Prusów (1010 m a.s.l.) is a distinctly shaped peak in the Lipowski Wierch and Romanka Group of the Żywiec-Orawa Beskids — a quiet, pastoral summit with surprisingly rewarding views and a wonderfully old-fashioned feel. If you enjoy ridges that still carry traces of mountain farming life, this one will not disappoint.
The summit ridge stretches for about a kilometre and is relatively flat, making it an easy and pleasant walk. The open, unforested section at the top rewards you with a broad panorama encompassing the eastern slopes of the Silesian Beskids, much of the Żywiec Basin, the western part of the Little Beskids, and a long line of Żywiec Beskid peaks. The meadows covering the old abandoned fields are rich with red fescue and mat-grass, while the old stone boundary piles — gathered by farmers long ago — are now draped in bilberries, raspberries and blackberries, sheltering lizards, snakes and weasels beneath them. Autumn turns the whole ridge a warm amber, making it particularly atmospheric.
How to reach the summitThe name 'Prusów' appears in historical records dating back to Andrzej Komoniecki (1658–1728), author of the 'Chronografia', one of the oldest chronicles of the Żywiec region — this peak has had its name for at least three centuries.