Kasprowy Wierch (; Slovak; ''Kasprov vrch''; sometimes in ''Kasper Peak'') is a peak of a long crest (ridgeline) in the

Western Tatras Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

one of

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

's main winter ski areas. Its dominant southern crests, WSW and ESE, mark the border with

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

. It is accessible in most conditions by foot and daily by cablecar.

History

From 1910 onwards Kasprowy Wierch became very popular among ski tourists so much so an

aerial tramway An aerial tramway, sky tram, cable car, ropeway, aerial tram, telepherique, or seilbahn is a type of aerial lift which uses one or two stationary ropes for support while a third moving rope provides propulsion. With this form of lift, the grip ...

or téléphérique, reaching almost to the summit, was built between 1935 and 1936 as such it is one of the oldest in Europe. As part of its modernization, the cabin aerial ropeway was closed for a period until December 2007. In 1938

meteorological Meteorology is a branch of the atmospheric sciences (which include atmospheric chemistry and physics) with a major focus on weather forecasting. The study of meteorology dates back millennia, though significant progress in meteorology did not ...

and

astronomical observatories An observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial, marine, or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geophysical, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed. His ...

were built here. One of the faint

Kordylewski cloud Kordylewski clouds are large concentrations of dust that exist at the and Lagrangian points of the Earth–Moon system. They were first reported by Polish astronomer Kazimierz Kordylewski in the 1960s, and confirmed to exist in October 2018. Di ...

s, at or circling the L4 and L5 Lagrange points of the moon, was first photographed here by

Kazimierz Kordylewski Kazimierz Kordylewski (born 11 October 1903 in Poznań – 11 March 1981 in Kraków, Poland) was a Polish astronomer. In 1956, he claimed the discovery of the Kordylewski clouds, large transient concentrations of dust at the Trojan points of th ...

in 1961.

Geography

The mountain is at the crossroads of four crests, two of which coincide with footpaths, incorporating steps, bounding Poland and Slovakia and in times without snow the steep paths heading into both countries south and north are quite easily traversable. The slight apex of the four steep crests (peak itself) is just north of the border, which is deemed to be a straight line relative to the two dominant ridges. Crossing the border between Poland and Slovakia is not restricted, since both countries are members of the

Schengen area The Schengen Area ( , ) is an area comprising 27 European countries that have officially abolished all passport and all other types of border control at their mutual borders. Being an element within the wider area of freedom, security and j ...

. Users of the cable car change cars midway in their ascent/descent, at mount Myślenicke Turnie. At the top station is a large restaurant/café/information office building with further ski lifts outside. The mountain is very popular among hikers from Poland, because of its easy accessibility, both on foot and by the cable car. However, it's much less visited from the Slovak side, because the ascent from the nearest settlement in Slovakia involves a lengthy (17 km) approach up a remote valley ''Tichá dolina''.

Climate

Without the existence of a summer, the climate is of

tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless moun ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (born 1951), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author and ...

: ''ET''), as found in the highest areas of the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

Cable cars and chairlifts

The cable cars are extremely popular and tourists regularly have to wait up to 3 hours to buy tickets – roughly the same time it would take to ascend the mountain on foot. The cable car service has caused environmental concerns and protests in 1935 and 2006. In 1961–1962 and in 1967–1968

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers, carrying a series of chairs. They ...

s were built on the slopes and they run in two sections.

Gallery

File:Kasprowy Wierch-Kasprov vrch winter 1.jpg, A

weather station A weather station is a facility, either on land or sea, with instruments and equipment for measuring atmospheric conditions to provide information for weather forecasts and to study the weather and climate. The measurements taken include tempera ...

on top of Kasprowy Wierch File:20161230 Kasprowy Wierch 2653.jpg, Kasprowy Wierch in winter File:High Tatras from Malolaczniak.jpg, Kasprowy Wierch seen from Malolaczniak File:Kasprowy Wierch cottage 1.jpg, Kasprowy Wierch cottage File:Kuźnice-Kasprowy Wierch-Beskid-Liliowe-Hala Gąsienicowa-Boczań-Kuźnice 4 - panoramio.jpg, Mountain trail to Kasprowy Wierch

References

External links

Zakopane – Kasprowy Wierch webcam

– access information. {{Authority control Mountains of Poland Mountains of Slovakia Poland–Slovakia border International mountains of Europe Western Tatras Mountains of the Western Carpathians