The Low Tatras or Low Tatra ( sk, Nízke Tatry; hu, Alacsony-Tátra) is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have arise ...

of the

Inner Western Carpathians Divisions of the Carpathians are a categorization of the Carpathian mountains system. Below is a detailed overview of the major subdivisions and ranges of the Carpathian Mountains. The Carpathians are a "subsystem" of a bigger Alps-Himalaya ...

in central

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 located south of the

Tatras The Tatra Mountains (), Tatras, or Tatra (''Tatry'' either in Slovak () or in Polish () - ''plurale tantum''), are a series of mountains within the Western Carpathians that form a natural border between Slovakia and Poland. They are the high ...

proper, from which it is separated by the valleys of the

Váh The Váh (; german: Waag, ; hu, Vág; pl, WagWag
w Słowniku geograficznym Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów ...

and

Poprad Poprad (; hu, Poprád; german: Deutschendorf) is a city in northern Slovakia at the foot of the High Tatra Mountains, famous for its picturesque historic centre and as a holiday resort. It is the biggest town of the Spiš region and the ten ...

rivers (the Liptov-Spiš abasement). The valley formed by the

Hron The Hron ( sk, Hron; german: Gran; hu, Garam; la, Granus) is a long left tributary of the DanubeČertovica pass divides the range into two parts. The highest peaks of the Low Tatras are located in its western part.

Ďumbier Ďumbier (2,043 m or 6,703 ft) is the highest mountain in the Low Tatra range, in central Slovakia. Despite the remains of medieval mines (gold, iron, antimony), the massif is now protected as a part of the Low Tatras National Park. The e ...

is the highest mountain at 2,042 m

AMSL Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. Its neighbour

Chopok Chopok (2,024 m) is the third highest peak of the Low Tatra range (just after the neighboring Ďumbier and Štiavnica (mountain), Štiavnica mountains) in central Slovakia. The peak offers a panoramatic view of High Tatra, Liptov and the valley of ...

(2,024 m) is accessible by a

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 ...

, and it is the most visited place in the Low Tatras. Other peaks in the western part include

Dereše Dereše ( hu, Deres, 2,004 m) is the third highest peak of the Low Tatra range, in central Slovakia. It is located on the way between the highest mountains of the range, Ďumbier and Chopok Chopok (2,024 m) is the third highest peak of the Low ...

(2,004 m) and Chabenec (1,955 m). The highest peak in the eastern part is

Kráľova hoľa Kráľova hoľa (; german: link=no, Königsberg; hu, Király-hegy, literally "King's Bald Mountain") is the highest mountain (1,946 m) of the eastern part of the Low Tatras in central Slovakia. Four rivers rise at its foot: Čierny Váh, Hnile ...

(1,946 m). The best viewpoints in western part are Veľká Chochuľa, Salatín, Chabenec, Skalka, Chopok, Ďumbier, Siná, Poludnica and Baba. Several

karst Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

areas are situated in

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

and

dolomite Dolomite may refer to: *Dolomite (mineral), a carbonate mineral *Dolomite (rock), also known as dolostone, a sedimentary carbonate rock *Dolomite, Alabama, United States, an unincorporated community *Dolomite, California, United States, an unincor ...

strata In geology and related fields, a stratum ( : strata) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it is separated by visible surfaces known as ei ...

at the southern and northern edges of the main ridge, which is composed of

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

and

gneiss Gneiss ( ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. Gneiss forms at higher temperatures an ...

. Among many discovered caves, Bystrianska Cave (''Bystrianska jaskyňa''),

Cave of Dead Bats A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea c ...

(''Jaskyňa mŕtvych netopierov''), Demänovská jaskyňa Slobody, Demänová Ice Cave (''Demänovská ľadová jaskyňa''), and Važecká Cave (''Važecká jaskyňa'') are open to the public. The biggest canyon is Hučiaky under Salatín in Ludrová valley near Ružomberok (7 caves - not open for public), suitable for canyoning. The highest waterfall is under Brankov near Ružomberok - Podsuchá (55 m high), reachable by green marked footpath from Podsuchá (20 min). The biggest tarn is ''Vrbické pleso'' in the ''Demänovská dolina'' Valley. The mountains are densely forested and their rich fauna includes

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, and gray wolves, as popularly u ...

, and

lynx A lynx is a type of wild cat. Lynx may also refer to: Astronomy * Lynx (constellation) * Lynx (Chinese astronomy) * Lynx X-ray Observatory, a NASA-funded mission concept for a next-generation X-ray space observatory Places Canada * Lynx, Ontar ...

. The alpine meadows are the habitat of

chamois The chamois (''Rupicapra rupicapra'') or Alpine chamois is a species of goat-antelope native to mountains in Europe, from west to east, including the Alps, the Dinarides, the Tatra and the Carpathian Mountains, the Balkan Mountains, the Ril ...

National Park

Most of the Low Tatras is protected by the Low Tatras National Park (''Národný park Nízke Tatry''; abbr. NAPANT), established in 1978. The area of the National Park is 728 km² (281.08 mi²) and the buffer zone takes 1,102 km² (425.48 mi²); 1,830 km² (706.56 mi²) together.

Tourism

Tourism is very popular in the Tatras. During the winter there are several ski resorts in Low Tatras, for example

Jasná Jasná is a small village situated in central Slovakia, in the Low Tatras mountains. It is a part of the municipality Demänovská Dolina. Skiing venue The Jasná area resorts have a total of more than 30 lifts on all sides of the Chopok Mount ...

Mýto pod Ďumbierom Mýto pod Ďumbierom ( hu, Vámos) is a village and municipality in Brezno District, in the Banská Bystrica Region of central Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a ...

, and Tále. Not only are these hubs of hiking and cross-country skiing trails, but Jasna is the largest ski resort in Central Europe and is served by the tourist town of Liptovsky Mikulas. Liptovsky Mikulas also offers a range of summer activities such as rafting, kayaking, boating on the lake, fishing, a hot springs aqua park and hiking. There are many places to stay, restaurants and bars in the town. The steep northern slopes of the range are popular with climbers. Other attractions include an 18-hole golf course near Tále. The ''Path of the heroes of Slovak national uprising'' follows the axis of the mountain range. At the very top there are several huts or hotels that can offer refuge to those who want to traverse the entire range from east to west. Low Tatras are also a popular destination for Czech tourists.An article about Low Tatras at cestovani.idnes.cz
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Panorama views

References

External links

Low Tatras National Park at Slovakia.TravelMap of eastern part of the Low Tatras
{{Authority control Mountain ranges of Slovakia Mountain ranges of the Western Carpathians

National Park

Tourism

Panorama views

See also

References

External links