Zadni Staw Polski

Zadni Staw Polski (the Rear Polish Pond), or simply Zadni Staw, is a glacial lake in the High Tatras, the highest of the larger lakes of the Valley of the Five Polish Ponds (Tatra National Park). It is also called the Pond under Koło: the lake lies in Dolinka pod Kołem, the upper "storey" of the valley, which hangs above it on a rock step about 100 m high. The little valley is named after Koło, a large grassy slope at the foot of Świnica.

It is an oval cirque lake: its basin on the floor of a glacial cirque was scoured out by ice. The water surface lies at 1,890 m, making it the second-highest lake in Poland after the tiny Zadni Mnichowy Stawek. It covers 6.47 ha and is 31.6 m deep. The basin is closed by a rock bar on which an unusually oblique terminal moraine up to 15 m high lies. Above the water rise Zawratowa Turnia, Świnica, Walentkowy Wierch and Liptowskie Mury, the border ridge with Slovakia. South-east of the lake, below Gładka Przełęcz, lies little Wole Oko (1,867 m); the two lakes are linked by a stream that often disappears under the stones.

Zadni Staw is one of the coldest places in the Polish Tatras: in winter record-thick ice forms on it — in 1938 it reached 3.75 m. The huge boulders (up to 15 m across) on the eastern shore come from rockfalls off the Kołowa Czuba massif at the end of the Ice Age: they fell onto the surface of the melting glacier and therefore did not shatter.

What to see and do

• A high-mountain cirque — dark water among boulder fields, beneath the walls of Świnica and Zawratowa Turnia; snow patches often linger here even in summer.
• The view from above — the lake can be seen from the path to Zawrat, from Gładki Wierch and from Szpiglasowa Przełęcz, which show its oval basin and the moraine wall well.
• Wole Oko — the smallest, seasonal pool of the valley, most probably the reason why "six" ponds were named "five".

How to get there

First you have to reach the PTTK hut above Przedni Staw Polski: from Palenica Białczańska (990 m) along the road to Morskie Oko for 2.9 km to Wodogrzmoty Mickiewicza (Mickiewicz Waterfalls), then the green trail up the Roztoka valley past Wielka Siklawa Waterfall (1 h 20 min to the junction) and the black trail to the hut (40 min). From the hut the blue trail to the Zawrat pass (2,159 m) leads past Wielki Staw Polski and through Dolinka pod Kołem, where Zadni Staw lies; the whole section from the hut to Zawrat takes 1 h 40 min, 1 h 30 min down. It is part of the Przełęcz między Kopami – Zawrat – Five Polish Ponds Valley Hut route, which crosses over from the Gąsienicowa valley. The ascent from Palenica is about 900 m: a long day in the high mountains for fit hikers only, not for children or prams. Leaving the trail to walk down to the shore is not allowed in TPN — enjoy the lake from the path.

Season and safety

The TPN entry ticket costs 11 zł, reduced 5.50 zł, children under 7 free; parking at Palenica Białczańska requires an e-ticket (36–75 zł online), as of October 2026. From 1 March to 30 November walking on the trails between dusk and dawn is prohibited. Swimming and washing in the lakes is not allowed; dogs, drones and tents are banned in TPN. The best time is July to September. As of 26 October 2026 TPN warns of fresh snow and ice above the tree line. In winter the slopes of Dolinka pod Kołem are avalanche-prone, and the way up to Zawrat from the Gąsienicowa side is fitted with chains and clamps. TOPR mountain rescue: 985 or 601 100 300.

Nearby

• Czarny Staw Polski — a deep lake below Liptowskie Mury.
• Wielki Staw Polski — the deepest lake of the Tatras.
• Świnica and Kozi Wierch — summits above the valley.

Official website: tpn.gov.pl

Photos: Opioła Jerzy, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons; Aawiosnaa, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Jakub Hałun, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Aneta Pawska, CC BY-SA 3.0 pl, Wikimedia Commons; Opioła Jerzy, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Rafał Kozubek, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.