongly thinking that the walk to the train station was only 15mins. We had no internet so I asked the chalet staff and they said 50mins to an hour. Remembering that the trains ran hourly, we walked so fast to the station not wanting to miss the train. We made it in record time of 40mins. Fortunately the walk was downhill on bitumen the whole way.

We then drove to the other side of the High Tatras to Zakopane Poland. Our start to Poland wasn't a good one. When we got out of the car at dinner, I discovered in a panic that I had left my wallet in the accommodation. If I had been calm, I would have realised that I had credit cards on my phone. We ended the evening with no dinner because it was too late by the time we drove back to the accommodation.Read more