Kamieńczyk Falls (pronounced: ; ; ) is the highest

waterfall A waterfall is any point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in seve ...

in the

Karkonosze National Park Giant Mountains National Park () is a National Park in the Giant Mountains in the Sudetes in southwestern Poland, along the border with the Czech Republic. The national park is located in Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in the highest part of the Sud ...

Lower Silesia Lower Silesia ( ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ) is a historical and geographical region mostly located in Poland with small portions in the Czech Republic and Germany. It is the western part of the region of Silesia. Its largest city is Wrocław. The first ...

, Poland, dropping a total of . It is located in the

Giant Mountains The Giant Mountains, Krkonoše, or Karkonosze (Czech: , , ), are a mountain range located in the north of the Czech Republic and the south-west of Poland, part of the Sudetes mountain system (part of the Bohemian Massif). The Czech–Polish bor ...

in the south-western part of the country and is ranked as the second highest waterfall in Poland.

Characteristics

Kamieńczyk Falls is situated at above sea level and consists of three main cascades. A man-made cave carved by Walloons known as ''Złota Jama'' (Golden Grotto) is located behind the middle cascade. The waterfall is 27 meters high, making it the country's second highest waterfall. It falls down into the Kamieńczyk Gorge (Polish: ''Wąwóz Kamieńczyka''), which is a 100-meter long canyon. A five-meter deep

plunge pool A plunge pool (or plunge basin or waterfall lake) is a deep depression in a stream bed at the base of a waterfall or Shut-in (river), shut-in. It is created by the erosion, erosional forces of cascading water on the rocks at the formation's bas ...

filled with blocks of rock is located at the feet of the waterfall. It can be found along a trail from

Szklarska Poręba Szklarska Poręba () is a town in Karkonosze County, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, in south-western Poland. The town has a population of around 6,500. It is a popular ski resort. An important regional and national centre for mountain hiking, cycli ...

Szrenica Szrenica (1,362 m a.s.l.; , ) is a mountain peak situated in the western part of Giant Mountains in Poland, very close to the Polish-Czech border, within the Karkonosze National Park. Its name originates from the Polish word ''szron'' (frost) and ...

History and tourism

In the 19th century, the waterfall became a tourist attraction following a growth of popularity of

hillwalking Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much uncultiva ...

. In 1800,

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

, future

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

, visited the waterfall as part of his extended tour of

Silesia Silesia (see names #Etymology, below) is a historical region of Central Europe that lies mostly within Poland, with small parts in the Czech Silesia, Czech Republic and Germany. Its area is approximately , and the population is estimated at 8, ...

. Princess Izabela Czartoryska was among other notable visitors of the site in this period. German garden architect Hermann Mächtig designed the waterfall when laying out Berlin's Victoria Park on the

Kreuzberg Kreuzberg () is a district of Berlin, Germany. It is part of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Berlin-Mitte, Mitte. During the Cold War era, it was one of the poorest areas of West Berlin, but since German reunification in ...

between 1888 and 1894 inspired by the Kamieńczyk Falls (then known as Zackelfall). In 1890, the Karkonosze Society officially granted access to the waterfall to visitors. Due to repeated accidents, a protective net was installed on the route to the falls, which prevented rocks from falling on the visitors. In order to visit the waterfall, tourists need to pay an admission fee. Visiting is permitted only in specified hours. Each visitor receives a safety helmet before entering the gorge leading to the waterfall. Two mountain shelters are located near the waterfall: "Kamieńczyk" and "Szałas Sielanka". The waterfall was featured in

Andrew Adamson Andrew Ralph Adamson (born 1 December 1966) is a New Zealand film director, producer, screenwriter and animator. He is best known for directing the DreamWorks Animation, DreamWorks animated film ''Shrek'' (2001), which is based on the Shrek!, ...

's 2008

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually Magic (paranormal), magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The Film genre, genre is considered a form of speculative fic ...

'' The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian''.

Legend

A local legend has it that the water flowing in the waterfall contains the tears of seven

rusalka In Slavic folklore, the rusalka (plural: rusalki; , plural: русалки; , plural: ''rusałki'') is a female entity, often malicious toward mankind and frequently associated with water. It has counterparts in other parts of Europe, such as th ...

s grieving over the death of one of them named Łabudka, who died by falling into a precipice while searching for her beloved Kamieńczyk Bronisz. Łabudka had been warned by her sisters to stay away from the human, however, she wouldn't listen to them. She handed him her precious jewels, which he intended to sell in order to obtain money to help his ill mother. When her lover did not return, she went out from

Łabski Szczyt Łabski Szczyt or Violík (in Polish and Czech) () is a mountain peak located in the western Giant Mountains on the Czech-Polish border. The source of the Elbe (Labe) River, one of Europe's major rivers, is situated on the southern (Czech) slope ...

looking for him. Unfortunately, when she saw Kamieńczyk, she slipped and fell down a precipice to her death.

Gallery

File:Kamienczyk Waterfall Old 03.jpg, An early 20th-century German postcard featuring the waterfall File:Zackelfall.jpg, Kamieńczyk Falls in summer File:Wodospad Kamieńczyka-zima.jpg, Kamieńczyk Falls in winter File:Schronisko Kamieńczyk.JPG, "Kamieńczyk" mountain shelter located near the waterfall

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kamienczyk Falls Cascade waterfalls Landforms of Lower Silesian Voivodeship Sudetes Waterfalls of Poland Tourist attractions in Lower Silesian Voivodeship

Characteristics

History and tourism

Legend

Gallery

See also

References