Death Bend (Zakręt Śmierci) near Szklarska Poręba

On regional road 358 between Szklarska Poręba and Świeradów-Zdrój, the road at 775 m above sea level doubles back almost 180 degrees over about 440 m. Death Bend has an ominous name, but today people come here mainly for the view: from below the stone retaining wall a panorama opens over Szklarska Poręba, the Jelenia Góra Valley and the main ridge of the Karkonosze.

History: the Great Bend on the Sudeten Road

The bend was cut into the steep northern slope of Czarna Góra (Jizera Mountains) in 1935–1937 as the most spectacular section of the German Sudetenstraße, the Sudeten Road. Officially it was a tourism project inspired by Alpine scenic roads. Underneath lay military logic, though: demolition galleries were left in the retaining wall so that the road could be blown up quickly in case of war. Before 1945 the bend was simply called Große Kurve — the Great Bend.

The name “Death Bend” came after the war, with a series of accidents. The most repeated story tells of a convoy of Soviet lorries carrying soldiers that supposedly plunged into the abyss in 1945. There are no official reports, date or casualty figures, however, so it should be treated as local lore. The tight curve, a flat road surface with no inward camber and black ice in winter caused drivers trouble for decades.

What to see

• The Karkonosze panorama with Szrenica and the cirques of the Śnieżne Kotły, and below it Szklarska Poręba in its wooded valley.
• The 2020 viewing platform — built because the growing forest had begun to hide the lower part of the view; it is a few minutes' walk from the car park.
• The rock beneath the road: this is a contact zone between the Karkonosze granite and carbonate rocks, and the main rock at the viewpoint is black, “baked” hornfels with cordierite and biotite.

Did you know?

During construction the road was literally blasted out of the rock using large quantities of explosives, and a tall stone wall supports the carriageway from below. The bend's last major repair was carried out in 2020. Nearby, on the trail to the Zbójeckie Skały rocks, the adit of an old pyrite mine survives.

Tripto tips

The bend is just over 3 km from the centre of Szklarska Poręba, about 5 minutes by car. The most convenient place to park is the lay-by just past the bend — there is more room there than before it — and then walk back to the viewpoint. Allow 20–30 minutes for the view and photos. From here a yellow trail leads to Wysoki Kamień (about 3.1 km) past the Zbójeckie Skały, so it is easy to turn this into a half-day outing. Drivers: the curve is genuinely tight and can be icy in winter.