Biały Potok Shepherd's Hut, Witów: oscypek and cheese workshops

Biały Potok meadow in the village of Witów lies between the entrances to two of the most visited Tatra valleys, Chochołowska and Kościeliska. Several wooden shepherd's huts stand here beside the road to Zakopane, and the middle one, opposite house no. 314 next to a large wooden oscypek figure, belongs to the family that sells its cheese as "Bacówka na Polanie Biały Potok". The owners say pastoral traditions on this meadow go back to the 17th century.

The main product is oscypek, a hard smoked spindle-shaped cheese with a carved pattern, protected in the EU as a Protected Designation of Origin. The hut stresses that its oscypek holds a quality certificate: by the rules it is made from at least 60% sheep's milk with a little cow's milk, brined and smoked over hardwood, alder or beech. The recipe, the owners say, has been handed down from father to son for several hundred years.

Why go

This is one of the few places below the Tatras where genuine seasonal oscypek can be bought right by the road, without a long hike. The cheeses are brought out still warm from the smokehouse, so you can taste them on the spot. Live sheep stand in the pen next door, and inside the old hut there is a display of traditional shepherd's equipment: wooden moulds, milk vessels and tubs.

The highlight is the oscypek-making workshop. Participants watch how the baca warms the curd, presses out the whey and packs the cheese into a carved mould, and then shape an oscypek of their own. It is a good option for families with children and for anyone not planning long walks. Arrange the time and price of a workshop by phone in advance.

What to taste and buy

• Oscypek — certified, made from sheep's milk with some cow's milk; available only in the grazing season.
• Bundz — young sheep's cheese: smoked, salted or marinated.
• Żętyca — sheep's whey, the shepherds' traditional drink; sold on site only.
• Bryndza, small cheeses, smoked gołki and "shepherd's barrel" cheese — oscypek's relatives in other shapes.
• Korbacze (korboce) — braided string cheese, white and smoked.
• To go with the cheese: cranberry and lingonberry preserves, plus honey.

As a guide, the hut's online shop listed these prices in October 2026: smoked gołki 14–22 zł, smoked barrel cheese 25 zł, korbacze 6 zł, honey 40–50 zł. Ask on site for the price of oscypek.

Practical information

Address: Witów 314a (opposite no. 314), 34-512 Witów. The hut stands right by road 958 from Zakopane to Chochołów, about 8 km from central Zakopane, next to the "Biały Potok" stops served by minibuses heading to the Chochołowska Valley. If you come by car, look for a spot by the road; no walking is needed to reach the hut.

Season: fresh oscypek from early May to mid-October, while the sheep graze on the Tatra pastures. According to Google Maps the hut is open daily 8:30–18:00 (as of October 2026); be sure to phone before a workshop. Some cheeses and honey can be ordered for delivery through the website.

Contacts: Ela +48 513 558 105, Jurek +48 501 293 580, [email protected].

Nearby

• Chochołowska Valley — the entrance is a few minutes' drive south-west; on Chochołowska Glade other shepherd's huts work in summer.
• Kościeliska Valley with the shepherd's hut at Kiry — about 2 km east.
• Chochołów, the wooden village, and Chochołowskie Termy — about 8 km north.

Official website: bacowka-bialypotok.pl

Photos: bacowka-bialypotok.pl.