Kamzík

Kamzík (German Gemsenberg, Hungarian Zerge-hegy) is a 439 m summit of the Little Carpathians standing right above Bratislava, about 3 km north-west of the city centre. It is one of the most accessible mountains in the Carpathians: you can get there by city transport and then walk up or take a chairlift. The nearest part of the city is Koliba at its south-eastern foot; administratively the hill lies in the Bratislava Region, in Bratislava III District, within the Vinohrady cadastral area.

Kamzík lies on the south-eastern edge of the range, in the Pezinok Carpathians geomorphological subunit, in their section called Homoľské Karpaty, and belongs to the main crest of the Little Carpathians. To the west lie Devínska Kobyla (514 m) and Sitina (264 m), to the south the castle hill, to the north-east Chlmec (383 m) and to the north Hrubý Drieňovec (397 m). The northern and western slopes are drained by the Vydrica, which flows to the Danube, while smaller streams collect the water from the southern and eastern slopes. The summit is covered with beech forest; it is part of the Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area and of the Bratislava Forest Park recreation zone.

How to get there / routes

A paved road accessible to cars leads to Kamzík via Koliba. By public transport you can take a trolleybus to the Koliba stop and continue on foot, or a bus to the Lanovka stop and ride the chairlift. The chairlift, about 1 km long, has operated since 1972 from the Železná studnička valley.

• Red trail – the Heroes of the SNP trail (also part of the European E8): from Devín via Devínska Kobyla and Slavín, or from the north via the Spariská and Pod Chlmcom junctions.
• Other marked trails: from the Lamač district, from the main railway station via Koliba, from Krásna hôrka on Koliba and from the Slovak Hiking Club (KST) headquarters on Záborského street via Briežky.

Sources give no official walking times. There are many shelters around the summit and several springs nearby.

What you can see from the summit

The forest on the summit blocks the view, which opens only from spots with lower vegetation. The TV tower with its rotating restaurant, however, offers a unique all-round view: many peaks of the Little Carpathians, the Borská and Danubian lowlands and, in good conditions, Považský Inovec, Tribeč, the Pavlov Hills in Moravia and, to the south-west, the foothills of the Alps. There is also a wooden lookout tower nearby with a view over Bratislava.

Nature and history

Kamzík's hallmark is the 194 m television tower. Its foundation stone was laid in 1967 and it was completed in 1975, replacing an older tower from 1956. It was designed by Stanislav Májek, Jakub Tomašák, D. Ferenčík and Juraj Kozák. The restaurant and viewing platform are 70 m above the ground, with the tables on a rotating platform. Hungarian Wikipedia calls the tower the tallest structure in Bratislava. Next to the tower there is a café and restaurant, and in the surroundings a hotel, the Koliba Expo exhibition centre, a bobsleigh track, a ski lift, several chalets and car parks.

Below the summit stands a memorial to the soldiers who fell in the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 – the last fighting of that war took place here. Another monument commemorates the victory over the Turks in 1683.

The name probably comes from the German Gemsenberg, "hill of the wild goats", after stray town goats that grazed on its slopes. An alternative explanation derives it from the German word gahns, a rubble heap, after the stones carried into piles from the newly founded vineyards.

Safety, season and rules

Kamzík is a city hill suitable for a walk in any season. A paved road reaches the summit, so expect cyclists on the paths and cars on the approach to the tower. In winter a ski lift operates here and the paths can be slippery. The hill lies in a Protected Landscape Area, so look after the forest and take your litter home. In the Slovak mountains help comes from the Mountain Rescue Service HZS: 18 300 (+421 18 300) or 112.

Interesting facts

• Kamzík is one of the best-known summits of the Little Carpathians precisely because of the TV tower, which can be seen from almost all of Bratislava.
• Platform C on the tower, once open to visitors, was closed in 1997 because of dangerously strong winds.
• In good weather even the Alps can be seen from the tower.

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