High Tatras


The High Tatras or High Tatra Mountains, are a mountain range along the border of northern Slovakia in the Prešov Region, and southern Poland in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship. They are a range of the Tatra Mountains chain.

Description

The mountain range borders the Belianske Tatras to the east, the Podtatranská kotlina to the south, and the Western Tatras to the west. Most of the range, and all the highest peaks, are in Slovakia. The highest peak is Gerlachovský štít, at.

Natural history

The High Tatras, having 29 peaks over AMSL are, with the Southern Carpathians, the only mountain ranges with an alpine character and habitats in the entire length of the Carpathian Mountains system.
The first European cross-border national park was founded here—Tatra National Park—with Tatra National Park in Slovakia in 1948, and Tatra National Park in Poland in 1954. The adjacent parks protect UNESCO's trans-border Tatra Biosphere Reserve.
;Fauna
Many rare and endemic animals and plant species are native to the High Tatras. They include the Tatras' endemic goat-antelope and critically endangered species, the Tatra chamois. Predators include Eurasian brown bear, Eurasian lynx, marten, wolf and fox. The Alpine marmot is common in the range.
;Flora
Flora of the High Tatras includes: the endemic Tatra scurvy-grass, yellow mountain saxifrage, ground covering net-leaved willow, Norway spruce, Swiss pine, and European larch.

Peaks

Highest peaks

The 15 highest peaks of the High Tatras—all located in Slovakia—are:

Other notable peaks

Major lakes

s are common in the High Tatras, this one is halfway up Lomnický štít.

Culture

The area is well known for winter sports. Ski resorts include Štrbské pleso, Starý Smokovec and Tatranská Lomnica in Slovakia, and Zakopane in Poland. The town of Poprad is the gateway to the Slovak Tatra resorts.
;People
The Górale people, a group of indigenous people with a distinctive traditional culture, are of the High Tatras and other mountain ranges and valleys in the Tatra Mountains region.
Ludwig Greiner identified Gerlachovský štít as the highest summit of the Tatra Mountains, and the entire Carpathian Mountains system. It is also the highest point of Slovakia.
;Places and services