The Wyżnia Chochołowska Valley is a hidden gem in the Western Tatras — a quiet, west-branching side valley that rewards hikers with spruce forests, a forgotten alpine meadow and a dramatic glacial cirque framed by soaring mountain walls. If you are looking for a route away from the crowds, this is the place to head.

Starting just above the popular Chochołowska Glade, the valley gradually reveals its wilder side. The lower section is cloaked in dense spruce forest, sheltering the slowly overgrown Wyżnia Chochołowska Glade — a former shepherds' pasture where timber huts once stood. Higher up, the valley opens into the glacial cirque called Dziurawe, enclosed on three sides by the steep walls of Wołowiec, Łopata and Czerwony Wierch, rising 300–350 m above a floor scattered with scree, moraine boulders and dwarf pine. Just below the rocky threshold beneath Kopa peak (1596 m), several springs emerge and unite to form the Wyżni Chochołowski Stream. In winter the valley transforms into a snow-covered wilderness; in summer, the contrast of grey rock and green dwarf pine is simply stunning.

• From Chochołowska Glade — green trail, approx. 2:30 h up / 2 h down, moderate difficulty. The trail leads through the rocky passage known as Szeroka Ulica between Wołowiec and Rakoń to the small col of Zawracie, where it meets the blue ridge trail.

• The valley lies within Tatra National Park — an entry fee applies and leaving marked trails is prohibited.
• Reaching Chochołowska Glade from the Siwa Polana car park takes approx. 1:45 h on foot along a paved road (bicycles also allowed).

The green trail through this valley holds a special distinction — it was marked back in 1901, making it the very first tourist trail laid out in the entire Chochołowska Valley. History runs deep even in the most peaceful corners of the Tatras.