The Eastern Ridge of Low Tatras (49km / 2736m+), Telgárt - Čertovica, 11.7.2021

 On the trail of NTS, part I.

So, on the fourth attempt, I finally passed it. The first attempt was like that I didn't even leave the house on the scheduled date due to a sudden health indisposition. The other two attempts were more like some kind of hybrid patchwork of several sections of the ridge and its parts. But today, today it worked out 😊

Katka and I spontaneously agree on a date and a few days before we fine-tune the last logistical details. We leave one car at Čertovica and Katka's wonderful Martin drives us all the way to Telgárt in his van early in the morning. We drive through the sleeping Horehronie and witness a magical steamy sunrise. All kinds of clouds are floating around and it's stuffy. However, we believe in the weather forecast, which predicts a storm on the ridge at 3:00 p.m., and I guess we'll be at Ramža by then.

Shortly after six in the morning we arrive at the square, do a short stretch, a promotional photo for the social networks and we set off at 6:20.

Martin and his van promised to lead us out of Telgárt to the a cycle path, so that we wouldn't go completely alone through the cluster of Gypsies' houses - that's exactly where the official route of Nízkotatranská stíhačka goes. After two hundred meters, all three of us - Martin with his van, Katka and me, take the wrong turn so we have to turn around and head back to find the right direction. Martin's white van slowly slides in front of us through the streets of early morning Telgárt. It looks rather ominous, and we wouldn't be at all surprised if there was a news on Facebook that day about a white van in Telgárt that slides through the streets, stops in front of houses and steals children 😂 (this is a commonly used hoax in Slovakia to scare the shit out of not so clever people).

We get on the cycle path, say goodbye to Martin and jog along a damp trail lined with piles of garbage of all sorts - from broken bricks to old clothes to... well, everything else imaginable, accompanied by characteristic smells. Finally, we run to the hill and do the desired pee-pause. The views from the "toilet" are breathtaking, the sun has just risen over the town in the haze, lush greenery and silence all around. 

As we go on, a distant melody of a song can be heard in the silence. We run closer and see a small herd of cows and a shepherd in the meadow below Kráľová hoľa. He sings a kind of haunting song in a beautiful, powerful voice echoing far across the valley. Silently we tread, listening to that beauty, we stand for a while and melt in the magic and serenity of the moment of the dawning day in the echo of that sonorous song. We are enchanted. It begins beautifully. We don't even mind the wet grass on the sidewalk, which makes our shoes squelch instantly. We like it here. With the occasional "Hola Hey!" we spook the bears off, speak to the frantically barking (but otherwise cowardly) dogs at the near farm and run at brisk pace to Šumiac. The bells are already calling to the church. We obey and run into our own temple (into the forest). A distant ominous rumbling can be heard from the moment we reach the bottom of Kráľova hoľa. When the forest opens up, the blackness of the storm can be seen all around, the rumblings are thundering both from the front and from the back, from the left and from the right. But up at Kráľová hoľa the skies are clear and blue and the sun illuminates the peak. We climb tirelessly higher and higher, taking a short break at Horská Chata pod Kráľovou hoľou and meeting the first people.

Above the forest, clouds can already be seen rolling over the ridge behind Kráľová hola. The rumble comes closer and closer. I'm quite nervous about it, I want to get up there before the rain or storm catches us, but I can't speed up. It's like in that dream - when you want to run, but you can't, your legs are terribly heavy. My legs are not terribly heavy, but I'm already going as fast as I can. The peak is approaching very slowly, the big dark gray cloud is approaching too fast. But we made it. We are up at the top and the cloud is at the top shortly. Strangely enough, it's not blowing here as much as usual.

A quick snack, a change of clothes, checking the weather situation - the internet is not working up here, so Katka calls Martin and asks him if it is safe to continue along the ridge. Martin sends us on and so we step into the thick milky cloud with the thunder keeping away within a distance. This is the most beautiful part of the ridge and we can see a bare fart of it. A reason to come back here 😋 We run along the trail between rock formations, gradually emerging from the mist. We are under pressure, but try not to show it. Katka says that when a storm comes, at worst we lie on the ground. No, you mustn't do that! You just have to squat down, curl up in a ball and protect your head with your hands. Just like when a bear attacks you. A general guideline... Truth be told, I'm not as afraid of a collision with a bear as I am of a collision with lightning somewhere on a ridge. You can probably scare the bear away if you make yourself known in time. But can you scare away lightning with a loud "Hola hey!"? I just give it a quiet Aryan "Not today..." to leave us alone while we run off the open part of the ridge. Katka and I discuss about which rock we should hide under. However, there are not many of them here.

