Szarcula Pass

At Szarcula Pass (about 760 m) rain falling on one side of the ridge ends up in the Vistula and the Baltic Sea, and on the other side flows via the Olza and the Oder. The pass is a shallow saddle in the Barania Góra range, on the main European watershed, and it also marks the boundary between the municipalities of Wisła and Istebna. The Main Beskid Trail crosses a yellow trail from Wisła to Istebna here, so for many hikers Szarcula is the starting point towards Barania Góra.

Where the name comes from

The name recalls a former mountain meadow that in the 17th and 18th centuries was a busy centre of shepherding. It derives from the surname Szarzec, recorded in a list of Wisła settlers as early as 1722. The meadow has long since grown over, but the name has survived on maps and signposts. Today the pass has a roofed shelter with benches, information boards and a map of the local trails.

Where it is

The saddle lies between Kubalonka (830 m) to the north-west and the Szarcula hill (803 m) to the south-east. A narrow road runs over the pass from the Kubalonka pass down into the Czarna Wisełka valley, towards the Presidential Castle (Zameczek) in Wisła-Czarne. About 300 m to the south-east, beside the red trail, is Dorkowa Skała, a small group of rocks.

Trails

• Red trail from Kubalonka Pass – about 15 minutes, the shortest approach.
• Yellow trail from Istebna – about 1 hour.
• Red trail from the PTTK hut at Przysłop below Barania Góra via Stecówka – about 2 h 15 min (about 2 h 30 min in the other direction).
• Yellow trail towards Wisła-Głębce via Kozińce.

Tripto tip

The easiest option is to park at Kubalonka Pass, on the Wisła–Istebna road, and walk along the red trail to Szarcula – a short, mostly level stroll. The pass itself has no views or facilities apart from the shelter, so treat it as a junction on a longer route: to Stecówka with its wooden church, on to Przysłop and Barania Góra, or down to Istebna. In winter the road over Szarcula can be icy, and the trails may be snowbound – microspikes help.