Zakopane - Gubałówka

We took a day trip to Zakopane from Cracow with a Polish friend of ours. The bus from the main bus station in Cracow cost 30 złoty round trip (around $10). We bought the tickets from the driver. We were dropped off at the bus station in Zakopane. 

We walked down the main street called Krupówki (a veritable tourist trap) and actually found a decent sit down restaurant called "Watra". It is a brewery and restaurant. Its speciality seems to be fish (trout and others). We all ordered something other than fish - ie. pierogi and pyzy (potato dumplings) filled with meat and served with a meat gravy. The food was very good and not that expensive. 

After eating we headed towards the funicular that would take us to the top of a mountain called Gubałówka.  It cost 14 złoty one way (uphill) or 20 złoty round trip. We opted to walk back down.

Here is the transport.

Once you get up to the top you hit a flat walking trail. It was full of tourists, amusement park rides and kiosks with food and trinkets. Ignore these and just look across the valley at the village of Zakopane and the surrounding mountains.

The clouds were stunning that day. Here one cloud looks like smoke coming out of the mountain top.

Across the way was a mountain called Giewont. I can recognize by the hump and the cross on top of the mountain (barely visible this day).

I like the architecture from this area. The steep angled roofs prevent snow from collecting on the house in the winter time. Here you can see the style as I am walking down the trail towards Zakopane.

Once we got down to the end of the tourist road up on Gubałówka we were able to walk in the forest away from the crowds. I found a cow on a lead in the yard of a ski and snowboard rental shop/residence. The cow was antsy, but still posed for me. 

The trail back down to Zakopane is a steep one. The views going down are fantastic. The trail basically follows the funicular line down. Here is a view going down.