After Stredná hoľa, we finally emerge from the milk, timid views of the ridge and the surrounding valleys open up in front of us. Views of surrounding lightnings too. It thunders constantly, sometimes further away, sometimes very close, the cloud rolls over and in the distance you can see the sun breaking through. I pause saying that I have to take a picture of this view, because it's probably the first and last nice view of the day 😆

At Orlova, we meet a group of three lads wrapped up in waterproof jackets from head to toe, hoods pulled over their heads, on their route towards Kráľova hoľa. We only wear shorts, T-shirts and headbands - we can't stand wearing jackets until there's a blizzard. The weather is actually ideal for running, if it weren't for the storms around. Breathing is easy, it's neither hot nor cold, it's not blowing, it's drizzling here and there. 

Behind Orlova, however, the storms are approaching us, we see lightning ahead on the ridge and it looks like we are running directly towards its embrace. So we choose to traverse Bartková just below the summit. We ignore the turn to the well (the sign says that it is a 200m detour) and rush into the Knee timber area. There we feel safer, our heartbeats calm down and our mouths finally open up 😂 we are no longer the highest points (lightning rods) on the ridge. Fortunately, the storm passed us by again. In fact, it swirled around us all day, but we kept missing each other.

Before Andrejcová, we run into the fairy-tale forest and enjoy a pleasant single trail in the blueberry row, we pass the finish mast of the Andrejcová Vertical race and we roll down to the shelter. Martin is waiting for us there (who has since moved on, scared off Pohorela's residents with his white van and from there made his way up) in a photographic pose. I say to Katka - come next to me, so you can be seen in the photo. We put on the Hollywood running style and approach Martin with a Hollywood smile. He is not holding a cell phone and taking pictures, though, but he's squeezing a tube of pikao and sucking on that sweet ivy. Well then 😂 It didn't work out. And apparently we could be heard from a mile away, so he ordered us a Cola, which was waiting for us on the table. What a treat.

We refuel with energy, sit down, chat with the hotel staff about all sorts of things - about mountains, running, races, weather, fill up what we need, empty what we need, this break suited us very well. A balm for everything.

Under the relentless thunder, we continue along a nice trail over the Heľpiansky vrch to Priehybka, a picturesque pass. Thunder doesn't bother me anymore, I am actually getting used to it and stop noticing it.

An ascent to Veľká Vápenica awaits us. It looks long and steep from Priehybka, it is not so visible in the photo. But we climbed up fast, I don't even know how. Of course, it poured quite decently at the top, so there was no time for loosing time and we went down an epic thick run to the pass of Priehyba (be careful not to confuse Priehybka with Priehyba!).

 

The trail is magical at first, runnable, leading through bright green flora, with beautiful views - we take a few photos, shoot a few videos, we just can't help it. However, it soon turns into a fight between us and steep downhill. Steeply down rocky - spicy terrain, wet and muddy after the rain, zigzagging high above the pass for an endless time. We progressed carefully. After all, we're not in a race.

In Priehyba we meet a large Czech group huddled under a shelter, with many children and heavy backpacks. They said to be going from Andrejcová to Ramža. We're wondering how they are all going to fit in that Ramža shelter... and I'm sure they still have a long distance to go, to fight their way there with all those children. Katka comments with a loud laugh: "Excuse me, but I feel like I'm in some Czech movie 😂 Like Sneženky a machři!" "Good thing it's not, Homolkovi 🤣" (both are excellent and famous Czech movies, I recommend).

After some shoe maintenance, we rush onto the next steep ascent up Kolesárová. Katka automatically runs along a nice road first - a cycle path turning to the left. However, I notify her in time and head for an inconspicuous path in the thicket, soaked with water after the rain. From this moment on, we are completely wet from head to toe and we won't get dry until somewhere up at Zadna hoľa. Andrejcova's Cola, my croissant and the energy drink really clicked into my blood now. I feel good on my feet, the path goes by fast, there are views over the forest again. I am fascinated by the mist rising from the valleys. Ignoring my soaked feet, I wipe my wet hands in an even wetter skirt, take out my phone and take a picture or two.

Even this weather has its charm. The air is refreshing and breathable, the Kolesárová ridge also provides us with luxurious wellness such as bath in a bush full of cold rainwater, an anti-cellulite massage with blueberries full of cold rainwater, a splash with branches full of cold rainwater, which cannot be avoided. Cold raindrops trickle down past my ears, down my neck and under my T-shirt, which is already soaked through to the skin, the skin on my fingers is shrinking from the wetness and I don't better think about my toes. Good thing I put Vaseline on them this morning. The skirt is also soaked to the skin. Quite simply, we are soaked to the last cell. But we don't mind. We just jump and scream when we get another fresh splash of cold rainwater down our necks.

Here, somewhere, we're catching up with three guys in orange raincoats. Actually, we saw them already from Vápenica, they were climbing up Kolesárová. They say they also go to Čertovica and they want to cover the whole ridge all the way to Donovaly. Behind Sedlo Oravcová we will definitely escape them. By the way, Sedlo Oravcová (pass) is not in the pass at all, but in the middle of the climb to Oravcová, right? OK.

