Tarnica

BOU AVENUE
Tarnica

On 10 August 2023, Zosia Zgolak and I hiked up Tarnica (pronounced tar-NEE-tsa) located in Bieszczady National Park near the village of Wołosate in the southeast corner of Poland. Tarnica is the fifth highest of the Crown of Polish Mountains which consists of 28 peaks, each the highest of their respective mountain range in Poland. Several good trails run up to the summit with the shortest and most popular one starting from the east end of the village.

Because parking is severely restricted in the area, Zosia and I had to park in a pay lot near the west end of the village and walk about 700 metres to the trailhead where there is a ticket/souvenir booth as well as toilets. After paying the park entrance fees (9 PLN or ~$2.97 CAD per person), we walked past the booth and hiked across a big, grassy field where we had good views of our objective. We then entered forest where we walked through some muddy sections before reaching a huge information sign at the park boundary. From there, we began climbing more steadily, but the trail is well-constructed and easy to follow. We eventually passed an open shelter before finally breaking out of the trees about 2.5 kilometres from the trailhead. Here, the trail rises to a saddle separating Tarnica from a subsidiary peak to the north known as Tarniczka. Incidentally, the name, Tarnica, is supposedly derived from a Romanian word meaning "saddle" which is very appropriate. From the saddle, we made a quick detour to tag the top of Tarniczka before finishing our ascent of Tarnica. The top of Tarnica is adorned with a metal cross which commemorates Karol Wojtyła's visit here in 1953. Karol Wojtyła, of course, would later be known more famously as Pope John Paul II.

Zosia and I stopped for about half an hour on the summit before retracing our steps down the mountain and back to our car without difficulty.

	Zosia gets ready at a parking lot in the village of Wołosate. Tarnica can be seen in the distance at right.
	Zosia pays a park entrance fee in order to hike the trail up Tarnica.
	As easy as these steps look, they are actually quite muddy and slippery.
	The sign at the park boundary is full of information.
	Most of the trail is well-built and easy to follow.
	Zosia arrives at an open shelter about halfway up the mountain.
	As Zosia approaches tree line, almost all the ridges visible in the distance are located within Ukraine.
	The summit of Tarnica is within sight of these benches at tree line.
	Polish national parks go to great lengths to prohibit off-trail hiking by erecting railings and sanctioning fines.
	Zosia takes a short detour to a subsidiary peak called Tarniczka.
	Zosia stands on the summit of Tarniczka (1320 metres) with Tarnica behind her.
	Zosia heads back down to the saddle en route to Tarnica.

Pretty fancy TV antenna in the background!

Sonny and Zosia stand on the summit of Tarnica (1354 metres).

	Some hikers ascend Tarnica or do a loop via this broad ridge to the northwest. The ridge even has a name--Szeroki Wierch.
	More hikers begin to appear as Zosia descends the same trail.
	Here is a last look back at Tarnica from near the trailhead.
	Due to the close proximity to Ukraine, Polish border guards maintain a strong presence in the area surrounding Tarnica. Photo courtesy of Zosia Zgolak
	Total Distance: 10.7 kilometres Round-Trip Time: 4 hours 47 minutes Cumulative Elevation Gain: 617 metres GPX Data