Hiking Sucha Bela in Slovak Paradise National Park, Slovakia

I visited Slovakia in November 2015 with a friend of mine who was travelling around Europe for six months. We tended to stay out of the big cities and instead focused on national parks and hiking.

We drove from Bratislava to Kosice, essentially one side of Slovakia to the other, over six days. This took us past Slovensky raj or Slovak Paradise National Park. We got up early one morning and decided to take the Sucha Bela trail after reading good things about it.

The trail takes you uphill following a stream most of the way. I found out after hiking this stunning walk that there can be up to 1000 visitors a day on it in summer. When we visited we were the only ones on the trail and had stunning autumn colours surrounding us.

A lot of this walk at the beginning takes you across wooden steps and bridges, then you start to climb a few ladders and steps alongside cliff edges. The ladders certainly tested me and my fear of heights!

Towards the end of this hike you'll stop following the stream and find yourself in a more open wooded area. When you reach the top you can take a nice easy path back down to the carpark. I highly recommend this great hike in a beautiful part of the world. Especially if you can get here at a quieter time of year and not with the crowds. The changing scenery, challenging ladders and stunning waterfalls make it a memorable experience. Until next time... x