Markowe Szczawiny is one of those mountain clearings that makes hikers instinctively slow down. Perched on the northern slopes of Babia Góra at 1180 metres above sea level, it has served for over a century as the main gateway to Diablak, the highest peak of the Beskids. Most trails within Babia Góra National Park converge here, so anyone heading for the summit will pass through sooner or later.

The clearing feels special in every season. In summer it's a green meadow ringed by forest, thick with alpine sorrel — the plant that gave the place its name. In autumn the surrounding slopes glow with color, in winter the clearing turns into a hushed, snow-covered retreat, and in spring it slowly wakes from its winter sleep. Because of the dense forest cover, distant views are limited, but the quiet, historic mountain atmosphere more than makes up for the lack of sweeping panoramas.

How to reach the hut

• From Zawoja Czatoża via the Akademicka Perć trail (partly along Górny Płaj) — moderately demanding
• From Krowiarki Pass via Górny Płaj — about 2 hours from the car park, easy to moderate
• From Ryżowana — a trail leading directly to the clearing
• From Zawoja Markowa — a trail approaching from the village side
• From Jałowiecka Pass and Czarna Hala via Brona Pass — a longer ridge route

Practical information

• Altitude: 1180 m above sea level
• Located within Babia Góra National Park
• The current PTTK hut building dates from 2010 (the original from 1906 burned down in 2007)
• The clearing also houses the Babia Góra Centre for the History of Mountain Tourism and a GOPR weather station

Fun fact: the first hut built here in 1906 by the Tatra Society was the very first Polish tourist hut in this part of the Beskids — giving Markowe Szczawiny a lasting place in the history of Polish mountain tourism.