Okrąglik

Okrąglik (Slovak Kruhliak) is a summit about 1,101 m high in the border range of the Western Bieszczady, on the frontier between Poland and Slovakia (the Slovak part of the mountains is called the Bukovské vrchy). It stands on the main Carpathian ridge between Rypy to the west and Płasza to the east, east of the Ruské sedlo saddle. Okrąglik is a junction peak: the Jasło ridge branches off north-west towards Cisna, and a few hundred metres to the south-east there is a second junction where the ridge culminating in Fereczata begins.

The Polish part belongs to Cisna commune (Lesko County, Subcarpathian Voivodeship), the Slovak part to the cadastre of Stakčín in Snina District, above the vanished village of Ruské. Water from the southern slopes flows via the Kuzmovský potok to the Cirocha in the Laborec basin, from the eastern slopes via the Bystry stream to the Wetlinka, and from the western slopes via the Roztoczka to the Solinka in the Vistula basin.

How to get there / trails

Several trails meet on Okrąglik. From the Polish side (times from Polish Wikipedia):

• the red Main Beskid Trail — from the village of Smerek via Fereczata 3 h 15 min (2 h 30 min down), from Cisna via Małe Jasło and Jasło 4 h (3 h down), from the top of Jasło only 30 min;
• the blue Biała – Grybów trail — from the pass above Roztoki Górne 1 h 40 min (1 h down), from Riaba Skała along the ridge 3 h 30 min.

On the Slovak side the red East Carpathian Trail crosses the summit. The easiest ascent is from the village of Runina: the blue trail to the saddle below Ďurkovec and then the red one via Pľaša (about 4 h 45 min), or via the abandoned village of Ruské and the Ruské sedlo (about 4 h 50 min).

What you can see from the summit

The summit itself is mostly wooded but gives a good view to the Slovak side, into the Ruská kotlina basin. Open spots on the ridge show the Bukovské vrchy peaks, the Slanské and Vihorlat hills, the Polish Bieszczady and the Ukrainian Carpathians. A full all-round panorama is available from neighbouring Jasło, about 25–30 minutes' walk from Okrąglik.

Nature and history

According to Polish Wikipedia, the 1,101 m height given on maps refers to the trail junction on the border below the top; the true summit lies on the Polish side, right next to the border, at about 1,106 m. Among plants rare in Poland, the purple hellebore (Helleborus purpurascens) has been recorded here. The Polish part lies in the Cisna-Wetlina Landscape Park, the Slovak part in Poloniny National Park and the Bukovské vrchy Natura 2000 site. According to Slovak Wikipedia, the area is the darkest in Slovakia in terms of light pollution, and the country's first dark-sky park, Poloniny, was established here.

Okrąglik is sometimes mentioned in connection with a rather mysterious crash of a military aircraft during the Second World War.

Safety, season and rules

The trails have no difficult sections, but they are long walks along a remote wooded ridge far from villages: plan your time and carry enough water. In winter the snow is deep. The border with Slovakia is an internal Schengen border: crossing on marked trails is allowed, but carry an identity document. On the Slovak side (Poloniny National Park) keep to marked trails. On the Polish side help comes from the Bieszczady group of GOPR: 985 or +48 601 100 300; on the Slovak side from HZS: 18 300 (+421 18 300). The general emergency number is 112.

Photos: Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0; Milan Bališin, CC BY-SA 4.0 — Wikimedia Commons.