The times have passed when it was necessary to hire porters and pitch a camp. Today, cozy shelters await guests – for instance this one, by the Morskie Oko lake.

How much do you know about the mountains?

Not everyone who has the opportunity to visit the Tatra Mountains is lucky to be introduced by someone familiar, friend or a family member who already knows a lot about the mountains, he was here and can take care of the novice. Most will come here without really knowing what to expect or not having a particularly wide knowledge of the subject. Although each of us learned in a school about a multi-storey conformation of vegetation, the temperature decreasing towards peaks, low pressure, he also probably heard that marmots, chamois and bears live here – this knowledge is not enough to feel comfortable, safe and secure in the mountains and to fully appreciate their charm.

Going for the first time in the mountains, let’s not go to Orla Perc. And even having a training in the Western Tatras, let’s think about a guide to teach us how to move in a difficult terrain with a large exposure, over precipices with a depth of several hundred meters. If we find out there that we have the fear of heights – it’s safer to get to the bottom with a guide.

That is why it is good to consider using the services of Tatra guides. The Association of Tatra Guides cultivates a 140-year tradition of guiding tourists around the mountains. The first guides led their charges to the mountains often for many days, trips into the interior of the Tatra Mountains associated with establishing camps. These were times when it was allowed to make bonfires in the mountains, to camp, and it often happened that the expeditions were accompanied by musicians. Today, all this is forbidden, strict rules of the park must be carefully studied before crossing its borders. There are, however, shelters, so you no longer need to hire porters, because you can eat in them, warm up, and stay overnight. Still, the guides have something to do, and their presence protects many tourists from unwise behavior in the mountains. On the website of their Association, they write about themselves like this:

“Why is it worth going to the mountains in our company? Because it is safer and more interesting with us. Because we know the Tatras like our own pocket. Because we are able to choose the right goals for you, because we are able to adjust the tour program to the prevailing conditions and possibilities of our guests. Because we can assess and minimize the possible risk. Because we provide care and, where it is necessary, a safeguard. Because we know a lot about the Tatras and we are able to convey this knowledge in an interesting way. Because in the Tatras we are the best and proven partner who will never let you down. “*

The guide will protect you from breaking your legs when you throw yourself into the escape, hearing – as if just behind your back – a terrible bray in early autumn. It’s not a bear. Every year, the deer make a ritual of rut on the Kopa Magura.

It is true. Among the guides there are specialists from many fields: naturalists, historians, mountaineers, skiers, there are also many TOPR rescuers among them. They are a highly respected professional group in Zakopane, it is difficult to pass an exam for a guide and you must have a really high qualification. Among other things, they are most often interesting people, gifted with sense of humor, caring and resourceful.

Of course, not only novices can benefit from going to the mountains in the company of a qualified guide who has already visited all the marked places, may want to go to areas available only with a guide or try to climb. It is not worth risking to pay a fine for leaving the trail, but also endanger your life or health. The mountains are demanding and – as often pointed out by TOPR rescuers – the most sophisticated and expensive equipment will not replace knowledge about how to behave in the mountains. In addition to using the services of guides, the minimum necessary is a careful study of the tables with the regulations of the Tatra National Park located at all entrances.

It is also worth visiting pages on facebook devoted to mountains – Tatromaniak or Portal Tatrzanski (only in Polish, but you can try to use the translator). We find there news posts, videos of the passages of demanding trails, and group trips. Sometimes we come across the jokes of tourists who are not very familiar with the mountains or the chilling reports of rescue operations – these are also worth seeing in order to not become their star in the future, because seriously nobody goes to the mountains to hurt themselves. Trips to the mountains can be and most often they are the most beautiful moments in life. And it is worth to prepare well before entering the trails.

*http://www.przewodnictwo.org/pl/stowarzyszenie-przewodnikow-tatrzanskich