In June 2023 we returned to the Sudetes to finish what we had started a year earlier. Back then – in winter conditions – we crossed the Jizera Mountains, but a snowstorm below Szrenica forced us to turn back, and Śnieżka had to wait. This time, in a slightly different line-up – four of us, with Michał and Jarek – we set off from Szklarska Poręba and set the finish in Wałbrzych. Over 6 days (13–18 June) we walked 135 km along the red-marked Main Sudetes Trail (Główny Szlak Sudecki), averaging about 22 km a day.
Table of contents
- Plan, pace and accommodation
- Day 1: Kamieńczyk Waterfall, Szrenica and the Snow Cirques
- Day 2: Śnieżka in the fog and the descent to Karpacz
- Day 3: from Karpacz through the Rudawy Janowickie (32 km)
- Days 4–5: across the border to the Adršpach Rock Town
- Day 6: Chełmiec and the finish in Wałbrzych
- The Crown of Polish Mountains and a summary
- Practical information
Plan, pace and accommodation
Our aim was to stick to the (red) Main Sudetes Trail. We left it only twice: to visit the Adršpach Rock Town on the Czech side, and on the last day, when we headed straight “for Wałbrzych”. The pace was not punishing – we stuck to the plan, and in the evenings there was often time for a beer and cards. Still, it was our first multi-day hike with full packs, so for us it was a new challenge.
We slept in various places: three nights in apartments, one in the “Odrodzenie” mountain hut on Karkonosze Pass and two in a wooden cabin in the Czech Republic. We covered the most kilometres on the third day (about 32 km from Karpacz to Leszczyniec), and the most elevation gain on the first (about 1100 m).
Day 1: Kamieńczyk Waterfall, Szrenica and the Snow Cirques
From Szklarska Poręba we set off up the Kamienna valley. Our first stop was the Kamieńczyk Waterfall – the highest waterfall in the Polish part of the Giant Mountains, plunging into a narrow, green gorge.
Next came the climb up Szrenica – the same peak where a snowstorm had turned us back a year earlier. This time we got there without any trouble, and at the hut on the summit we were greeted by… a fox, completely unbothered by the hikers.
From Szrenica the trail follows the broad ridge of the Giant Mountains, along the Polish–Czech border, towards the Snow Cirques (Śnieżne Kotły) – glacial cirques whose steep walls drop more than 200 m. It is one of the most beautiful sections of the whole route.
Past Wielki Szyszak we descended a rocky path to Karkonosze Pass. For part of the day we walked between two big black clouds, from which we could hear thunder – luckily the real rain only started when we were already sitting in the “Odrodzenie” hut.
Day 2: Śnieżka in the fog and the descent to Karpacz
In the morning there was a nice view from the hut, but the higher we climbed, the thicker the fog became – the second day was the only one with poor visibility. Around Mały Szyszak we were already walking in the cloud.
From the Dom Śląski hut we climbed Śnieżka (1603 m) – the highest peak of the Giant Mountains and of the entire Sudetes. We were lucky: the fog vanished exactly as we reached the summit, so we got a beautiful panorama – including the Czech side of the mountains.
From Śnieżka we descended along the red trail to Karpacz. After the descent we were caught in one of the heaviest downpours of the whole hike.
Day 3: from Karpacz through the Rudawy Janowickie (32 km)
The third day was the longest – about 32 km from Karpacz to Leszczyniec. In Karpacz we passed the Vang Stave Church – a small wooden church moved here from Norway in the 19th century – and then walked for a long time through the forests north of the town.
Beyond the Giant Mountains the trail enters the Rudawy Janowickie range. Its highest peak, Skalnik (945 m), is another point towards the Crown of Polish Mountains – modest and wooded, but important to us. On the way we passed meadows and pastures.
Days 4–5: across the border to the Adršpach Rock Town
From the Rudawy we walked towards the Stone Mountains (Góry Kamienne) and on across the border into the Czech Republic – the Chełmsko Śląskie – Libná signpost stands just before it. On the Czech side the trail leads across vast clearings and meadows.
The main reason for this detour from the trail was the Adršpach Rock Town (Adršpašsko-teplické skály) – a labyrinth of sandstone spires, gorges and narrow passages. Entry cost the equivalent of about €9, and tickets had to be bought online for a specific time slot. Was it worth it? Yes. Was it good value? Opinions would probably be divided. As it happened, the Rock Town was where it rained hardest of the whole trip.
Along the visitor route there is, among other things, Pískovna lake, a Gothic entrance gate and rocks named after what they resemble – such as the “Elephants”. The most interesting, though, are the narrowest passages, where a person with a backpack barely fits through.
We spent two nights in a wooden cabin at the Skalní Mlýn resort in Adršpach. Prices in the Czech Republic were affordable for us – for about €7 you could have lunch with a beer.
Day 6: Chełmiec and the finish in Wałbrzych
The last day had the nicest weather: lots of sun, over 20 degrees and not a drop of rain. First we again walked along the Polish–Czech border, and then we turned off “for Wałbrzych” – along forest paths with a few steep descents and climbs.
The last peak was Chełmiec (850 m) in the Wałbrzych Mountains – with an observation tower and a mast, towering over Wałbrzych. From there it was just the descent into town and the end of the second stage.
The Crown of Polish Mountains and a summary
Besides the Giant Mountains, we crossed the Rudawy Janowickie, the Wałbrzych Mountains and part of the Stone Mountains, and on the Czech side the edge of the Table Mountains. Thanks to that we ticked off three peaks of the Crown of Polish Mountains (the highest summits of Poland’s mountain ranges): Śnieżka, Skalnik and Chełmiec (we already had, among others, Rysy and Wysoka Kopa).
The weather was average, but certainly not bad: apart from the last day there were passing showers every day, the most in the Rock Town and after coming down from Śnieżka, and visibility was generally good. We will probably start the next stage of the Main Sudetes Trail in Wałbrzych.
Practical information
- Route: Szklarska Poręba – Szrenica – Snow Cirques – Karkonosze Pass – Śnieżka – Karpacz – Rudawy Janowickie (Skalnik) – Leszczyniec – Adršpach (Czech Republic) – Chełmiec – Wałbrzych; 135 km in 6 days. The first part of the trail: Świeradów-Zdrój – Szklarska Poręba in winter.
- Accommodation: 3 nights in apartments, 1 in the “Odrodzenie” hut on Karkonosze Pass, 2 in a wooden cabin in Adršpach.
- Adršpach Rock Town: about €9 (2023), tickets online for a specific time slot.
- Prices in the Czech Republic: lunch with a drink about €7 (2023).
- Luggage: we walked with full packs – at about 22 km a day there was time to rest in the evening, but the third day (32 km) took its toll.
- Weather: in June in the Giant Mountains you have to reckon with thunderstorms and fog on the ridge – keep a rain jacket handy.
