01 / 28 · Tatry
Rysy
2499 m a.s.l.
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01 / 07
Three summits
Rysy has three summits. The highest, the middle one, lies entirely in Slovakia. The border runs across the north-western one, and it is the highest point of Poland. A 1988 survey, carried out independently from both sides of the border, gave results only 1.2 cm apart.
Source: Polish Wikipedia – Rysy (CC BY-SA)
02 / 07
From Blásy to Curie
First recorded summer ascent: Eduard Blásy with the guide Ján Ruman Driečny senior, on 30 July 1840. First recorded winter ascent: Theodor Wundt with Jakob Horvay, on 10 April 1884. In 1899 Maria Skłodowska-Curie and Pierre Curie reached the summit.
Source: Polish Wikipedia – Rysy (CC BY-SA)
03 / 07
Over 200 kilometres
In good weather the view from the summit reaches more than 200 km: you can make out about 80 Tatra peaks, 13 larger lakes and Kraków, about 90 km away. Rysy rises more than 1,100 m above the surface of Morskie Oko.
Source: Polish Wikipedia – Rysy (CC BY-SA)
04 / 07
Granite on the main ridge
The main ridge of the High Tatras, from Skrajna Turnia to Rysy, is built of granitoids – part of the crystalline core left by the oldest mountain-building movements in the history of the Tatras. The mountains were uplifted more in the south, which is why the highest peaks lie not on the main ridge but on side ridges branching off it to the south. The Ice Age gave the Tatras their glacial cirques, U-shaped valleys, rock steps and moraine ridges.
Source: Tatra National Park – geology
05 / 07
Relief
The lowest point in the 8 × 8 km square around the summit lies at 1,123 m a.s.l. – 1,376 m below the peak. Terrain on the Slovak side of the border comes from the ÚGKK SR model, shifted to match the GUGiK data at the border.
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Trails
30 marked trails run through the 8 × 8 km square. 2 red trails lead to the summit itself.
- red10
- blue5
- green4
- yellow9
- black2
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The summit
Rysy (2499 m a.s.l.) represents the Tatry range in the Crown of Polish Mountains.