The rafts
Boatmen in decorated hats.
Falk2 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Falk2 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Falk2 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Gerd Eichmann — CC BY 4.0 · Mach240390 — CC BY 4.0
The Dunajec River Gorge is a rocky valley cut by the river through the Pieniny Mountains of southern Poland and northern Slovakia, where the river forms the border between the two, about 33 km northeast of Zakopane and 79 km southeast of Kraków in a straight line. The gorge lies within Pieniny National Park and is known for striking geological structures and natural ecosystems little touched by people; it is on Poland's tentative list for World Heritage. The river makes seven loops through it, the rock around rising about 300 metres almost all the way, and rare plants grow on its limestone and dolomite. Clear green water runs between towering white and grey limestone cliffs covered in forest, with the jagged peaks of the «Three Crowns» above. Long wooden rafts drift along, steered by highlander boatmen in decorated hats, and a walking and cycling path follows the Slovak bank. Visitors ride the traditional wooden rafts on a calm river trip through the gorge that ends near the town of Szczawnica, and many return by bike or on foot. The rafts run only in the warm season, and visitors often combine the trip with nearby Niedzica Castle.
Boatmen in decorated hats.
Jagged peaks.
Walking and cycling.
Pieniny National Park, southern Poland
Only in the warm season.
Yes, from Zakopane.