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Karkonosze, located 130 km southwest from Wrocław, are the biggest mountain range in the Sudetes. In the past it was known as Gigant Mountains or Snowy Mountains. First “tourists” here were Walloons, legendary prospectors searching for precious stones and minerals who came to Karkonosze in the 11th century. They left after themselves mysterious castles on rocks and legends fascinating modern enthusiasts of these mountains.
The Karkonosze National Park covers the main Karkonosze range from Mumlawski Wierch on the west to Okraj mountain pass on the east. The Park also includes two separate enclaves: Szklarka Waterfall and Chojnik Mountain with a castle: The highest mountain in Karkonosze is Śnieżka (1602 m above sea level) which can be reached by trail leading from the chairlift to Kopa. On Śnieżka top there is Saint Lawrence chapel (17th century), a meteorological observatory and a restaurant.
The Park landscape is very special, and this because of its direct proximity of typical mountain forms and marshes. Extensive, plane top parts with peat bogs and marshes are accompanied by steep rock walls of postglacial cirques. The landscape is completed with mountain lakes and rocks in unusual shapes, and names stimulating imagination, such as: Pilgrims, Horse Heads, Three Little Pigs, Raven Rocks... Near the Park border, there is the highest waterfall in the Polish part of Karkonosze – Kamieńczyk waterfall (27 m high), and in a separate Park enclave, Szklarka waterfall – one of the most recognizable and picturesque waterfalls in Poland.
The biggest mammal living in Karkonosze is the Red Deer. You can also find there roe deer, wild boars and mouflons. The last animal is the wild mountain sheep, brought on the European mainland from Sardinia and Corsica. In Poland, a small number of those can be found in the Sudetes.
The climate of Karkonosze is cold. Average annual temperature at the main ridge is from 2 to 4°C, and at Śnieżka mountain, 0°C.
The Karkonosze National Park has a very good tourist infrastructure: 12 mountain hostels, well-marked trails, possibility of crossing the Czech border at tourist trails. There are four bicycle routes, trails for cross-country skiing, and in winter, chairlifts and T-bar lifts operate in the area of Kopa and Szrenica mountains.
A good base for hiking in Karkonosze is Karpacz and Szklarska Poręba located at the foot of the Park. Both cities offer many accommodation places, restaurants and additional attractions. A very interesting location in Karpacz is Wang church, built at the turn of the 12th and 13th century in the stavkirke style (stave church), brought in the 1840s from Norway. Near Karpacz, Western City is situated – a cowboy town, where you can participate in a bank robbery or acquire a certificate of a gold digger.
In Szklarska Poręba you can visit glassworks Józefina and Leśna Huta. A few kilometres further in Jakuszyce, there is the biggest cross-country skiing centre in Poland. More than 100 km skiing trails are marked, and there are very good snow conditions and the routes are well maintained. Once a year, the town Jakuszyce hosts the biggest cross-country skiing event in Poland – Bieg Piastów. Jakuszyce hosts also sled dog racing events.
In 1993, at the Polish and Czech side of Karkonosze UNESCO Bilateral Biosphere Reserve was established.
