Mountain range along the border of Slovakia and Poland
The High Tatras or High Tatra Mountains (German : Hohe Tatra ; Slovak : Vysoké Tatry; Rusyn : Высокі Татри , Vysoki Tatry ; Polish : Tatry Wysokie ; Hungarian : Magas-Tátra ), are a mountain range along the border of northern Slovakia in the Prešov Region , and southern Poland in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship . They are a range of the Tatra Mountains chain.
Description Morskie Oko ("Sea Eye"), the largest lake in the Tatra mountains, is found at an elevation of 1,395m and is surrounded by peaks that rise about 1,000m above it.The mountain range borders the Belianske Tatras to the east, the Podtatranská kotlina to the south, and the Western Tatras to the west. Most of the range, and all the highest peaks, are in Slovakia. The highest peak is Gerlachovský štít , at 2,655 metres (8,711 ft).
Biogeography The High Tatras, having 29 peaks over 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) AMSL are, with the Southern Carpathians , the only mountain ranges with an alpine character and habitats in the entire 1,200 kilometres (750 mi) length of the Carpathian Mountains system.
The first European cross-border national park , Tatra National Park, was founded here with Tatra National Park (Tatranský národný park ) in Slovakia in 1948, and Tatra National Park (Tatrzański Park Narodowy ) in Poland in 1954. The contiguous parks protect UNESCO 's trans-border Tatra biosphere reserve .[1]
Fauna Many rare and endemic animals and plant species are native to the High Tatras. They include the Tatras' endemic goat-antelope and critically endangered species , the Tatra chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra tatrica ). Predators include Eurasian brown bear , Eurasian lynx , marten , wolf and fox. The Alpine marmot is common in the range.
Flora Flora of the High Tatras includes: the endemic Tatra scurvy-grass (Cochlearia tatrae ), yellow mountain saxifrage (Saxifraga aizoides ), ground covering net-leaved willow (Salix reticulata ), Norway spruce (Picea abies ), Swiss pine (Pinus cembra ), and European larch (Larix decidua ).
Peaks
Highest peaks A young Tatra chamois The alpine character of the High Tatras attracts mountaineers . Kriváň (2,495 metres), considered to be the symbol of SlovakiaThe 15 highest peaks of the High Tatras—all located in Slovakia—are:[2]
Other notable peaks Kriváň , 2494 meters, also called Slovakia's "most beautiful mountain"Rysy, the popular Polish−Slovak summit border crossing. Rysy has three peaks: the middle at 2,503 meters; the north-western at 2,499 meters; and the south-eastern at 2,473 meters. The north-western peak is the highest point of Poland . Slavkovský štít , 2452 meters tall, within the Tatra National Park, Slovakia
Mountain lakes Mountain lakes of Czarny Staw pod Rysami and Morskie Oko seen from Rysy. Veľké Žabie pleso (Mengusovské) lake in Žabia Valley
Major lakes
Other lakes Slovak lakesZmrzlé pleso Ťažké pleso Ľadové pleso Batizovské pleso Veľké Spišské pleso - 2,019 m, 10 m deep. Veľké Žabie pleso (Mengusovské) - 1,921 m, 7 m deep Vyšné Bielovodské Žabie pleso - 1,699 m, 25 m deep. Nižné Bielovodské Žabie pleso - 1,675 m, 21 m deep. Polish lakesCzarny Staw Gąsienicowy - 1,624 m, 51 m deep. Mountain huts are common in the High Tatras, this one is halfway up Lomnický štít .
Transport By TEŽLine 183 : from : Štrbské Pleso - to : Poprad-Tatry Line 184 : from : Starý Smokovec - to : Tatranská Lomnica By OŽLine 182 : from : Štrbské Pleso - to : Štrba By ŽSRLine 185 : from : Tatranská Lomnica - to : Studený Potok or from : Poprad-Tatry - to : Plaveč By PKPLine 99 from: Chabówka to Zakopane
Culture 1922 postcard of tourists in the High Tatras. The area is well known for winter sports . Ski resorts include Štrbské pleso , Starý Smokovec and Tatranská Lomnica in Slovakia, and Zakopane in Poland. The town of Poprad is the gateway to the Slovak Tatra resorts.
People The Górale people ("highlanders"), a group of indigenous people with a distinctive traditional culture, are of the High Tatras and other mountain ranges and valleys in the Tatra Mountains region.
Ludwig Greiner identified Gerlachovský štít (Gerlachovský Peak) (2,665 metres (8,743 ft)) as the highest summit of the Tatra Mountains , and the entire Carpathian Mountains system. It is also the highest point of Slovakia .
Places and services
See also
References ^ UNESCO preserves ^ "Najvyššie pohoria Slovenska (Highest mountain ranges in Slovakia)" (in Slovak). Matej Lednár. 2003. Archived from the original on June 9, 2007. Retrieved June 2, 2007 . "The Tatras: High, Western, Bela's" (1:50,000 hiking map); BBKart/Marco Polo; 2005.
External links UNESCO — Natural Reserves of Tatras Mountains Tatry.org: Tatry Open Directory Tatry.sk: Official town of High Tatry website TldTatry.sk: Tatra Cable Railways Summitpost.org: High Tatra Mountains High Tatra Mountains visualized in 3D 3D scan of Lomnický peak, one of the highest mountain peaks in the High Tatras mountains.
Images VysokeTatry.com— various maps of the High Tatras Butkaj.com: photos of villages in the High Tatras — after the 2004 storm calamity .