Malý Ľadový štít

Malý Ľadový štít (formerly Ľadová kopa; Polish Lodowa Kopa; German Markasitturm) is a 2602 m summit on the main ridge of the Slovak High Tatras. It is one of the ten highest peaks of the High Tatras and stands about 16 km north of Poprad, above Tatranská Lomnica. To the south-east, in the basin of the Five Spiš Tarns, stands the Téryho chata hut. The mountain lies in Poprad District of the Prešov Region, on the boundary between the town of Vysoké Tatry and the municipality of Tatranská Javorina.

From afar Malý Ľadový štít may look like a side summit of the neighbouring Ľadový štít (2627 m), but it is clearly separated from it by the Ľadová štrbina notch. On the other side, between Malý Ľadový štít and Široká veža (2461 m), lies the Sedielko saddle. The mountain has two tops: the main north-western one and a south-eastern one a few metres lower. A long ridge runs south-west and ends at Pfinnova kopa. The south face drops into the Dolinka pod Sedielkom, the east face into the Five Spiš Tarns basin and the western slopes into the Zadná Javorová dolina valley.

How to get there / routes

There is no marked trail to the summit. The peak lies within the Javorová dolina and Studené doliny national nature reserves of the Tatra National Park (TANAP), so there is no free access: you may go up only with a licensed mountain guide (horský vodca); only climbers go on their own, under the park rules.

• The nearest marked trail is the green one: from Tatranská Javorina up the Javorová dolina valley to the Sedielko saddle and on to the Téryho and Zamkovského huts. The saddle is about 360 m from the summit.
• The usual guided ascent starts from Sedielko – a relatively accessible route, which is why the peak is visited fairly often.

What you can see from the top

The rocky summit gives an all-round view. Thanks to its height it opens a clear view of most High Tatra peaks – Ľadový, Lomnický, Kežmarský and Pyšný štít, Baranie rohy, Slavkovský štít – of the ridge of the Belianske Tatras and the surrounding valleys and, in good visibility, of the mountains of central and eastern Slovakia and southern Poland.

Nature and history

Hunters from the Polish village of Jurgów knew the way up from the Sedielko side and straight from the Javorová valley long ago. The first recorded tourist ascent was on 22 September 1835, when the naturalists Johann Heinrich Blasius, Gustav Hartlaub and Alexander Keyserling climbed it with the Javorina forester Simon Fischer and hunters from Jurgów. The first winter ascent was made by Włodzimierz Mostowski, Kazimierz Piotrowski and Stanisław Sierakowski on 2 February 1914.

For climbers the main attraction is the south face, which carries many routes up to grade VI. It was first climbed on 22 August 1912 by Alfréd Grósz, Tibold Kregczy and Lajos Rokfalusy; the story of the ascent inspired the film Cesta k slnku (1948). The German and Hungarian names probably come from the mineral marcasite, with its brassy-yellow metallic lustre.

Safety, season and rules

The approach to Sedielko is a high-mountain trail above the tree line: loose stone, snowfields into summer and fast-changing weather. From 1 November to 31 May TANAP closes its high-mountain trails for the season. Non-climbers may not go to the summit itself without a guide. In the Slovak mountains help comes from the Mountain Rescue Service HZS: 18 300 (+421 18 300) or 112.

Interesting facts

• The Polish name Mały Lodowy Szczyt refers to the neighbouring Široká veža – the names are often confused.
• Older surveys gave heights of 2602, 2603 and even 2611 m.

Photos: Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Branork, CC BY-SA 2.5; Rafał Kozubek, CC BY-SA 3.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Wikimol, CC BY-SA 3.0 — Wikimedia Commons.