Bajków Groń

Bajków Groń (also simply Groń) is a wooded 716 m summit in the western part of the Pieninki, a ridge of the Pieniny proper, inside the Pieniny National Park. Administratively it belongs to Krościenko nad Dunajcem (Nowy Targ County, Lesser Poland Voivodeship). It lies about 1.3 km from Trzy Korony, 0.8 km from Zamkowa Góra and 0.9 km from the Szopka pass; Białe Skały, Czerteż and Sokolica follow along the ridge to the east.

The present name combines the names of two small neighbouring tops – Bojków (originally Bańków, about 685 m) and Groń (716 m). To the west the mountain borders on Wysoki Dział. The northern slopes fall to the Łanny stream valley, the steeper southern ones to the upper valley of the Pieniński Potok, which flows about 100 m lower.

How to get there / routes

The summit itself is closed to visitors and the trails bypass it, but right next to it, at 689 m north-west of the top, lies one of the key trail junctions of the Pieniny. Two routes meet here:

• the yellow trail Krościenko – Szopka pass – Sromowce Niżne, which traverses the mountain on the west: from Krościenko to the junction about 1 h 10 min (down 55 min), from the Szopka pass 25 min (back 30 min);
• the blue Main Pieniny Trail Trzy Korony – Czerteż – Sokolica – Szczawnica. At the junction it branches east and traverses the northern slope as the Sokola Perć: from Trzy Korony about 1 h (back 1 h 15 min), from Czerteż 45 min (back 50 min), from Sokolica 1 h 35 min, from Szczawnica 2 h 50 min (down 2 h 35 min).

Bajków Groń is the natural link between the Trzy Korony massif and the Sokola Perć, so most classic Pieniny traverses pass this junction.

The view from the summit

The top and most of the slopes are forested, so the mountain itself has no viewpoints. Open views are found at the neighbouring glades on the passes – Istebki and Wymiarki; there used to be more open ground here. Bajków Groń itself is easy to pick out from the Wydziorki glade below Czoło and from the Pieniny castle on Zamkowa Góra.

Nature and history

There are rocks on the northern slopes and a cave known as Schronisko w Bajków Groniu on the southern side. The area is known for its rich butterfly fauna, studied here in 1906–1909 by the entomologist Ludwik Sitowski. In 1939 the traveller Tadeusz Milicki enthused about the "enchanted" glades full of multicoloured flowers, dotted with clumps of pale beeches, dark spruces, bluish firs and silver birches.

Safety, season and rules

The paths around Bajków Groń are easy, but the Sokola Perć further east is rocky, with ladders and exposed sections that become slippery after rain and in winter. Strict rules apply in the Pieniny National Park: walk only on marked trails (no climbing on rocks, no stepping onto meadows or beyond railings), stay in the park only in daytime – from an hour before sunrise to an hour after sunset – and do not bring dogs, fly drones, camp or light fires. The trails are free; from 1 April to 15 November only the viewing platforms on Trzy Korony and Sokolica charge a fee (10 PLN, reduced 5 PLN). The Dunajec ferry in Szczawnica is seasonal.

The Pieniny are covered by the mountain rescue service GOPR (Podhale group): call 985 or +48 601 100 300, or 112; installing the "Ratunek" app is a good idea.

Interesting facts

• The name is a "merger" of two neighbouring tops, Bojków (Bańków) and Groń.
• Although no trail reaches the summit, the junction just below it is one of the most important waymarked crossroads in the Pieniny.

Photos: Jerzy Opioła, CC BY-SA 4.0; Jerzy Opioła, CC BY-SA 4.0; Jerzy Opioła, CC BY-SA 4.0; Andrzej Otrębski, CC BY-SA 4.0 — Wikimedia Commons.