  

After a while, we reach the open part of the ridge again with beautiful views of the High Tatras and a hill called Veľký bok on one side, and the Horehronie basin on the other. The clouds are already high, I think the thunder has stopped for a while. We take a longer break at Zadná hola, have a snack, chill, take pictures, chat, enjoy the views and chase away bugs - mutants. I look at Veľký bok, which gave me and my friend Michal so much trouble a week ago. From this side, it really looks big and its back is long. So I can confirm my feelings about this mountain from a week ago and I am satisfied.

After feeding both body and soul, we continue through Sedlo Homôľka and Havrania poľana on an endless traverse in the direction of Ramža. I tell Katka - first we have to get to such a little pass, and from there it is still a kilometer away. However, I had already forgotten that the traverse never ends, that there are two little passes and that Ramža is still nowhere around. We try to run along a wild path through the forest, winding up and down and up and down, full of roots and insidious stumps sticking out of the ground, but invisible under the lush vegetation that covers the path. We stumble regularly, cursing to be heard only. With one such stumble, Katka gracefully flies off about a meter and lands in a blueberry, fortunately saved by her poles. But it was some decent leap though. We arrive at the first pass, where a group of people ask us if we are running voluntarily. I answer that by force. I force her to run and she forces me 😆. But they were more likely referring to whether we were running from a bear. To tell the truth, during the whole time we didn't come across any traces of a bear, not a rustle or bustle, just a little smell here and there, but otherwise nothing. We continue on and Katka thunders, where the fuck is that Ramža. I tell her that this was not the pass I had in mind.

We run through the forest section again with a trail of a similar nature and we will have a view of another long traverse, at the end of which is THE pass. It seems so far away... Katka says that I've taken away her illusions. I answer her that I now remembered exactly the same feelings that I experienced here last fall, when I was here for the first time. But I console her that we will make it through without even noticing, although it seems far. Eventually we get there and after last year's experience, I will make sure that we continue from the pass using the correct turn (again, inconspicuous, hidden in thick vegetation) and we finally arrive at Ramža. We reassess and recalculate, considering whether to go to the well to refill the water. To be honest, we don't want to. Katka doesn't have water anymore, but I still have water supplies (in fact, I'll just pray that I have supplies 😂 because I have water at the back in my hydro pack and I can't be bothered to fold the vest and check the status. But it's still flowing well through the tube). Anyway, if we run out of water, Katka will mobilize Martin to go from Čertovica to meet us and save us from dying of thirst.

The last 7 km to Čertovica await us. The sun is already shining cheerfully on us, it's hot, we've dried nicely. I'm still doing well, I manage to trot, I enjoy the narrow path winding through grass and forest and thicket and again through forest and again grass. After a while I shout to Katka that we are already in Bacúšské sedlo. A loud sigh of relief can be heard. Right before the pass, we meet a nice and friendly hiker and Katka tells him that she remembers him from Sološnica. Two weeks ago, her boys were finishing the SNP route there, and he was just starting out. And now, two weeks later, we meet him in Bacúšske sedlo. It's a small world.

The next - and last - waypoint - is Sedlo za Lenivou. I can see Beňuška hill in the distance and I know exactly where the pass is. It seems to be a long way off. But I know that's how it is in the mountains - when something seems to be close, you can count on it being f***ing far away. Well, the opposite is also true - if the place seems terribly far away, you'll be there in no time, and you don't even know how. And so it was. The last forest section, I run out from behind the bushes and there lurks the desired  Sedlo za Lenivou.

I'll wait for Katka, we snap a selfie and we'll run down the last two kilometers to Čertovica. We evaluate today's day and performance. At the beginning, when Katka asked me what time I estimated it would take, I thought about it and said around 10 hours, even with all the breaks at Kráľová hoľa, Andrejcová, enjoying the views, taking pictures, replenishing energy, mining strength from somewhere nowhere in time of crises... We took just a few photos due to the weather, as we wanted to hurry away from the storms, then our hands were so wet that we didn't even want to take out our mobile phones. In the end, it resulted in 38 beautiful photos uploaded to Strava 😂🤣

... and I really hit the nail on the head with my time estimate. I guess I already know us quite well 😁. We reached the finish line in 10 hours and 6 minutes, our only today's fan and support in one person - Katka's Martin - is faithfully waiting for us in the parking lot, and this time he is really taking pictures and filming with his mobile phone... 😄. In the race, with such a time, we would have been in the last positions, but today we did not race. We went to enjoy a beautiful day in mountains and go for a good  run. And that's what we did. The Eastern ridge of Low Tatras may not seem as attractive as the Western one, but it has a lot to offer. It's beautiful, it's wild, it's challenging, but you'll fall in love with it.

At Čertovica, I felt that I still had some spare energy and would be able to continue. Maybe some other time 😎