Przełęcz Karkonoska or Karkonosze Pass (, literally "Silesian Pass") is a mountain pass in the central

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 ...

on the Polish-Czech border. At , it is the lowest point of the main ridge of the Giant Mountains. In the Czech Republic, the area is also referred to as ''Špindlerova bouda'' ("Špindler's Hut"), after a

mountain hut A mountain hut is a building located at high elevation, in mountainous terrain, generally accessible only by foot, intended to provide food and shelter to mountaineering, mountaineers, climbing, climbers and Hiking, hikers. Mountain huts are us ...

located there. Another chalet, situated on the Polish side of the border, is called ''Odrodzenie''.

Tourism

The pass is accessible by a road either from

Špindlerův Mlýn Špindlerův Mlýn (; , formerly also ''Spindelmühle'') is a town in Trutnov District in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,100 inhabitants. It lies in the Giant Mountains and is one of the most frequented ski resort ...

, served by bus, or from Poland. The Polish road is said to be one the steepest roads in Poland with the average inclination 7.2%, reaching 24% at maximum. Although road quality on the Polish side is relatively poor, the pass is much sought after by mountain bikers. The pass is a hub of hiking trails, including the

Polish–Czech Friendship Trail The Polish–Czech Friendship Trail (, ) is a public walking path in the Giant Mountains. The path runs on both sides of the Czech–Polish border, along the main ridge and crosses or traverses all its summits. The maintenance of the trail is per ...

History

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the area was incorporated into

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

along with the

Sudetes The Sudetes ( ), also known as the Sudeten Mountains or Sudetic Mountains, is a geomorphological subprovince of the Bohemian Massif province in Central Europe, shared by the Czech Republic, Poland and Germany. They consist mainly of mountain rang ...

. At that time, the Nazis held the Allied prisoners of war in the ''Špindlerova bouda'' mountain hut. On the other hand, the Silesian (today Polish) mountain hut, was confiscated by Nazis as a property of a Jew and converted into a boarding house for

Hitlerjugend The Hitler Youth ( , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth wing of the German Nazi Party. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. From 1936 until 1945, it was t ...

members, and later into a hotel for Nazi officers. Following the

Fall of Communism The revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, were a revolutionary wave of liberal democracy movements that resulted in the collapse of most Marxist–Leninist governments in the Eastern Bloc and other parts of the world. Th ...

, presidents of Czechoslovakia and Poland met at the Przełęcz Karkonoska in 1990.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Przelecz Karkonoska Mountain passes of Poland Sudetes Czech Republic–Poland border crossings

Tourism

History

See also

References