Kamieńczyk Waterfall is the highest waterfall in the Polish Sudetes and one of the most dramatic natural sights in the Karkonosze National Park. Three cascades of the Kamieńczyk stream plunge 27 metres into a wild, narrow gorge — a spectacle that makes the effort of getting here entirely worthwhile. If you want to feel the raw, romantic power of the Sudeten mountains, this is the place.

The Kamieńczyk Gorge narrows to just 3 metres at its tightest point, with walls rising 30–35 metres on either side. The atmosphere is extraordinary in every season: spring brings thundering snowmelt, summer wraps the black rocks in lush green, autumn sets the forest ablaze with colour, and winter freezes the falls into a stunning ice sculpture. At the base of the waterfall lies a 5-metre plunge pool, and behind the middle cascade hides a small cave called the 'Golden Den', where prospectors once mined amethysts and pegmatite.

• Szklarska Poręba — Main Sudeten Trail (red), heading towards 'Kamieńczyk' mountain refuge, then descending into the gorge; moderate difficulty

• Entrance fee required; visits during set opening hours only
• A safety helmet is provided with every ticket — mandatory when descending into the gorge
• The descent to the waterfall base follows steel walkways along the left wall of the gorge
• The 'Kamieńczyk' refuge and 'Szałas Sielanka' shelter are nearby — the waterfall is also visible from their terraces
• Protected as a strict nature reserve within Karkonosze National Park

Legend has it that the water is made up of the tears of seven water nymphs mourning their sister Łabudka, who fell into the abyss while searching for her beloved. History adds its own twist — future US President John Quincy Adams visited in 1800 and called this place 'as wild and romantic' as anything he had seen in the region. Two centuries later, it still holds up.