Veľká Fatra National Park
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Veľká Fatra National Park ( sk, Národný park Veľká Fatra) is a National Park in
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 ...
. Most of it lies in the southern part of the
Žilina Region The Žilina Region ( sk, Žilinský kraj; pl, Kraj żyliński; hu, Zsolnai kerület) is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions and consists of 11 districts ( okresy) and 315 municipalities, from which 18 have a town status. The region ...
and a small part in the northern part of
Banská Bystrica Region The Banská Bystrica Region ( sk, Banskobystrický kraj, ; hu, Besztercebányai kerület, ) is one of the eight regions of Slovakia. It is the largest region by area, and has a lower population density than any other region. The Banská Bystri ...
. The national park and its protective zone comprise most of the
Greater Fatra Greater may refer to: *Greatness, the state of being great *Greater than, in inequality * ''Greater'' (film), a 2016 American film *Greater (flamingo), the oldest flamingo on record * "Greater" (song), by MercyMe, 2014 *Greater Bank, an Australian ...
Range ( sk, Veľká Fatra) which belongs to the Outer Western Carpathians. The National Park was declared on 1 April 2002 as an upgrade of the Protected Landscape Area ( sk, Chránená krajinná oblasť (CHKO) Veľká Fatra) of the same name established in 1972 to protect a mountain range with a high percentage of well-preserved Carpathian forests, with prevailing European beech, which cover 90% of the area in combination with ridge-top cattle pastures dating back to the 15th – 17th centuries, to the times of the so-called Walachian colonisation. In places there are also relict Scots pine forests and the Harmanec valley is notable as the richest Irish yew tree location in Central and probably all Europe. NP Veľká Fatra is also an important reservoir of fresh water thanks to high rainfalls and low evaporation in the area. The core of the range is built 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 un ...
which reaches the surface only in places, more common are various slates creating gently modelled ridges and summits of the so-called ''Hôlna Fatra'' and
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 w ...
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 creating a rough and picturesque terrain of the so-called ''Bralná Fatra''. There are also many karst features, namely caves, Harmanec Cave being the only one open to the public. Various rocks and therefore various soils, diverse type of terrain with gentle upland meadows and pastures, sharp cliffs and deep valleys provide for extremely rich
flora Flora is all the plant life present in a particular region or time, generally the naturally occurring ( indigenous) native plants. Sometimes bacteria and fungi are also referred to as flora, as in the terms '' gut flora'' or '' skin flora''. ...
and
fauna Fauna is all of the animal life present in a particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is '' flora'', and for fungi, it is '' funga''. Flora, fauna, funga and other forms of life are collectively referred to as '' biota''. ...
. All species of big Central European carnivores live abundantly there:
brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is k ...
,
grey 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 Eurasian lynx. The area is popular with tourists, mainly hikers and trekkers as there rather few resorts, located outside the National Park. The
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
World Heritage village of Vlkolínec with well-preserved log cabins lies nearby.


Small protected areas

As of February 2007, there were following small protected areas within the NP Veľká Fatra and its buffer zone:


Resources

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External links


Veľká Fatra National Park
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Slovakia.travel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Velka Fatra National Park National parks of Slovakia Protected areas of the Western Carpathians * Protected areas established in 2002 2002 establishments in Slovakia Tourist attractions in Žilina Region Geography of Žilina Region Tourist attractions in Banská Bystrica Region