Dolina Dzika — 'Wild Valley' — is one of the most remote and untamed hanging glacial valleys in the Slovak High Tatras. Perched high above the Green Kežmarok Lake, it rewards those willing to leave the beaten path with a raw, almost primeval mountain landscape. If you crave true wilderness, this is your place.
A dramatic rock threshold separates the valley from the Green Kežmarok Valley below, and two spectacular waterfalls — the Long Waterfall and the Copper Waterfall — tumble down its edge. The upper part of the valley, known as Barania Kotlina (Ram's Basin), branches off into Miedziana Kotlina, which reaches toward the Lomnický štít massif. Snow lingers here almost year-round, and within Miedziana Kotlina you'll find a permanent snowfield that never fully melts. In summer, ski mountaineers make use of these snow patches, and a portable ski lift was installed seasonally near Baranie Rohy from 1976 onwards. The valley is also visible from the Tatran Magistrala trail near Rakúska Przełęcz, offering a sweeping view of this pristine wilderness.
How to get thereThe first recorded visitor to the Wild Valley was Robert Townson, who arrived with a guide on 6 August 1793. The German and Hungarian names for the valley — 'Great Papyrus Valley' — recall a treasure hunter named Johann Andreas Papirus who once searched these slopes long ago.