Jaworzyna Kamienicka (1,288 m a.s.l.) is the second-highest peak in the Gorce range and the highest summit within the Gorce National Park. Don't let its flat, unassuming top fool you — this mountain rewards hikers with one of the most spectacular viewpoints in the entire range, wrapped in legends of outlaws and a century-old shepherd's chapel.
The real highlight is the Jaworzyna glade, spread across the north-eastern slopes just below the summit. From here you can take in sweeping views of the neighbouring peaks of Kudłoń and Gorc with their sub-summit meadows, the deep valley of the Kamienica stream, and the distant ridges of the Beskid Wyspowy and Beskid Sądecki. The slopes are cloaked in upper montane spruce forest — cool and shady in summer, richly atmospheric in autumn. The flat summit plateau tends to be boggy in places, so sturdy footwear is a must.
How to reach the summitThe chapel was built by a legendary shepherd and folk healer, Tomasz Chlipała — known as Bulanda — who grazed sheep and cattle here for over 50 years and, according to legend, only descended from his mountain hut at the age of one hundred.