practical information on the town of Zakopane and the region
The Tatras are Poland's only alpine-type mountains, indeed forming the highest part of the huge transboundary arc that is SE Europe's Carpathian chain. They cover just 785 km2, being only 57 km long in a straight line, and as little as 19 km wide. Yet they have a true mountain feel about them, rising to their highest elevation at 2654m Gerlach, on the Slovakian side. The Tatras are (...) conventionally divided into the Western Tatras, High Tatras and White Tatras. As has been implied, they form part of the state border between Poland and Slovakia that leaves just one-fifth (175 km2) on the Polish side, albeit with several fragments of extreme beauty and a highest summit - the north-western apex of Rysy - at an impressive 2499 m a.s.l.
by Maciek Krupa
